Hillary...loved or hated at YearlyKos

The Democratic presidential candidates descended to Chicago this weekend to attend the YearlyKos convention. For those who are unfamiliar with YearlyKos, it is an annual convention featuring left-leaning liberal bloggers who collaborate and write for the DailyKos website. Today, Senator Hillary Clinton took to the stage at YearlyKos and this was not just another speech for her. It is no secret that the more liberal bloggers have not been the biggest fan of Hillary and have criticized her plenty...especially for her initial support of the Iraq war. However, the Hillary Clinton campaign knows the importance and impact that the internet and bloggers have become and so she has been slowly, but surely, trying to gain their respect and show that she does listen to what they have to say. To show her slight unpopularity with DailyKos, this article from The Politico shows a poll taken in July which has Hillary in 3rd among their choices for president with only 9% (John Edwards came in first with 36% followed by Senator Barack Obama with 27%). Taking the stage today, Hillary was probably expecting to be booed and heckled.

And yes...that did happen. But only TWICE and the first one didn't really count because it was a comment about the Chicago Cubs vs. the Chicago White Sox. People always get worked up about sports! Anyways, now that reviews are pouring in from Hillary's performance, people are either completely loving or hating her speech. Most agree she did well. According to Roger Simon at The Politico in this article, "she went on for another 40 minutes and nothing was heard in the room but cheers -- and applause. It was, in fact, a tour de force performance, though she started with defensive humor." Watching her words carefully because she knows that only one misstep can potentially be disastrous, she continued her conversation with none of the other candidates present at the forum taking any shots at her. Regarding Iraq, Hillary was applauded for saying, “We must withdraw in a careful and responsible way...We can’t just wake up and say we will move 160,000 troops. That is dangerous." This was in contrast to Governor Bill Richardson saying that we can withdraw a majority of the troops by the end of the year. I agree with Hillary and don't think Richardson's withdrawal plan would be possible or safe...especially with President Bush still in office.

Now came time for Hillary to receive some boos. When the topic of special interest groups, lobbyists, and money came up, Roger Simon says this is where Hillary received "the only substantive negative reaction of the day." John Edwards made it known that he and Senator Obama do not accept money from Washington lobbyists (though Democratic contender and former Senator Mike Gravel says Barack Obama does in fact collect money from lobbyists) and now it was time for Hillary to respond. Hillary said, “I have been saying that based on my 35 years of fighting for what I believe in, I don’t think anybody will think I will be influenced [by lobbyist contributions].” I couldn't agree more. She didn't shy away from the fact that she accepts money from lobbyists but she made it clear they don't have as much influence on her as she is portrayed. Yes, the health care industry sends money to Hillary but let's not forget how hard Hillary worked as First Lady to reform the health care system. She failed the first time around and she has been very vocal about trying again. When the boos broke out, Clinton responded with "“I have been waiting [for that],” Clinton said with a smile. “It gives me a real sense of reality in being here. I have a good idea about bringing about change. I wish it were as simple as doing this or that. I will take money from lobbyists, because some represent real Americans like nurses and social workers, and they represent businesses that employ a lot of people. And I ask you to look at my record. I do want to be the president for everybody.” Defending lobbyists won't get Hillary anywhere at YearlyKos. Think again if you think Edwards and Obama don't except money from other corporate interests besides lobbyists. Let me remind you that in spite of taking money from lobbyists, Hillary has always been a champion for the causes of people who are less fortunate, specifically women and children, having grown up in middle class America with not a lot of money. After Yale, Hillary worked for Marion Wright Edelman (her mentor) at the Children's Defense Fund. People who say Hillary is a cold woman really need to take a look at her past and do some research.

Another writer at Politico, Ben Smith, focused on only the negative response that was given to Hillary in this article and says she bombed. Roger Simon's article refutes that but Smith's article is still an interesting read. Regarding the lobbyists, Smith writes, "Clinton’s defense of lobbyists may have aimed at adding nuance to a debate in which Edwards and Illinois Sen. Barack Obama have cast federal lobbyists as dangerous influence peddlers while continuing to take money from corporate executives and state lobbyists. But instead, it seemed to solidify the perception of Clinton as a Washington establishment figure in a year when Democrats are eager for change. Her words drew jeers from the audience and invited sharp responses from Edwards and Obama." This was the opportunity that Edwards and Obama were waiting for. It's rare they are speaking somewhere together that Hillary is not the most popular candidate and they know they had to strike at her at some point knowing they had a sort of home-court advantage. Smith also writes, "Obama’s advisers, however, were jubilant, joking with reporters about how quickly they would be able to turn her words into a television ad. There goes Obama's politics of change once more down the drain as his campaign seizes an opportunity to join the Clinton offensive. “I can’t say I’ve ever heard a more fulsome defense of lobbyists before,” deadpanned Obama’s main adviser, David Axelrod. “It certainly stood out.” Listen, I don't mind if you are going to attack any candidate. Unfortunately, it is a part of American politics. However, I do mind if part of your entire campaign is running on a platform that you will run a clean campaign without attacks. This is part of the reason why I continue to distance myself from Senator Obama more and more each day.

