The Huffington Post's Andy Ostroy ("Why Replacing Biden With Hillary Makes Perfect Sense for Obama") is a few days late, but he follows my old blog post from this past Wednesday, "Obama Asks, Hillary Declines, Then The Leak"
Of course I'm coming from a Republican perspective :)
Showing posts with label hillary clinton. Show all posts
Showing posts with label hillary clinton. Show all posts
Sunday, September 14, 2008
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Obama Asks, Hillary Declines, Then The Leak
So my colleague Dan asked me about my thoughts Senator Biden's comment today that "Hillary is a better pick than me."
First, you know this spells trouble for the Obama campaign either way. Biden is feeling the heat and realizes that he's a non-player now with McCain's pick of Palin.
Dan stated that it's not unprecedented for a VP candidate to be replaced mid-campaign This would be a tough call for Obama, but probably the best strategic move. It would be played as huge negative by McCain's campaign, but Hillary's popularity would probably override the negatives.
Question for me is that if Obama asks, will Hillary accept?
I've always thought that the Clintons wanted Obama to lose. My read between the lines on Hillary's speech at the DNC convention confirmed this for me. The Clintons want Obama to lose so that Hillary can win. I bet her desire is even greater with Palin on the Republican ticket and her opportunity to be the historic first woman president in the U.S.
My guess is Clinton would only accept if Obama guaranteed that he will not run for re-election in 2012. This would never happen, so my guess is that Clinton will decline and this will be leaked to the press. Game over for Obama.
First, you know this spells trouble for the Obama campaign either way. Biden is feeling the heat and realizes that he's a non-player now with McCain's pick of Palin.
Dan stated that it's not unprecedented for a VP candidate to be replaced mid-campaign This would be a tough call for Obama, but probably the best strategic move. It would be played as huge negative by McCain's campaign, but Hillary's popularity would probably override the negatives.
Question for me is that if Obama asks, will Hillary accept?
I've always thought that the Clintons wanted Obama to lose. My read between the lines on Hillary's speech at the DNC convention confirmed this for me. The Clintons want Obama to lose so that Hillary can win. I bet her desire is even greater with Palin on the Republican ticket and her opportunity to be the historic first woman president in the U.S.
My guess is Clinton would only accept if Obama guaranteed that he will not run for re-election in 2012. This would never happen, so my guess is that Clinton will decline and this will be leaked to the press. Game over for Obama.
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
"Canadian Invasion"
I love The Wall Street Journal's James Taranto (from his Best of the Web Today):
The United States and Canada share the longest unprotected border in the world, and Totonto's Globe and Mail has a story illustrating why that is so dangerous:
More than 100 Canadian women with high-risk pregnancies have been sent to United States hospitals over the past year--in what a doctors' group attributes to the lack of a national birthing plan.
The problem has peaked, with British Columbia and Ontario each sending a record number of women to U.S. neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Specifically, 80 B.C. women have been sent to U.S. hospitals since April 1, 2007; in Ontario, 28 have been sent since January of 2007, according to figures from the respective health ministries.
André Lalonde, executive vice-president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, said the problem is due to bed closings that took place almost a decade ago, the absence of a national birthing initiative and too few staff.
"Neonatologists are very stretched right now," Dr. Lalonde said in a telephone interview from Ottawa. "We're so stretched, it's kind of dangerous."
Aw, look at the cute little Canadian babies! It's all very sweet and innocuous, right?
Don't believe it. Read between the lines, and you realize this is a sinister Canadian plot to take over America. Canada's military is no match for ours, so the crafty Canucks are using infancy instead of infantry to carry out their imperial designs.
Think about it. Canadian officials send women across the border, smuggling in "anchor babies" cleverly disguised as clumps of tissue. The women give birth inside the U.S., which means their Canadian offspring are entitled to U.S. citizenship. As these "children" grow and mature, they receive instructions from their masters in Ottawa about how to undermine American culture.
Before you know it, your kids are stuffing themselves with litres of back bacon, downing kilogram after kilogram of Crown Royal and Labatt Blue, and belting out "God Save the Queen" as they watch hockey on TV.
It's all so horrible to contemplate, but it can be stopped. All we need to do is make America as inhospitable as Canada for expectant Canadian mothers. Hillary Clinton has the right idea: The U.S. needs socialized medicine.
The United States and Canada share the longest unprotected border in the world, and Totonto's Globe and Mail has a story illustrating why that is so dangerous:
More than 100 Canadian women with high-risk pregnancies have been sent to United States hospitals over the past year--in what a doctors' group attributes to the lack of a national birthing plan.
The problem has peaked, with British Columbia and Ontario each sending a record number of women to U.S. neonatal intensive care units (NICUs). Specifically, 80 B.C. women have been sent to U.S. hospitals since April 1, 2007; in Ontario, 28 have been sent since January of 2007, according to figures from the respective health ministries.
André Lalonde, executive vice-president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, said the problem is due to bed closings that took place almost a decade ago, the absence of a national birthing initiative and too few staff.
