Robert Reich: Will HRC Spoil the Party?

[flpoljunkie]

Wednesday, March 05, 2008

Will HRC Spoil the Party?

I'm thrilled at the record Democratic turnouts across the country, and at the ground-breaking reality of the Democrats' two candidates. But I'm also becoming anxious at the prospect of a fight that could reduce the possibility of either of them entering the White House in January of 2009.

Is HRC willing to sacrifice that possibility in order to preserve a tiny possibility that she'll get the nomination? With her win in Ohio and projected win in Texas, that seems so. In the days leading up to the Ohio and Texas primaries, we had HRC's statement that both she and McCain have the experience to be Commander-in-Chief but Obama doesn't. This is the first time in my memory that a major candidate in a primary has said that the other party's nominee would be a better president than his or her own primary opponent. We also had the outpouring of negative advertising from her campaign that both candidates had largely managed to avoid up to this point.

And while I can understand her decision -- bolstered by yesterday's results -- to fight on in this primary election, the reality is that she can only win by convincing large numbers of superdelegates to join her and re-engineering the Michigan and Florida primaries to her advantage, and then taking the fight all the way to the convention in August -- which if she gets that far, will be one of the most divisive in forty years.

I suppose I should not be surprised. If HRC has experience in anything, it's in fighting when cornered. When Bill Clinton lost his governorship, it was HRC who commissioned Dick Morris to advise the Clintons on a no-holds-barred campaign to retake the governor's mansion. At the start of 1995, when Newt Gingrich and company took over Congress and the Clinton administration looked in danger of becoming irrelevant, it was HRC who installed Dick Morris in the White House, along with his sidekick Mark Penn, to "triangulate" by distancing Bill Clinton from the Democratic Party and moving the Administration rightward. (When Morris was subsequently discovered to have a penchant for the toes of prostitutes the White House dumped him but kept Penn on.) And now Mark Penn is the "chief strategist" of HRC's campaign.

The sad news is that whether the Clinton scorched-earth strategy ultimately succeeds or fails, it will have caused great harm. In the unlikely event it succeeds, the result will be a shame and not a little ironic. Barack Obama has breathed life into the Democratic Party, and into American politics, for the first time in forty years. Not since Robert Kennedy ran for president has America been so starkly summoned to its ideals; not since then has America -- including, especially, the nation’s youth -- been so inspired. The Clintons would prefer to write off “Obamania” as a passing fad, but the reality is that idealism and inspiration are necessary preconditions for positive social change. Nothing happens in Washington unless Americans are energized and mobilized to make it happen. HRC's tactics are the old politics the nation is recoiling from -- internal division and national fear. This only serves to deepen Americans' cynicism about politics, and makes social change all the harder to achieve.

posted by Robert Reich

http://robertreich.blogspot.com/2008/03/will-hrc-spoil-party.html

[death to the DLC]

1. I read this earlier this morning,

that last paragraph says it all.

The window for a cultural shift is closing.

[papau]

38. I read it and thought Reich was again blowing smoke out his ass - he is about

correct in this rant as he was in his justification for Obama's poorly designed Health proposal - the latter ignoring 60 years of public program design information and health insurance design information - indeed ignoring what the actuaries told him every year he sat on the Social Security Board.

He is about as credible as an Obama promise of a new social program (as CNBC found out those programs will not cause a budget problem because Obama does not intend/expect those programs to pass) or an Obama denial of a meeting on NAFTA - a denial that is no longer operative once a memo summary of the meeting appears a few days later.

[Name removed]

46. Deleted sub-thread

Sub-thread removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[blocker]

2. HERE'S hillarys dream, cheat on florida!

http://elections.foxnews.com/2008/03/05/congressman-calls-special-meeting-to-discuss-fla-mich-delegate-dispute/

[kentuck]

3. Does controversy unfairly follow the Clintons?

:shrug:

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

6. does controversy follow someone with all of the baggage she carries? n/t

[HooptieWagon]

13. Clinton's bring it on themselves

by who they are, who they associate with, and by their actions. There is much more to HRCs >50% negatives than mere "Hillary hate".