In conclusion, I'm sure a lot of what all the candidates and Hillary said today was more of the same old stuff we have been hearing for months now. I am glad that Hillary attended the YearlyKos convention and has been making progress with bloggers. While not a stellar performance, Hillary Clinton was not knocked down and continues to perform better than people could ever have anticipated. People continue to underestimate her and keep waiting for this to all come apart...guess what people? It won't. This woman fights for what she believes in and she'll continue to fight regardless of whether or not she wins the nomination and the presidency. Roger Simon's article sums up my feelings pretty well with a quote from Markos Moulitsas on Hillary's performance today. He says, "She did a good job in reducing hostility. Half the battle is getting the proper respect, and she got that. She doesn’t have to get total agreement.” I agree. We've come so far and we still have got so far to go.

-John Oliveira

A Hillary Disclaimer

Alright, now if you've been reading this blog you know that I (John) post a lot of stuff about the 2008 presidential race with a special focus on my personal favorite candidate, Senator Hillary Clinton. However, I don't want to isolate anyone with differentiating viewpoints. If you disagree with me, tell me! Post a comment and we can argue about it! That's how we learn from each other. As I've said, here at The Green Room we all are pretty much moderate to left leaning but we'd love to get different opinions...especially if they come from the right. Ashlee and myself are in Hillary's corner, Richard is for Obama, Kevin is for Richardson, and Leah is still shopping (though if Ashlee, Rich, and myself keep pummeling our Hillary and Obama agendas into her head, I don't think she will purchase either of our candidates). Anyways, point being...this is not an entirely political blog but I think the 2008 presidential race is extremely important and therefore I will keep posting about it and hopefully you will keep reading and sharing your thoughts.

With that said...I am going to write some more about Hillary.

Pollspot: More of the Same

More of the same here as another national poll at Political Wire shows my candidate, Senator Hillary Clinton, expanding her lead. On the Republican side, Rudy Giuliani continues to do well.

The latest Newsweek poll shows Sen. Hillary Clinton pulling away from her rivals in the Democratic presidential race. Clinton leads with 44% and is trailed by Sen. Barack Obama at 23% and John Edwards at 14%.

On the GOP side, Rudy Giuliani leads with 30%, followed by Fred Thompson at 22%, Sen. John McCain at 13%, and Mitt Romney at 10%.

Although it may look like we will see a New York showdown in 2008 with Hillary Clinton vs. Rudy Giuliani vs. Mike Bloomberg, I think in the end Mitt Romney will have the GOP nomination instead of Rudy.

Oh and....GO HILLARY!

Underwhelming?

Leah recently posted a political cartoon noting the mudslinging and seemingly "petty" comments made by both Barack and Hillary. I feel conflicted about this. Not about Leah. I really like Leah. But about the commentary the cartoon makes. Don't get me wrong, I think they both made a mistake in continuing to comment on the meeting-with-rogue-nations and Pakistan issue. However, I think that Hillary calling Obama "naive and irresponsible" was completely relevant and necessary because his comments were naive and irresponsible. I know I'm perpetuating this issue by continuing to post on it, but I think that national security and foreign relations are pretty damn important, especially since this is what Dems looks weak on. If we call this to be underwhelming and mudslinging, then on what do we want our presidential nominees to comment? I would say invading an ally is rather important, and is a reflection of a nominee's foreign policy. It's a hell of a lot less sexy than say poverty or global warming, but it's probably one of the most, if not the most, important issues in the race. Not invading Pakistan per se, but reestablishing America in the global community, which includes how we go about addressing terrorism and its effects on other nations.

However, it's hard to hate on Hil since she hasn't directly attacked Obama about his rather outrageous Pakistan's address. She's instead used this opportunity to highlight her own strengths and positions on this issue. Most of the other candidates, especially Biden and Dodd as John mentioned, have directly refuted Obama. Also, I'm not so much underwhelmed as scared that we could have a president this inexperienced. Not the guy you want holding the nuclear codes, savvy?

I also think it's important to recognize that the Democrats are in a really great position to win the presidency. There are still 6 months until the primary, and so it's probably best to take it slow. Yet, at the same time, the only way to win the primary is to take this time to differentiate themselves, and that requires the candidates to address issues, such as, er, national security. It's a fine balance they need to strike, mudslinging vs. differentiating, and it's hard for the American public to understand that.

