Mortal enemies.
Hi there...Scan again. It's Wednesday of my special week curating
Hillary News & Views on behalf of the vacationing Lysis. Got to get over the hump...
You might have heard about the new PPP poll out of New Hampshire that once again shows Bernie Sanders leading by Clinton by 7 points. It's quite an accomplishment for the candidate, his campaign and supporters...and once again, it looks like winning this crucial state will be a great challenge for Hillary.
However, since it smashes the current 'Hillary Doom' narrative to pieces, you might have missed the new Suffolk poll out of an even more crucial state that has Clinton at 54%, Sanders at 20% and Biden at 11%. Basically, it sounds like Iowa Democrats continue to love the lifelong Democrat with the best résumé for the job and it's going to take a lot more than an email server to change that:
“There is a fierce loyalty to Hillary Clinton among likely Democratic caucus-goers in Iowa,” said David Paleologos, director of the Suffolk University Political Research Center in Boston. ...
Clinton’s strongest support was with women, who put her ahead by 43 points, 58 percent to Sanders’ 15 percent and Biden’s 13 percent.
“Historically, Democratic caucuses and primaries turn out a disproportionate amount of women, and Clinton is making the gender advantage work to her advantage,” said Paleologos.
Also, a
new Roanoke College poll has Hillary stomping Trump and edging out the rest of the Republicans in the crucial general election state of Virginia. So, yeah...she's totally doomed.
In a related story, many pundits seem to be drooling at the thought of the Vice President stepping in to save his party from the poor woman who can't even get to a 35-point lead in Iowa. Will he go after Hillary and divide the party in an epic, drawn-out battle for the nomination?
They wish! If Biden jumps in (and it's still a huge if), the idea that he would run a slash-and-burn campaign against his longtime close friend sounds completely destructive and absurd. If anything, we'll likely see them both hold their fire against each other and instead aim it squarely at the Republicans. And hardly anyone so effortlessly slices and dices GOP clowns like our Uncle Joe. Remember when he destroyed the political career of Rudy Giuliani with just one timeless sentence? Just imagine what he would do to Trump!
In fact, longtime Clinton confidant/defender Lanny Davis actually seems halfway thrilled at the thought:
“Look, we need a contest. We have a tremendous lead and tremendous favorable ratings. Let me repeat that: favorable ratings over 70 percent among Democrats,” he said, referencing Clinton’s current wide polling advantage over Biden nationally and in the early states of Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, according to Real Clear Politics averages.
Clinton “has a formidable lead” and “needs competition,” Davis added.
“There’s nobody better than Bernie Sanders, a great man, and Joe Biden,” he said of Clinton’s closest challenger thus far and the vice president, who ran against Clinton for the nomination in 2008 before joining eventual President Barack Obama’s ticket.
“When she wins the nomination over those two great people as the first female president of the United States, it will be much more valuable to have Joe Biden in the race than out of the race,” he said.
Ezra Klein
agrees:
I've come to think it would actually be good for Clinton if Biden entered the race. Part of Clinton's problem right now is that media outlets don't believe the Democratic primary is competitive enough to cover, and so instead of covering the race between Hillary Clinton and her rivals, they're just covering Hillary Clinton. And covering Hillary Clinton means playing by the Clinton rules — covering her scandals, her distance from the press, her inability to "connect."
Clinton's fortunes will improve if and when she's in an actual race. My guess is she'll beat Biden if he runs, but it won't be effortless, and it'll allow Clinton to look like a candidate running for office rather than a dynastic juggernaut awaiting coronation while she swats away questions about secrecy from the press. That's a much better look.
Wait...I thought the current narrative is that Hillary is collapsing and Bernie is nipping at her heels, threatening to become the new frontrunner?
No matter. Joe is a good man who will do whatever he thinks is best for himself, his party, and of course, his country. #WidenTheBiden
Take a moment to read this incredible post from Peter Daou and Tom Watson at #HillaryMen. It perfectly articulates the importance of this historic campaign and candidate:
The 2016 presidential race is an epic battle for the rights, hopes, and dreams of women and girls, embodied in the candidacy of Hillary Clinton. For the men who support those rights and who seek a better world for their daughters, sisters, mothers, grandmothers and spouses, joining that battle is an honorable calling.
It is impossible to fully comprehend the modern American political landscape without appreciating that dynamic.
That is not to say that opposing Hillary’s policies based on ideological principles, or disagreeing with her on specific issues constitutes automatic opposition to women’s equality. The reason we have elections is because no candidate is a perfect fit for every voter.
