E.J. Dionne In The Washington Post: What Next’s For Hillary?
As usual, a well-balanced piece.
“On the other hand, choosing a Clinton supporter as a running mate — the obvious possibilities are Govs. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania and Ted Strickland of Ohio or Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana — could serve Obama’s interest while assuaging a certain sourness that lingers in the Clinton camp.”
She can still leave gracefully, and Obama might be able to help.
Party first, right?
One problem with “the obvious possibilities” is that none of those mentioned ( Govs. Ed Rendell of Pennsylvania and Ted Strickland of Ohio or Sen. Evan Bayh of Indiana ) don’t seem likely to help Obama deal with the feeling that some women have regarding the treatment of women by the Democratic Party and the media. Folks like “Clinton Voters Count Too, ” which rightly or wrongly claims more than a million supporters, feel Obama and the media have unfairly attacked or ignored a better qualified woman to benefit a less qualified male. Many women who feel this way are saying they won’t vote for Obama under any circumstances and one suggested in her blog that they vote for former Democratic Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney who also can claim that she is a more experienced woman, having served in Congress longer than Obama, who has been ignored by the media. An additional benefit for Clinton supporters in supporting McKinney is that it removes any perception of racism from their refusal to support Obama. (Voting McKinney also will protect them from blame more than a vote for McCain in a couple years when Democrats will be blaming McCain for all the world’s problems if he is elected).
I could be wrong, of course, but I would like to see more discussion of a possible McKinney factor in the general election. I doubt I will vote for McKinney, but ignoring a more experienced woman while paying extensive attention to a less experienced man gives the appearance of sexism in the media which is the target of enough charges of bias as it is.
Comment by yaktivist — May 19, 2008 @ 6:05 am
Thanks for reading and posting.
I don’t know if a better plan is to get all the women who are loyal to Hillary because she is a woman, or to get someone who will appeal to the Hispanics and working class votes she got as well.
Cynthia McKinney might be too “black.”
We’re now going into Democrat/Republican mode, where a whole new set of issues will be important.
It’s important to get out of the racial and gender labels and appeal as widely as possible.
Comment by chr1 — May 19, 2008 @ 9:57 am