I am trying to work out my views about Hillary Clinton as a current and future player in the Democratic Party.
On the one hand, I feel that she has always been subjected to a pervasive double standard for being a whip-smart, ambitious woman involved in politics. I also think that she was put in a damned-if-you-do-damned-if-you-don't position with respect to her husband's infidelity--she would have been just as excoriated for divorcing her husband as for staying with him after the Lewinsky scandal. I was happy to see her finally be elected to public office. And, speaking as a woman, I'm more than a little intrigued by the idea of her running as the first serious woman candidate for the Presidency in 2008. (This is, of course, assuming a Democratic defeat this November. As much as I want ABB to win, I am somewhat of a pessimist. Hey, what can I say, I'm a Texas Democrat.:) )
On the other hand, after the breath of fresh air that Howard Dean has brought to the party this year, I'm not sure if Hillary doesn't represent more of the same-old same-old. Her support for the Iraq war has particularly bothered me. And I can't help thinking that she has chosen her stance on the issues with an eye to a possible presidential run rather than through deep-felt conviction. But by calling her calculated, I feel like I'm buying into the shrill, right-wing vitriol about her.
From scattered references to Hillary here in the diaries, I gather that she isn't a favorite among Kossites, but I could be misinterpreting that. What are your views on this person and why do you think she engenders such endless and raging debate?