But what we’re witnessing in 2016 goes far beyond disagreements with a candidate. It is an inflection point in the future of women, the culmination of a decades-long effort by the forces of the past to block that future and to turn the clock back on women's rights.
Take a moment and ponder the fury of the effort to derail Hillary’s campaign, the vitriolic language, the frenzied commentary, the breathless predictions of her imminent demise. Think about the obsessive desire to prove she is losing, the insistence that she is a terrible candidate, the (absurd) claim that Democrats need a man to intervene and save them from “struggling” Hillary, even as she leads nearly two dozen declared and undeclared candidates. Consider the endless barrage of negative adjectives hurled at her by reporters, pundits, politicians, and political operatives, funded and tested by conservative groups, all with the aim of irrevocably damaging her public image. Look at the strange loop created by the national media, where they attack her relentlessly then blame her for being attacked relentlessly.
And what is the flawed assumption underlying the apparent surprise that Hillary isn’t just coasting, unchallenged, to the White House? Was she expected to declare her candidacy and enjoy an unimpeded victory?
Suggesting that the rough and tumble of a presidential race is somehow indicative of a fatal flaw in Hillary’s campaign is just another way to manipulate public perceptions and distort her image. If anything, it is a tribute to Hillary’s incredible strength of character and appeal that she remains so steady while subjected to an all-out assault from the media, commentariat and GOP.
Stop what you're doing and go read the whole thing. Well actually...read to the end of this post, leave a nice comment below
then go back read
the rest of it. :-)
Their state may have a very late primary, but New Jersey Democrats have come out in force to endorse Hillary:
Today, a large contingent of Democratic Party leaders from across the state of New Jersey endorsed Hillary Clinton’s candidacy for the Democratic nomination for President of the United States.
In a letter, New Jersey’s junior U.S. Senator, Cory Booker, several U.S. Representatives, leading state legislators and county chairs from throughout the state wrote: “We believe that your record embodies precisely what our country needs in our next president, and that your policy agenda — one that embraces and emboldens middle class America in a safer, more secure world – offers a vision to keep our country moving forward.”
They also highlighted Hillary Clinton’s unique credentials and unparalleled readiness to both campaign and govern.
During her decades of public service, she has served our nation as an attorney, former First Lady, U.S. Senator, and U.S. Secretary of State. Clinton has long been an advocate for women and children, committed to providing equal opportunity for everyone. And, Clinton has a record of electoral success in the Garden State. Then-Senator Clinton won New Jersey’s Democratic presidential primary election in 2008 by nearly ten percentage points.
“We believe that our sisters, daughters, granddaughters should no longer be forced to look to the presidency and wonder whether gender bars their entry,” they added. “It is not only time to shatter that highest and hardest glass ceiling once and for all, but we are convinced that you are the person who can and will succeed in doing it.”
Finally, Yahoo! Parenting has an interview with Chelsea Clinton as her daughter Charlotte approaches her first birthday. Here are a
couple the questions and answers:
You are helping to launch the #Commit2Ten campaign, challenging the nation to add 10 more minutes of physical activity a day. Do you have tips for parents who want to make exercise a family affair?
One tip is to avoid the word “exercise,” which can be viewed as not fun (or a chore), and to explore physical activities outside the gym. We know from research that if families can find ways to engage in physical activity together, kids are more likely to be active. Family fun runs or walks can be a great way to get everyone outside and moving together. Another idea is to break up physical activity into smaller chunks throughout the day. Walking up the stairs instead of taking the elevator, walking around the block after dinner, even doing jumping jacks while watching TV — it all adds up and all makes a difference. ...
Speaking of childcare, grandparents are often a great source of help. What kind of grandparents are your parents? Do they babysit and change diapers?
I see my parents so much more now than I did before Charlotte, in the sweetest, most wonderful sense! They’re often conveniently in the neighborhood. … I was very close to my grandmother, and I want Charlotte to have the same deep relationship with her grandparents. It has been an unexpected joy watching them read to her, sing to her, help put her to sleep, and even change her diapers. They clearly love her so much, and that only makes me love them more.
For more on Hillary Clinton's campaign for the presidency, check out…
The Hillary 2016 Platform Series
Part 1: Criminal Justice Reform
Part 2: Immigration Reform
Part 3: Voting Rights
Unfiltered Hillary: The Transcripts
August 14, 2015: Iowa Wing Ding Dinner
July 31, 2015: National Urban League
July 20, 2015: Facebook Q&A
July 17, 2015: Iowa State Democratic Party Hall of Fame Dinner
April 23, 2015: Women in the World Summit
Crossposted at Hillary HQ.com, an independent, progressive blog committed to electing Hillary Clinton as the next President of the United States.