Lately I've noticed that there is a tendency to accept a right wing talking point as gospel...that right wingers will line up to vote against Hillary Clinton, but that they will somehow stand down if our nominee is Barack Obama.
Does anyone here think that the Republicans will treat Barack Obama differently in the general than they would Hillary Clinton? Does. anyone. REALLY. think that?
I've been a lurker here for a long time. I've posted a few comments here and there, but mostly my view gets covered by someone much more eloquent, so I rarely bother.
Follow me below the fold to find out why I bothered this time, and share in my very first diary.
Anybody remember their first foray into the shark infested political waters? For me, it was in 1986 when I headed to a local junior high school to see a debate between then senate candidates Barbara Mikulski and Linda Chavez (yes, THAT Linda Chavez). A little old lady asked a pretty innocuous question about our military. Ms. Chavez made it a point to call Ms. Mikulski a "San Fransisco Democrat" more than once in her response. After I found out what a "San Fransisco Democrat" was, I decided that someone's sexual orientation had absolutely no basis in whether they could support our troops. All these years later, Senator Mikulski has been a stalwart for veteran's rights, proving I was correct way back then.
But that didn't stop Linda Chavez from saying it, and it ain't gonna stop the Repubs come this fall. Castigating undecided dems who are leaning one way or another isn't going to change that anytime soon.
Lest we forget that the treatment of the Clintons through the nineties was not in any way rescinded when Mr. Gore ran for president. In fact, I think it got even worse. And last election cycle, it got so bad, we even got a new word from it: swiftboating.
Does anyone think they will treat Barack Obama any differently than Hillary Clinton? Does. anyone. REALLY. think that? I have some Enron stock to sell if you do...
Look, the battle of nasty politics predates the Clintons, and no audacious call for hope is going to stop the opposition from stooping. We'd better see what they have coming, up to and including the dirty tricks they play on the ground with voting rights.
Politics ain't pretty, and if they want it, (B & H), they're gonna hafta fight for it. NOTHING we do now is going to compare with the tactics they'll use on the other side, so we should at least be prepared.
So if Hillary was mum about, and thereby aided union busting while she served on the board at Wal mart...have at it. If Barack Obama had a shady deal with some Resko guy, BRING IT. Did Bill Clinton call Barack's opposition to the Iraq war a fairy tale or was it BO's whole campaign? TALK ABOUT IT. WAS BO referring to HRC when he was chanting "No Bush" in SC? After all, there's no Bush running this time. I dunno, but I'll be damned if some punk's gonna tell me I can't ask the question.
We can't afford to rest of our laurels OR empty assurances when it comes to this historic election. Anybody remember how John Kerry said he was going to fight if there were voting irregularities? We all see how far our taking his word for it got us. I will take nothing for granted. I owe it to our future generations to weigh everything carefully. I won't be bullied into voting for anyone just to prove that I am neither racist or sexist so...
I hope everyone does as well. BRING IT!!!!!