With regard to today’s program, we’ll tackle the second half first, which featured David Brooks, EJ Dionne and Michele Norris. They’re all reputable of course, and this column prefers certain commentators to others, no secret there. Today, it was very evident that in spite of having three insightful voices, it seems there really isn’t much more to say at this point. The conversation primarily focused on Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, as is the case with every with every political forum, at the moment, and we know the candidates are bruised and beaten up. Questions like “How can Hillary win the nomination at this point? Can Barack Obama overcome relentless (trivial) attacks?” On and on and on. Debates such as the one on ABC this week only add to this Democratic misery. So what can these individuals on today Meet The Press offer at this point, not much. Let’s face it. The one exception was a point made by David Brooks with regard to the Middle East, in which Hillary Clinton said that if Iran attacked another country in the region that the United States would come to that country’s defense. This is a significant policy statement and Mr. Brooks was shocked that this hasn’t warranted more discussion and his reaction is spot on. However, when a point like this comes up in the midst of silliness (i.e. the ABC debate), of course it is going to be lost in the haze. Oh, and by the way, that position that Mrs. Clinton has taken is an extremely dangerous one, especially given our untenable commitment in Iraq.
The commentary provided in the second half of the show only eluded to the point-counterpoint discussion of the first half that featured the two chief strategists for the Clinton and Obama campaigns respectively – David Axelrod representing Barack Obama and Geoff Garin for Mrs. Clinton. Both individuals spent the first five minutes stumbling over response ads and repudiations… Oh my. Mr. Garin stated that Mrs. Clinton is all about solutions and Mr. Axelrod rebutted that no Clinton would change the way in which Washington, and of course by extension the country, is run. He said, he said – surrogates for the he said, she said…. Oh my.
There seems to be a general consensus that Hillary Clinton is better than her campaign and that it is not reflective of who she really is. Pundits are saying this and it’s entirely ridiculous, a lame excuse. She is the campaign! By that rationale, George W. Bush is a much better president than his record shows or how his administration acts. The buck stops here is what Truman said. Today’s equivalent would be Mrs. Clinton saying the 50 cents (the dollar is down) stops here, but that’s not my money. Huh?
Given this, it doesn’t help that Geoff Garin would use the excuse that he has only been on the job for two weeks and that he doesn’t know the answers, doesn’t know what ads are running in Pennsylvania and his opponent is better informed about Clinton’s campaign. Are you kidding? Do your homework. This reflects poorly on Mrs. Clinton because she hired him. This is no great insight, just easy observations. And a word of advice for Mrs. Clinton, stay away from the NAFTA debate. Every time it comes up, it sounds like John Kerry on the Iraq War, “I voted against the war after I voted for it,” or whatever. It’s like shooting yourself in the leg – not enough of an injury to get you out of the service, but enough for the other troops to know you’re incompetent. With the trustworthy statistics being what they are for each Democratic candidate (30% Clinton, 53% Obama), it’s like they’re not shooting each other, but more like one shooting himself and then handing the gun to the other. Everyone keeps saying that once the primary is over that all Democrats will be united… provided that someone is left standing on both feet.
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