(This is my first diary - pardon any clumsiness)
Dear Abby,
As a liberal and resident of New York State, I find myself filled with doubt about pulling the lever for Hillary in 2006. I fully supported her in 2K despite opponent's cries of "Carpetbagger!" Clumsily bureaucratic as it was, she tried to address health care during Bill's administration; she seemed to have the professional acumen to be a good representative; and, if there are no obvious fatal flaws, I am inclined to vote more women into political offices in order to change the nature of the good old boy's clubs.
Unfortunately, she seems to fit Michael Moore's definition of "Republican Lite," is unwilling to support any real reforms of the system, and I believe that her most recent distancing herself from Representative Murtha's call for a withdrawal from Iraq evinces her true position. HOWEVER...
... however, I certainly want to take the Senate back from the Republican tyranny, and a
(D) appears next to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton's name. What to do?
I am certainly no ideological purist, but as far as I can tell, though Hillary may talk the talk, she rarely walks the walk -- unless it is for strategic positioning. While I strongly disagree with many of our senior Senator Chuck Schumer's positions regarding Middle Eastern geopolitics, he is a strong enough and successful enough advocate for environmental, health care, and other consumer positions that I have felt comfortable enough in voting for him.
Not so Hillary this time around. Her "challenger," Jean Pirro does not seem significantly different from her... except for that (R) next to her name. I am inclined to give my vote to the Working Families or Greens, or someone else, but... we've seen that movie, haven't we?
If the balance of the Senate was hanging by one or two seats, I would cast my vote for Hillary. (If I was in Connecticut I would probably do the same for Joe Lieberman, although I don't think anything would have ever induced me to cast a vote for Zell Miller... gah!) Of course, we never know.
Oh, and if she does go for the Presidency in 2008, my vote will depend entirely on the current Congressional makeup and her choice of VP.
How does one balance out strategy and ideology, the heart and mind? Should I have a serious conference with Jose Cuervo before staggering into the polls? Any counsel is welcome!
Signed,
Confused in New York