[BREMPRO]

85. Who here wants 4 more years of this divisive, Rovian politics and corporate domination?

if you do, vote for HRC. If you believe she will shut down the corporate lobbyist control of our government you are naive. She's taken more lobby money than ANY OTHER CANDIDATE. She is happy with the system and won't change it. She's willing to flame the most hopeful candidate of our generation, (a fellow democrat no less) because "its personal for me". I'm sick of it. It's destroyed our country and accomplished nothing good for the people. Even if it's idealistic, I'd rather live with a glimmer of hope for change than the status quo flames of fear and a return to Clinton spin and divisivness.

[0007]

128. They certainly don't bring roses out of the snow.

:shrug:

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

4. Hillary will do ANYTHING to win, even it means destroying the Democratic party. . .

It's called selfishness - that's what you get with both Clintons. Time for them to move on. There's a new sheriff in town and his name is Obama!

[WillYourVoteBCounted]

7. she prefers the DLC to the DNC and rules don't count for Queen Hillary

maybe this thing is not just about power, its about money.

The woman has a personal fortune of $54 Million dollars.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

16. Where the hell did she get $54 million. Inquiring minds want to know.

[Just-plain-Kathy]

112. She wrote a book

:shrug:

[rosetta627]

11. She'd throw a kid under a bus if it meant more money & power for her

Despicable human.

[backscatter712]

17. She knows she can't win in '08.

So her tactic is to torpedo the Democratic Party so McCain become President, then run again in 2012.

Yep. She's willing to overlook a million people dying in Iraq when McCain continues Bush's war, willing to overlook the tens of thousands who will suffer and die from inadequate health care since McCain won't do any reforms, willing to overlook the overturning of Roe vs. Wade and many other civil liberties after McCain appoints more right wing nutjobs to the Supreme Court.

All so the princess can have another chance to be coronated. Change will have to wait, even though millions will die during the waiting.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

24. It's disgusting what Hillary has done to our party, all for her own personal gain. . . .

I just want to scream! Where the fuck are the party elders? Calling Al Gore on the red phone . . . please pick up.

[flpoljunkie]

74. But, as Terry McAuliffe told us all on the day she announced, "IT'S HER TURN!"

[Cassandra]

114. Which is how the GOP picks its candidates...

by whose turn it is.

[0007]

107. 'Tis in the garbarage can now, huh?

[kentuck]

29. Did Bill Clinton help or hurt the Democratic Party ?

After all, he was the first Democratic President since Roosevelt to serve two terms. Unfortunately, the Party suffered while he was President. We lost very healthy majorities in both the House and Senate. But he did OK for himself.

[InAbLuEsTaTe]

41. Point well taken, but I don't think anyone can argue that Bill was not a net positive for our party

until recenty that is.

[kentuck]

54. Maybe?

I'm not sure about that. The triangualtion, the DLC, the divisions within our own Party, have created divisions that are still with our Party even today.

[ChairmanAgnostic]

65. his personal activities took away

so much attention from real issues, including Osama bin Laden. Wag the Dog became the national joke, to our great danger, and we could not concentrate on real issues. Bill did that all by himself. WIth help from Hillary, and more than a little help from her new hero, Ken Starr.

Hillary's healthcare approach in the 90s showed Cheney that you could lie, cheat, hide information and get away with it.
Her billing records fiasco proved to Ashcroft, Gonzales, and Mukasey that you could ignore valid subpoenas.
Her approach to secrecy in general has been copied verbatim by the Bush White House.

and since they promised us two for the heavy price of one, I blame her as much as I do him for the failings of his terms in office. So much promise, so much talent, and such a great gift of lying. (as several DEM senators expressed in public)

[Justitia]

64. He got himself IMPEACHED & dragged the entire Democratic Party w/him.

He sent Our Party off to wander in the wilderness for the next DECADE.

The Clintons are poison to Our Party.

[eilen]

109. Democrats also lost state governorships, state legislatures and other local

offices during his administration.

[txaslftist]

121. Most folks are getting this impression, even Republican friends of mine

contrast Obama with Clinton, saying Obama is too inexperienced, but at least he's running for selfless reasons, while Hillary is all about Hillary.

[JimGinPA]

5. Ouch...

A view from the inside paints a rather ugly picture.

[eissa]

8. Wow, Robert Reich

I'm quite surprised. Very harsh from someone who was once part of their inner circle.

[KoKo]

67. Robert Reich hates the Clintons. Left their administration because

he didn't agree with their policies.