"Neonatologists are very stretched right now," Dr. Lalonde said in a telephone interview from Ottawa. "We're so stretched, it's kind of dangerous."
Aw, look at the cute little Canadian babies! It's all very sweet and innocuous, right?
Don't believe it. Read between the lines, and you realize this is a sinister Canadian plot to take over America. Canada's military is no match for ours, so the crafty Canucks are using infancy instead of infantry to carry out their imperial designs.
Think about it. Canadian officials send women across the border, smuggling in "anchor babies" cleverly disguised as clumps of tissue. The women give birth inside the U.S., which means their Canadian offspring are entitled to U.S. citizenship. As these "children" grow and mature, they receive instructions from their masters in Ottawa about how to undermine American culture.
Before you know it, your kids are stuffing themselves with litres of back bacon, downing kilogram after kilogram of Crown Royal and Labatt Blue, and belting out "God Save the Queen" as they watch hockey on TV.
It's all so horrible to contemplate, but it can be stopped. All we need to do is make America as inhospitable as Canada for expectant Canadian mothers. Hillary Clinton has the right idea: The U.S. needs socialized medicine.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Breakfast with Dick Morris... "Obama is Done."
I attended a fascinating breakfast reception with Dick Morris today hosted by Lead21 and The Lincoln Club of Northern California.
He started off by stating that Obama is done, and Hillary's lead in the remaining states were too great to overcome. He described the Clintons' strategy to secure this lead by diverting attention to Bill and dividing the votes along racial lines. It was interesting because it seemed that he was telling this story with an undertone of respect for their political brilliance.
I've heard this from another direct source when I visited the White House during the Coro Fellowship. After we visited President Clinton, we sat down with Sandy Berger, his National Security Advisor, and he began to tell various stories of Bill Clinton's sheer political skill and brilliance. Even during prep sessions for news conferences where his closest advisers would grill him, Clinton would always outshine them. Berger said that President Clinton would correct his brain trust often, "That's not the question to ask, this is the question..."
Anyway, so Dick Morris discussed how over the past week or more, much of the media attention has been on Bill on the issue of race in South Carlina ("Bill Clinton Accuses Obama Camp of Stirring Race Issue" NYTimes). Morris stated that Obama has been a candidate not running on the race card, but the Clintons want to use the South Carlina election to make it about race to create a white backlash to the bloc-voting by African-Americans (more from Morris, "How Clinton Will Win The Nomination By Losing South Carolina").
He also described how Bill is playing the cape in a bullfight by publicly calling out Obama. Morris talked about how he and Bill played this back in 1992, which is better described in his recent article ("There's A Method To Crafty Bill's Madness"):
As the 1992 Republican convention approached, Hillary ratcheted up her comments and profile precisely to attract GOP fire so that they would leave Bill alone. He and I discussed the plan.
Hillary's comment, for example, about "baking cookies and serving tea" put her squarely in the Republican Party's sights as the convention approached.
The Republicans fell for the lure big time and spent their entire convention going after Hillary. Bill was scarcely hit.
And the 1992 GOP convention is one of the few that afforded its party no bounce at all. Now Bill is returning the favor.
So it's not only luring Obama to hit the cape instead of the matador, but the star power of Bill draws the media to him and maintains the political status quo in the campaign. Morris described how Bill did this when John Kerry ran. During the Democratic convention in Boston that year, Bill came out with his new book two weeks before and held book signing events there right before the convention. The local press focused on Bill Clinton and not John Kerry. Morris said that this was a strategic move, so that Kerry wouldn't win and improve Hillary's chances to run in 2008. Brilliant (yes, I love Guinness beer). Evil but brilliant.
He also discussed how Rudy Giuliani or John McCain were the best candidates to win against Hillary Clinton. Romney doesn't extend beyond the conservative base along with Huckabee. Giuliani and McCain attract moderate Dems and independents on various social and domestic issues, such as McCain's immigration position that almost killed his run earlier this year but gathered the respect of the Latino community.
What was really interesting was when Morris stated that he could work for Obama as he did with Clinton because he was charismatic, ethical, and practical. I believe he stirred some feathers of the Republican old guard that was present in the room, but Morris is a hired political gun and he wants to work with the best politicians to help craft their strategy. Morris said both Bill and Obama were practical, but he could never work for Hillary and the country is in deep trouble if she wins because she is such an idealogue.
One example that he brought up was when Bill wanted to cut the capital gains tax, so he sent Morris in to convince Hillary. He said that she wouldn't budge or listen to any reasonable points. Bill pushed it through anyway, but experiences such as this revealed her personality and ideology. Morris believes Hillary's policies will create a mass exodus from the stock market and real estate because she will increase the capital gains tax on par with the income tax rate. Additionally, her policies will greatly increase government programs and her universal healthcare plan will push the total rates above 50% and up to 61% for the top income bracket in the U.S.
