Sunday’s NY Times reported that Hillary Clinton earlier in May told CNN that “I have concluded (Trump) is not qualified to be president”, which sounds very much like something my late mother (God rest her soul) would say, since she hated to offend people, even those who richly deserved it. Secretary Clinton sounds like she never got over growing up in the 50’s when women didn’t express strong opinions in public. Once again, you can only wonder where Secretary Clinton’s head is and worry about what will happen in the upcoming election.
Having concluded that Trump is not qualified to be president barely scratches the surface of the topic. Trump is completely unqualified to be president, and his election would be a disaster for our country and the world at large. I know that. Almost every Democrat and Independent knows that. Even some Republicans know that. We’ve known this for months and months. How is it that Secretary Clinton has just concluded that Trump is a few sticks short of being qualified to be president? Where has she been for the last almost a year? Does she have trouble drawing conclusions?
Neither Bernie Sanders nor Elizabeth Warren would have put their opposition to Trump’s abilities so minimally. Nor does it seem likely that any Democratic candidate for Senate or Congress would have evaluate Trump in such a low key fashion.
And where is her attack on Trump as a representative of the Republicans who have created so much of a mess in this country? She may only need to attack Trump to be elected, but if she wants the Democrats to at least take back the Senate, she needs to lead the way by pointing out that the Republican party has been wrong on every important public policy issue for the last 50 years. As the Democratic candidate she will be a leader of the Party; she needs to get started on the leading. And a key part of that is to attack Republican policies and explanations for how the economy and society work.
The Times article once again shows how unconnected her campaign is to 2016 and the problems and issues facing the country. Senator Schumer is telling her that she needs a person dedicated to responding to anything Trump says as fast as he says it! Really, Senator??? All that does is give credence to his statements and gets him more free media coverage. But this is what happens when you have a campaign, like Secretary Clinton seems to be planning, which consists only of mud-slinging with Trump. She needs to dump her policy people, bring in people who understand the 21st century and start focusing on what she wants to see happen in the country to fix its problems in 2016. She needs to get out of the 50’s and 90’s and look to the future.
Personally, I think Secretary Clinton needs to look to Abraham Lincoln for guidance. I suggest she start with this: “The dogmas of the quiet past, are inadequate to the stormy present. The occasion is piled high with difficulty, and we must rise with the occasion. As our case is new, so we must think anew, and act anew. We must disenthrall ourselves, and then we shall save our country.” If she is to save the country, she needs to disenthrall herself.