[rniel]

75. Robert Reich

He would be a good president right now. No doubt in my mind he could fix this country economically.

[Ken Burch]

98. That's the best possible reason for leaving an administration.

We'd be in better shape in this country and more people would be alive if there had been resignations on principle from THIS administration.

[whatchamacallit]

9. So true, so true...

:thumbsup:

[HooptieWagon]

10. Robt Reich nails it. n/t

[Joe Chi Minh]

66. A great man the US needs. What an aide he'd be for a President

John Edwards.

[Recursion]

104. I used to dream of an Edwards / Reich ticket

That would have been great.

[KittyWampus]

12. Clinton supporters-too blind/stupid to notice Super Delegates abandoning her & breaking for Obama

If this goes to the Convention she will not win them back.

[HooptieWagon]

15. They're not blind or stupid to it

A poster earlier said that Clinton filed suit to freeze SDs until Convention. I haven't seen that verified, but it seems logical from their perspective. Don't think it would work, though. That may be the delay in Obama's superdelegate Bomb he's planning to drop.

[Ken Burch]

99. If the supers are unbound under party rules, what legal grounds would she have to bind them?

n/t.

[pauldg0]

127. Man, I'll tell you all......................

...the Democratic party is just fractured into pieces.

You had your chance with Edwards. Now all you do is argue and bicker in front of everyone in the United States.

It makes me want to hi-tail to the hills.

What a effin joke all of you are!!!

[oasis]

14. Reich is positioning himself for a spot in Obama's cabinet. (eom)

[AtomicKitten]

18. Reich sorta endorsed Obama last night on the Colbert Report.

Colbert was proposing choices to Reich in different funny ways. Finally, Colbert asked if Reich would prefer to see a chocolate bunny or a marshmallow chick in his Easter basket, and Reich picked the chocolate bunny.

K&R

[flpoljunkie]

23. LOL! "Must-see" Colbert!

[Sensitivity]

19. A penetrating critique from one of the BEST OF THE CLINTON CABINET

[ProgressiveEconomist]

129. Kick!

[ElsewheresDaughter]

20. Riech is a rabid Obama supporter....

[Tesha]

22. As are more and more folks every day. Is that supposed to be "bad"??? (NT)

[whatchamacallit]

25. Being an Obama supporter and being dead on about HRC are not mutually exclusive

Maybe his assessment of the situation is the reason he's a supporter.

[Carolina]

78. Funny, too, how the Clintons don't INSPIRE LOYALTY

unlike, say REAGAN. Obama was right about who was transformational.

Before I get flamed, I didn't like Reagan and avidly supported the Clintons in the 90s.

But their behavior in this campaign has me questioning everything, notably why they don't inspire loyalty (long, deep, true loyalty) and whether the wingnut hatred didn't have more than a kernel of reason behind it.

[whatchamacallit]

97. Good point

I used to like them too, but as you say something has changed. Is it them, is it me, both? I think Bill spending all his time chasing a buck and hanging out with the Bushes may have been what got me off the train. Dunno.

[Kurt_and_Hunter]

26. And a somewhat dishonest one! On Colbert last night he refused to admit to having a candidate.

[Diane R]

87. Not true. Colbert gave him the choice, Chocolate bunny or white marshmallow. He said, "Chocolate".

[Diane R]

88. At some point, all you Clinton lovers will need to recognize the common theme from Clinton insiders.

[DURHAM D]

28. A disgruntled small man who has been exhibiting "small man syndrome"

for years. He is just jealous of the other small man - Paul Krugman.

Robert thinks he is going to get a job in the Obama administration. However, I am sure they think he is a silly little tool and will distance themselves from him later.

[whatchamacallit]

32. Yeah, that's gotta be it

My posts mostly suck, but you make me look like a genius. Thanks!

[DURHAM D]

39. Well - Bill Clinton fired his ass.

I am sure that at the time of his firing Robert was told it was Hillary's fault. A lot of the people that were pushed out of the Clinton administration were told it was because of Hillary. Frankly, that is probably at least somewhat correct - she does not suffer fools well and had to push Bill to get rid of the slackers, leakers and incompetent boobs.

As for Robert's shilling (lying) for Obama why don't you check out some of the critiques of Robert's statements/articles about Obama's health care plan. Reich's rantings have made him a joke. Kind of sad.