So Morris' talk pushed me further down the road to support John McCain. While I'm not completely satisfied with any of the Republican candidates, McCain is the one I agree with on many issues and I feel has the best chance against Hillary. I was initially leaning towards Rudy, but stories of his preference to surround himself with "yes" men and second-rate talent is a huge turn off. I believe as a leader you should always surround yourself with the best people and those that have views counter to your own. Fear of challenges to your authority and differing thoughts is one of the greater weaknesses a leader can have.
Strategically, I wish and still hope for Obama to win because I believe the Republicans can defeat Obama easier. Who knows what will happen? Maybe Hillary will make a major misstep? Rudy will actually win Florida and steamroll all the way? We'll have to wait and see.
He started off by stating that Obama is done, and Hillary's lead in the remaining states were too great to overcome. He described the Clintons' strategy to secure this lead by diverting attention to Bill and dividing the votes along racial lines. It was interesting because it seemed that he was telling this story with an undertone of respect for their political brilliance.
I've heard this from another direct source when I visited the White House during the Coro Fellowship. After we visited President Clinton, we sat down with Sandy Berger, his National Security Advisor, and he began to tell various stories of Bill Clinton's sheer political skill and brilliance. Even during prep sessions for news conferences where his closest advisers would grill him, Clinton would always outshine them. Berger said that President Clinton would correct his brain trust often, "That's not the question to ask, this is the question..."
Anyway, so Dick Morris discussed how over the past week or more, much of the media attention has been on Bill on the issue of race in South Carlina ("Bill Clinton Accuses Obama Camp of Stirring Race Issue" NYTimes). Morris stated that Obama has been a candidate not running on the race card, but the Clintons want to use the South Carlina election to make it about race to create a white backlash to the bloc-voting by African-Americans (more from Morris, "How Clinton Will Win The Nomination By Losing South Carolina").
He also described how Bill is playing the cape in a bullfight by publicly calling out Obama. Morris talked about how he and Bill played this back in 1992, which is better described in his recent article ("There's A Method To Crafty Bill's Madness"):
As the 1992 Republican convention approached, Hillary ratcheted up her comments and profile precisely to attract GOP fire so that they would leave Bill alone. He and I discussed the plan.
Hillary's comment, for example, about "baking cookies and serving tea" put her squarely in the Republican Party's sights as the convention approached.
The Republicans fell for the lure big time and spent their entire convention going after Hillary. Bill was scarcely hit.
And the 1992 GOP convention is one of the few that afforded its party no bounce at all. Now Bill is returning the favor.
So it's not only luring Obama to hit the cape instead of the matador, but the star power of Bill draws the media to him and maintains the political status quo in the campaign. Morris described how Bill did this when John Kerry ran. During the Democratic convention in Boston that year, Bill came out with his new book two weeks before and held book signing events there right before the convention. The local press focused on Bill Clinton and not John Kerry. Morris said that this was a strategic move, so that Kerry wouldn't win and improve Hillary's chances to run in 2008. Brilliant (yes, I love Guinness beer). Evil but brilliant.
He also discussed how Rudy Giuliani or John McCain were the best candidates to win against Hillary Clinton. Romney doesn't extend beyond the conservative base along with Huckabee. Giuliani and McCain attract moderate Dems and independents on various social and domestic issues, such as McCain's immigration position that almost killed his run earlier this year but gathered the respect of the Latino community.
What was really interesting was when Morris stated that he could work for Obama as he did with Clinton because he was charismatic, ethical, and practical. I believe he stirred some feathers of the Republican old guard that was present in the room, but Morris is a hired political gun and he wants to work with the best politicians to help craft their strategy. Morris said both Bill and Obama were practical, but he could never work for Hillary and the country is in deep trouble if she wins because she is such an idealogue.
One example that he brought up was when Bill wanted to cut the capital gains tax, so he sent Morris in to convince Hillary. He said that she wouldn't budge or listen to any reasonable points. Bill pushed it through anyway, but experiences such as this revealed her personality and ideology. Morris believes Hillary's policies will create a mass exodus from the stock market and real estate because she will increase the capital gains tax on par with the income tax rate. Additionally, her policies will greatly increase government programs and her universal healthcare plan will push the total rates above 50% and up to 61% for the top income bracket in the U.S.
So Morris' talk pushed me further down the road to support John McCain. While I'm not completely satisfied with any of the Republican candidates, McCain is the one I agree with on many issues and I feel has the best chance against Hillary. I was initially leaning towards Rudy, but stories of his preference to surround himself with "yes" men and second-rate talent is a huge turn off. I believe as a leader you should always surround yourself with the best people and those that have views counter to your own. Fear of challenges to your authority and differing thoughts is one of the greater weaknesses a leader can have.
Strategically, I wish and still hope for Obama to win because I believe the Republicans can defeat Obama easier. Who knows what will happen? Maybe Hillary will make a major misstep? Rudy will actually win Florida and steamroll all the way? We'll have to wait and see.
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