Democrats Clash on Health, Trade and Rival Tactics
Hillary rounded on Obama last night, taking him to task on health care, Nafta, Iraq and his political tactics in what has been described as her most "pugnacious" performance so far.
It reminds me of nothing so much as this:As Steve McMahon, a Democratic strategist, told The New York Times: "There's a general rule in politics: a legitimate distinction which could be effective when drawn early in the campaign often backfires and could seem desperate when it happens in the final hours of a campaign."
This has been part of Hillary's problem. Such was her presumption of victory that she failed in the earliest days of the campaign to define Obama and, as she now seeks to define him as the campaign is drawing to close, she's far too late. We have now defined him on terms of our own, and Hillary's attacks now allow Obama - who has streaked ahead of her in almost every measure - to occupy the moral high ground, as he did last night when he graciously accepted Hillary's word that her campaign was not behind the release of photographs of himself in a turban.
However, and I admit that I am so far only reading about this debate, the tone set by Clinton - as reported by The New York Times - certainly sounds like it was off key:
This "poor me, everybody's picking on me" defence is simply not a very clever place to go. Especially when it is generally agreed that the campaign that has lurched towards negativity is your own.Questions about which approach Mrs. Clinton would take to sway voters were quickly answered as she immediately confronted Mr. Obama, and she was relentless throughout the meeting. She insisted on responding to virtually every point that he made — often interrupting the debate moderators, Brian Williams and Tim Russert of NBC, as they tried to move on.
At the same time, it was one of the most detailed and specific of all the debates, with both Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama giving long explanations of their records and views.
Unlike their debate last Thursday, a more cordial affair that ended with Mrs. Clinton saying she was “honored” to share the stage with Mr. Obama, this exchange had a belligerent edge. Mrs. Clinton did not nod along as Mr. Obama made standard Democratic points, as she has been known to do. She was more apt to call him “Senator Obama” than the friendlier “Barack.” She did not smile at him.
“Can I just point out that in the last several debates, I seem to get the first question all the time?” Mrs. Clinton said, to a mix of boos and applause. “I do find it curious, and if anybody saw ‘Saturday Night Live,’ you know, maybe we should ask Barack if he’s comfortable and needs another pillow.”
Mrs. Clinton stared steadily at Mr. Obama with pursed lips and a furrowed brow — sometimes shaking her head energetically or issuing withering looks — as he answered questions. She spoke forcefully at every turn, as she did while arguing that she was the strongest Democrat to face the presumptive Republican nominee, Senator John McCain of Arizona.
“I will have a much better case to make on a range of the issues that, really, America must confront going forward,” Mrs. Clinton said, “and will be able to hold my own and make the case for a change in policy that will be better for our country.”
Obama was easily able to pick Clinton apart because of her support for the war in Iraq:
When she finished speaking, Mr. Obama began a stern criticism of her record on Iraq and her own judgment calls.
“Senator Clinton often says that she is ready on Day 1, but in fact she was ready to give in to George Bush on Day 1 on this critical issue,” Mr. Obama said about the Iraq war. “So the same person that she criticizes for having terrible judgment — and we can’t afford to have another one of those — in fact she facilitated and enabled this individual to make a decision that has been strategically damaging to the United States of America.”And therein lies the rub. For all Clinton may talk of being ready on Day One, her own voting record shows that on issues like Iraq, and on any forthcoming confrontation with Iran, she may simply be offering more of the same. The Democrats have often been so cowed by the Republican charge of lacking patriotism that they have sometimes appeared to be vaulting over themselves to prove their patriotism on purely Republican terms. Obama has proved, through little things like his refusal to wear a stupid bloody badge, that he will not allow his patriotism to be defined on terms set by Republicans. He appears willing to take them on. To challenge and change the terms of the debate.
Obama has consistently done this.
Which is why Hillary attempting to redefine him now, so late in the day, is a complete and utter waste of time.
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