[flpoljunkie]

51. Totally untrue.

Which brings me back to why I really left my job as Secretary of Labor. It was the best job I had ever had, the best, perhaps, I ever will have. It paid well, and I thought I was doing some good. I didn’t get fired. But the four years I was in Washington I kept looking for a better balance between a job I loved—a job I could not get enough of—and a family I loved, and could not get enough of. And, you see, there weren’t enough hours in the day or days in the week or weeks in the year to get more of both.

So, after four years, after one term in that cabinet position, I chose to come home. And it was the right choice. Both our boys have now left the nest. If I hadn’t come home I’d have missed their last years at home with my wife and me. I do not know much about teenage girls, we never had any, but I can tell you that teenage boys are like clamshells: Hard on the outside, but when they open up for an instant you can see the beauty and the vulnerability inside. But you can not predict exactly when they’re going to open up. Sometimes days go by, sometimes it happens at one or two in the morning, for about a minute. And if you’re not there when they do, you might as well be on the moon. Well, I was there.

http://www.grinnell.edu/offices/ce/commencement/2002/reich/

[DURHAM D]

57. Ok - We would like your resignation letter is technically not the same as you are fired!

[flpoljunkie]

63. Proof?

[democrat_nanny]

81. The real reason he left

To spend more time with his family!

lol...

[Recursion]

105. Umm... it was pretty well-known that Reich got nudged out b/c the WH was moving to the right...

...on labor issues, and Reich couldn't really help them do that

[ElsewheresDaughter]

35. absolutely

[whatchamacallit]

36. Wow, reality is simply not an option for you folks, is it?

:crazy: :crazy: :crazy:

[NorthernSpy]

55. he's a short man -- so you, a feminist, ignore what he has to say?

:wow:


That's what I love about feminism. So principled!


:eyes:

[Orrex]

71. Wow--it's rare to see so pure a manifestation of argument ad hominem

Bravo!


Of course, the fact that he's also 100% correct doesn't exactly bolster your position...

[DURHAM D]

90. Come on - you can't really respect him, not if you know him. eom

[Orrex]

95. Even that more's non sequitur than purple true

Besides, whether or not I respect him is irrelevant; on this point he is correct.

[BearSquirrel2]

44. You're voting for her???

[NorthernSpy]

52. earth to ED: Reich KNOWS the Clintons -- far, far better than you ever will...

You might want to consider his points briefly before excluding them from your consciousness.

[catgirl]

58. Rabid...LOL. Because he has good judgement?

Too funny.

[Starbucks Anarchist]

69. And former Clinton Administration official.

[HCE SuiGeneris]

70. Rabid supporter. Seems that you might have a good, working understanding

of such a person.

[last1standing]

96. Can I ask what you base that assertion on?

I've not seen anywhere that Reich has endorsed a candidate and I think just about any thinking person can agree that Clinton has been extremely aggressive in her fight for the nomination. Whether you think that is a good thing or not, I don't think we can label Reich as "rabid" anything.

[Capn Sunshine]

102. He's a brilliant mind who should be respected for his work then and now

Certainly his economic takes have been laser sharp as long as I've seen him. He teaches at Berkeley and gives lectures regularly. He's quite even handed and a true FRD Democrat. He holds his own with Larry Kudlow ( Reagan's econ man), when they debate. He would be a credit to any administration.

Yet, because he prefers Obama, for reasons obvious to all except you and a few dead enders, you dismiss him as "rabid" rather than get the message.

[keep_it_real]

21. Good stuff

"The Clintons would prefer to write off “Obamania” as a passing fad, but the reality is that idealism and inspiration are necessary preconditions for positive social change. Nothing happens in Washington unless Americans are energized and mobilized to make it happen. HRC's tactics are the old politics the nation is recoiling from -- internal division and national fear. This only serves to deepen Americans' cynicism about politics, and makes social change all the harder to achieve."

[AikidoSoul]

82. Me too

You've said it beautifully!

[Enthusiast]

115. Good stuff, I agree with Aikidosoul,

Your post is excellent. Hillary now represents what we are trying to escape. I didn't feel that way in the past. I was Clinton apologist throughout the 1990s. I always wondered about the "Hillary negatives" they spoke of, now I see them, boy, do I see them.

