When Barack Obama began his candidacy, many in the liberal community had reservations about his cross-party message. Was Obama saying that he wouldn't fight back hard against the GOP and it smear tactics? Was he saying that he'd water down noble goals - health care, worker protections, an end to the Iraq occupation - all in the name of high-mindedness?
Well, we're near the end of Primary season. And it's become clear that just because you vow to work across the aisle, it doesn't mean you have to embrace Republican political tactics. Indeed, if anyone's embraced such tactics in this campaign, it's Hillary Clinton.
This came home to roost for me recently after I saw that Clinton had attempted to resurrect the Rev. Jeremiah Wright controversy after Obama's speech had effectively buried it. Clinton emphatically said that she would have left Wright's church, in marked contrast to Obama's impassioned defense of sticking by his spiritual mentor.
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