In other news, the Bourne Ultimatum is GREAT. So go and see it.

Death at the home of actor Ving Rhames

Here's a sad and scary story. A man who worked for actor Ving Rhames was mauled to death by the actor's dogs. The actor has bragged to several magazines in the past about owning eight mastiffs. Pretty scary stuff.

Clinton and Obama in the Playground

Here's a nice and telling article from The New York Times about the relationship between Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. In fact, this article goes very well with the political cartoon that Leah posted below. The article discusses how the two, once friendly to each other senators, now barely speak and try to avoid contact but watch each other very carefully. It also compares the Senate floor to a playground. Here is an excerpt:

Mrs. Clinton, of New York, and Senator Christopher J. Dodd of Connecticut came first, laughing and smiling as they made their way to the Democratic side of the aisle. A few paces behind was Senator Joseph R. Biden of Delaware, who quickly joined the other two in a light moment. (Earlier, Mrs. Clinton and Senator John McCain , an Arizona Republican, had been trading warm banter near the front of the Senate floor, which takes on the air of a schoolyard during marathon voting sessions like these.)

Mr. Obama entered the Senate floor alone. He glanced at the other three, pulled out his Blackberry and paused for a few seconds before walking to the third row and taking a seat next to three freshman senators. As the evening passed, Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton each spoke with several Republicans in the room and to nearly every Democrat -- except each other.

It has got to be awkward for those two! Their schedules are so similar that they really can't avoid each other. Nice to see that Hillary, Joe, and Chris can still chill together on the Senate floor!

Mudslingers

By Daryl Cagle at MSNBC

While both candidates have their strengths and weaknesses, I've been particularly underwhelmed by Hillary and Barack recently. In this case, a picture is worth a thousand words.

Obama Vs. Pakistan

This continues my series on why Senator Barack Obama is NOT ready to be president and why my candidate, Mrs. Hillary Rodham Clinton, is. Also, I'll pretty much take anyone of the Democrats except for Obama. Okay...so maybe I'd leave Gravel and Kucinich as well but, at least, I give them credit for being more real.

Senator Obama has made more reckless remarks regarding how the U.S. should withdraw its troops from Iraq and stick them in Afghanistan and Pakistan to deal with terrorists. I'm sorry Senator but it is too soon to talk about taking our troops out just to stick them somewhere else. A big reason we want the war in Iraq to end is because we want our troops to come home and not to be thrown into another unneccessary war with no end in sight. There are other ways to hunt down Bin Laden then to throw us into another conflict. Hillary Clinton was right when she called Barack Obama's answer regarding meeting with the "bad" world leaders "naive" and "irresponsible." Here is a snippet of how Pakistan feels after Obama's comments from the Associated Press and posted at Hillaryis44.

Pakistan criticized U.S. presidential candidate Barack Obama on Friday for saying that, if elected, he might order unilateral military strikes against terrorists hiding in this Islamic country. Top Pakistan officials said Obama’s comment was irresponsible and likely made for political gain in the race for the Democratic nomination. “It’s a very irresponsible statement, that’s all I can say,” Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Khusheed Kasuri told AP Television News. “As the election campaign in America is heating up we would not like American candidates to fight their elections and contest elections at our expense.”

Obama said in a speech Wednesday that as president he would order military action against terrorists in Pakistan’s tribal region bordering Afghanistan if intelligence warranted it. The comment provoked anger in Pakistan, a key ally of the United States in its war on terror.

President Bush has worsened our relationships with countries ALL over the world and it is most definitely the worst in the Middle East and southwestern Asia. Pakistan is actually an ALLY of the US right now so please don't isolate them and threaten them with blanket statements about nuclear weapons and war. Other Democratic presidential candidates including Senator Joe Biden of Delaware, who is perhaps the most experienced in foreign policy having sat on the foreign relations committee, and Senator Chris Dodd of Connecticut have called Obama out for his comments and Biden has echoed Clinton's call of Obama as naive. Obama stated he wanted to meet with our enemies...wonderful...all the Democratic candidates are for more diplomacy so your little tiff against Hillary Clinton was stupid and unneccessary for both campaigns. However, don't push countries that are not our enemies further and further away. Obama has the rock star quality and I feel that's why he chose to run...because he's very much enjoying the attention and popularity that comes with power. His comments are showing me more and more that he is not ready to lead this country. A few days ago Obama said how, out of all the candidates Democrat and Republican, he had the best and most foreign policy experience because he has lived oversees and has family overseas. NEWSFLASH...Obama lived oversees for FOUR years when he was SIX years old. Give me a break Obama, why don't you take a back seat and let your staffer David Axelrod run for the presidency because he is clearly more experienced than you. And fyi...if you want to distance yourself from George W. Bush...then think before you speak and don't start throwing stuff out there for political gain.