[Bullet1987]

27. I agree...but people don't seem to care to realize this about the Clintons

They're utterly divisive when it comes to getting their way. Cutthroat politics is always divisive...

[dchill]

31. "Cutthroat politics is always divisive..."

and it's always the Clinton way.

[dchill]

30. Without something incredibly nefarious...

and decidedly UNdemocratic, Hillary's chances of getting the nomination are very slim, and are even slimmer after the March 4th wins. Unless Obama can be shown as being something akin to a serial killer, the simple math is not there for an HRC delegate majority. Not even close. Reich is right, and so is Jonathan Alter:

http://www.newsweek.com/id/119010

HRC can do nothing but ravage and sunder the Democratic Party. I've known she was willing to do that from the beginning, but it doesn't make it easier to stomach.

[IsItJustMe]

33. Straight up common sense. To bad more people in the Democratic leadership don't come out and call

it like it is.

[leftstreet]

34. K&R

[Shakespeare]

37. The most damning observation....

....is that it was Hillary's decision over the years to bring in Dick Morris (repeatedly) and Mark Penn.

Yeah, that's great judgment, all right. Blech.

[calimary]

49. Well, there's another compelling point.

Because you DO have to look at the people they pick and those they choose to surround themselves with.

REMEMBER: All the people, probably some of your own friends (certainly some of mine) who justified their votes for bush by saying "well, yeah, he's not very smart (or yeah, he doesn't have a lot of foreign policy experience - or whatever it is) BUT HE'S SURROUNDING HIMSELF WITH GOOD PEOPLE!"

I cannot tell you how many times I heard that! And most of them - at least those not in deep denial - have wound up eating their words.

[Carolina]

79. And those who abandon them! They don't inspire

LOYALTY!

[Voice for Peace]

40. Significance of Reich's pov, & another article

from wikipedia:
A longtime friend of Bill and Hillary Clinton, going back to their days together at Oxford and Yale Law School respectively, he was invited to head Clinton's economic transition team. He later joined the administration as Secretary of Labor. During his tenure, he implemented the Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), fought sweatshops, successfully promoted increasing the minimum wage, improved workplace safety, successfully lobbied to pass the Pension Protection Act and the School-to-Work Jobs Act, and launched a number of job training programs.
At the same time, he lobbied Clinton to address bigger societal issues, and pushed for improvement of conditions for those in poverty. He had moderate success until the 1996 presidential campaign began, when Clinton, heeding the advice of political advisor Dick Morris, shifted right and promoted policies designed to appeal to the suburban swing voter as understood by Morris.
In addition, Reich used the office as a platform for focusing the nation's attention on the need for American workers to adapt to the new economy. He advocated that the country provide more opportunities for workers to learn more technology, and predicted the shrinkage of the middle class due to a gap between unskilled and highly skilled workers.

"Why is HRC Stooping So Low?" from 12-3-07
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-reich/why-is-hrc-stooping-so-lo_b_75191.html
"I'm becoming increasingly concerned about the stridency and inaccuracy of charges in Iowa -- especially coming from my old friend. While I'm as hard-boiled as they come about what's said in campaigns, I just don't think Dems should stoop to this....I 'm equally concerned about her attack on his health care plan. She says his would insure fewer people than hers. I've compared the two plans in detail. Both of them are big advances over what we have now. But in my view Obama's would insure more people, not fewer, than HRC's. ... I just don't get it. If there's anyone in the race whose history shows unique courage and character, it's Barack Obama. HRC's campaign, by contrast, is singularly lacking in conviction about anything. ...."

[MH1]

42. Excellent point, worthy of its own OP. nt

[Raffi Ella]

43. lol

I appreciate this Obama fans passion.

The Public overwhelmingly supported Hillary staying in if she just won one or two States March 4th;She won 3.Howard Dean himself disputes the claim that it hurts the Party.

This is nothing more than framing the 'issue' from the Obama Camp,a talking point.The fight going down is a testament to Our Democracy.Nothing more,nothing less.

GO HILLARY.

[David Zephyr]

45. As a former fan of the Clintons (like Robert Reich), I agree. Hillary is acting like Nader now.

She can't win and she is dividing the party when we need to unify.

[flpoljunkie]

48. The simple truth of the matter--no matter how hard HRC's supporters try to villify Robert Reich.

[Bread and Circus]

47. Reich: "Just between you and me I will take the chocolate bunny"

[City Lights]

50. I saw that! Third try, IIRC.

:rofl:

[Laurab]

59. Me too -he was a long-time Clinton supporter, too. I love Colbert!

Reich was doing really well at avoiding the question - I think it was actually the 4th or 5th try, Stephen was coming up with so many ridiculous choices - he just cracks me up!

So, Robert Reich, long-time Clinton supporter, would prefer the chocolate bunny to the marshmallow chick! I found that very interesting, as well as :rofl:

[nomorewhopper]

53. interesting read

[Mme. Defarge]

56. K&R!

[question everything]

60. Robert Reich also had an op-ed in the WSJ, justifying the obscene CEOs' compensations

so one has to wonder where he really stands.

[Laurab]

61. On Colbert last night, Reich also said..

it was the first time he'd ever heard a candidate from one party praising the candidate from the opposing party as being more qualified than the candidate she was running against. It would seem he's had enough of the Clintons, and he obviously knows them well.

[mculator]

62. Party untie

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x4927930

[seafan]

68. Robert Reich pens the absolute truth here:

Reich, March 5, 2008

The sad news is that whether the Clinton scorched-earth strategy ultimately succeeds or fails, it will have caused great harm. In the unlikely event it succeeds, the result will be a shame and not a little ironic. Barack Obama has breathed life into the Democratic Party, and into American politics, for the first time in forty years. Not since Robert Kennedy ran for president has America been so starkly summoned to its ideals; not since then has America -- including, especially, the nation’s youth -- been so inspired. The Clintons would prefer to write off “Obamania” as a passing fad, but the reality is that idealism and inspiration are necessary preconditions for positive social change. Nothing happens in Washington unless Americans are energized and mobilized to make it happen. HRC's tactics are the old politics the nation is recoiling from -- internal division and national fear. This only serves to deepen Americans' cynicism about politics, and makes social change all the harder to achieve.

Will we succumb to fear, or will we RISE IN HOPE?

[frog92969]

72. Fear is failure

I hope we can all rise above it.

[frog92969]

73. Oh, big K&R

That guy's right on.

[cadmium]

76. The Clintons killed a retarded man for political gain, so

I doubt they would care about wrecking the Democratic party

http://www.commondreams.org/views02/1112-04.htm

[midora]

77. I Could Not Agree More

Robert Reich is completely on point.

I haven't been here long enough how to know how to create a new thread, so if some Moderator wants to move my post to a different spot, no problem. I figured that this was as good a time as any to say that after playing with you guys for about a week, I've decided to take my marbles and go home. I thought this would be a great forum where I would be able to chat with my fellow Democrats, but instead I have found this is a place where people argue and fight and lob insults. I have to admit this place is addictive, because I found myself posting here for hours at a time. Still, when I logged off, I was left with a very bad taste in my mouth.

I admit I took part in the arguing and lobbed some insults of my own. Some of the Hillary supporters here are extremely touchy, and can't stand for anyone to make any comment about their heroine that is not in the least bit adulatory. I must say some of these Clinton fans are as sharp-tongued and humorless as their heroine is. That's beside the point. The point is, you guys don't like to hear your candidate critized and/or ridiculed, and I don't like to hear my candidate slammed either. You may laugh at Obama's naievete and idealism, but Abraham Lincoln was probably considered naive and idealistic too. I'm not necessarily comparing Obama to Lincoln, but he offers this nation the best opportunity for unity and change instead of the same old same old . And I don't think Hillary Clinton offers anything positive or new.

I believe she is ruthless, unethical and hypocritical. A true Democrat would not run such a vicious campaign. You may say, "Oh, but she's just doing what she has to do to get the nominatio once she achieves that, she'll be Mary Sunshine". Not true. Other candidates who ran exceptionally nasty campaigns like George W. Bush and Richard Nixon, did not change their colors when they were elected. Rather, their presidencies are ranked as the most disastrous in this nation's history.

But I'm doing my little part to see that Clinton is not elected, and I encouraged anyone else concerned about this country to do the same thing. Of course, I voted for Obama in the primary, and if Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination I will not vote for her at all. At first, I thought about just staying home, but I do want to exercise my civic duty. So I'll be voting for Ralph Nader.

[Fovea]

122. I am sorry DU was not something you wanted to participate in.

Good luck finding a more collegial forum.

[democrat_nanny]

80. ********BREAKING NEWS*************

OMG Robert Reich doesn't like the Clintons???? Stop the presses!!!

Oh wait. He wrote a whole book about it called, "Locked in the Cabinet" after he left Bill Clinton's administration in a snit over monetary policy.

Snooze...

[Ken Burch]

100. You see a serious disagreement over monetary policy as "a snit"?

Christ, what would a disagreement over Iraq be to you?

[K Gardner]

83. K&R

[DrFunkenstein]

84. The Clintons Left The Democratic Party in Tatters in the 90s

For their own ambitions. Why should it be different now?

[longshotjohn]

101. the clintons left...

  You are dreaming, bubba.  It was Rove and Starr and the
Neocons trying to destroy the Office of The President that
nearly destroyed the Party.  Now we can see the mess the
Neocons have made as they have spent the last Bush years in
increasing the powers of the President and to make you, me ,
the American people and Congress irelevant.  Wake up, boy. 
Have you so soon forgotten?

Hold fast to Hillary. Obama as vp.  Obama in 8 years.  Do not
let the Neocons and right-wing extremists continue to wreck
havoc on the Democratic Party.

Hold fast.


It has been my experience that folks who have no vices have
very few virtues. 
___Abraham Lincoln

[1776Forever]

86. HRC supporters - Can you deny this? McCain Adviser works for Penn who works for Clinton!

Mark Penn's tangled corporate web: Clinton is a client; McCain is a client.
by Joe Sudbay (DC) · 2/25/2008

http://www.americablog.com/2008/02/mark-penns-tangled-corporate-web.html

(snip)

Penn works for Clinton.

Black works for McCain.

And Black works for Penn.

Keep this in mind as you read some of the guiding principles for Penn's and Black's firm, courtesy of the Burson-Marsteller website:

# We, the directors and employees of all companies in WPP recognize our obligations to all who have a stake in our success including share owners, clients, employees, and suppliers;...

# We will not for personal or family gain directly or indirectly engage in any activity which competes with companies within WPP or with our obligations to any such company;

# We will not have any personal or family conflicts of interest within our businesses or with our suppliers or other third parties with whom we do business;

So, again, we have to ask: Why is Mark Penn on a mission to destroy Obama? It's clear that Penn benefits if Hillary wins -- she's his client, his firm's client. His company benefits if McCain wins -- he's the client of one of Penn's top employees. Penn has an obligation to his shareholders and clients. And his firm seems to have clients on both sides of the aisle, on both sides of this fight. If Obama wins the presidency, Penn gets nothing. He was helping the other guy, or gal. But if McCain wins, Penn's firm has one hell of a contact with the new president - heck, one of his top employees had the new president as a client and didn't even charge him! Is it a conflict of interest? Not with his clients. But how about with the Democratic party and our interests?

...............

:wow:

[L0oniX]

124. Looks like disaster economics to me. n/t

[Inuca]

89. Dick Morris

Who your friends and allies are says a lot about who YOU are. Certain characters, like Morris and Penn, just OOZE sleaziness of all imaginable kinds. Call me naive and simplistic in my understanding of the world, but I just cannot imagine any person that values (and practices) integrity, that is not an unrepentant egocentric always puting him/herself way above anybody else, in short any person that has at least that small amount of idealism and altruism that IMHO is required of any worthwhile (notice I did not say successful) politician, I cannot imagine any such person allying him(her)self with such people.

[flpoljunkie]

91. Neither can I, Inuca. Neither can I.

[hay rick]

92. bumper sticker

John Edwards famously remarked that the War on Terror was a bumper sticker. I absolutely agree. Hillary lost me with her 3 o'clock in the morning ads. Hello Obama.

[Laelth]

93. Worthy of a k&r.

:dem:

-Laelth

[stillcool]

94. uh-oh...Robert Reich bites the dust....

how dare he say anything truthful about the lying, cheating, and stealing tactics of the Clinton Campaign. It stuns me, that after all this time, people here still defend this shit, but will rip to shreds any decent Democrat. Is there no low, that people will not go?

[LVjinx]

103. Why is HRC ok but not BHO?

[0007]

106. It does not look good for anyone, period.

Social change will take it in the shorts again.

[billyoc]

108. Hillary will spoil the DLC, PPI, Third Way, Bush Dog Dems once and for all.

Nothing more. Couldn't happen to a nicer bunch, either. Go Hill!

[Chiyo-chichi]

110. For HRC to say that McCain would be better than Obama is the most appalling part to me.

I was for Edwards.
My state's primary is still to come.
I have been and remain hesitant to criticize either Obama or Clinton because I know I will get behind whichever one becomes the Democratic nominee, but a Democratic candidate who suggests that a Republican would be preferable to his or her Democratic opponent is not my kind of Democrat.

[shrub chipper]

119. That can't be pointed out enough.

"a Democratic candidate who suggests that a Republican would be preferable to his or her Democratic opponent is not my kind of Democrat."

[No Blood for Hubris]

111. I love you Robert Reich, but you're dead wrong on this one.

I supported your run for governor, and I'm so very disappointed by your article. Can I have my money back, please?

[SHRED]

113. I am so sick of the Clintons

Holding McCain in higher regard is the very last straw for me.

[stillrockin]

116. Her has definitely destroyed any illusions I had about the two of them.

[Jennicut]

117. Robert Reich SERVED with the Clintons and knows them well

I really think he believes Hillary will tear the party apart to justify her "needs". Its nothing new. Like someone else here said, Bill Clinton did well in his two elections but the Dems lost seats throught the country. If Hillary wants the superdelegates to decide this than we might as well welcome to the Whitehouse President McCain. Hillary's "experience" simply means that she thinks she knows what is best for you and she thinks superdelegates should count the same as regular delegates. This makes the Dem party look like Rethugs. Say what you will about those Rethugs but at least no one on that side ever thought up the Superdelegate idea to begin with...its such a Rethug idea I don't understand how it came to be a Dem party idea.

[snappyturtle]

118. Will HRC spoil the party? Yes. n/t

[natrat]

120. if there is anything to be gleened from recent events it is that clinton really is a scum

[mcollier]

123. Rap It Up!!!

Cheating may get you an immediate advancement, but in the end your good name will be forever a dirty word....

Betrayal is the hardest to forgive, even more so when there is no acknoledgement of the wrong done.
Sadly to say, that while Hillary has tried to win, she really has lost in many ways....

Hillary did show her disgusting hypocritical characteristics indistinguishable from the worst of the Republican smear machine. And siding with John Mccain over Barack Obama, We've seen this type of "I wanna challenge you to a duel" line that was snapped at Chris Matthews by a "Democrat".... Now that Hillary has been embraced by the far right, how can we expect her to fight for democrats when she is fighting against democrats along side the republicans.


All Hillary supporters, I appreciate your attention to this matter... I ask you to join the Obama team to help

Thanks All,

MC

[L0oniX]

125. Indeed and notice Hillarat is always about "I" and Obama is always about "we".

Welcome to DU.

[ladywnch]

126. excellent point.

Hillary talks to us like jr does and Obama talks to us as a whole unified nation.

[Tveil]

130. Great article

thanks

[izzybeans]

131. As an Obama supporter I disagree with the premise (though I dislike her negative tactics),

I believe wholeheartedly that this race will strengthen the party and feel that it is unwarranted fear to think otherwise. With each new campaign both parties are setting up an infrastructure or building upon a very, very weak one that will last through the general. In many of these remaining and most recent states, the national democratic party had very little presence. These states are not used to mattering. There have been democrats in the so-called red states hiding in the catacombs waiting to come out in the sunshine. These hotly contested primaries have given them that chance. This prolonged primary season is making the democratic party more competitive in places they have not been strong in the past few decades.

That being said I think HRC will have a harder time capitalizing on this, because she is a party machine candidate (and here the critique of the 'scorched earth' politics is valid). The same machine that had written off these states (i.e. Indiana, Wyoming, Mississippi, etc.) and abandoned them long ago. Growing up in Indiana, the local democratic parties received very little support from the nationals. Despite that, our county consistently stayed democratic, and for the most part the governor was a democrat until recently. This changed with Dean, but (and even though I no longer live there) it can only get stronger with these primaries.

These primaries are given us momentum, and it scares the shit out of the Republicans.