Hillary Did What She Must, and Will Be Justly Rewarded
In her belated concession speech, Hilllary did what she needed to do... what she was forced to do by circumstance and by party elders.
And she did it as best she could, given her plentiful reserves of pride and anger, narcissism, martyrdom and Clintonian self-pity.
That she did what she had to do was evidenced by the spate of emails I received within 30 minutes after her final "And that is why I will work my heart out to make sure that Senator Obama is our next president" from:
- DNC Chair Howard Dean: "Senator Clinton ran an outstanding campaign... It can be tough to lose a hard-fought race -- I know, because I've been there. But no matter who you supported, you're part of a bigger family..."
- Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid: "As you may know, I was a boxer. And I've seen many fights go the distance. But never have I seen one where everyone came out stronger - until now."
- Presumptive Democratic nominee Barack Obama: "Senator Clinton made history over the past 16 months... Our party and our country are stronger because of the work she has done throughout her life."
And although she didn't give up her delegates, and can still have her name placed in nomination at the convention, I think she pretty much meant her soaring words, as evidenced by the way she unwittingly grimaced and averted her eyes (see the above photo) each of the ten times she uttered Obama's name.
It looked like she was gagging, then swallowing a bitter but essential pill... because, truth is, she was.
The importance, though, isn't that it was hard to swallow. The importance is that she did swallow it. And for that, we must be grateful to Hillary Clinton.
Hillary had a choice, but not much of one. And as someone who wants a future in Democratic politics, she had no other path but to get with the party message, and jump wholeheartedly on board the Obama bandwagon.
So she did. After all, she's nothing if not pragmatic and incredibly smart. And that I admire about Hillary Clinton.
Sen. Clinton will be justly rewarded for attracting scores of new Democratic voters, for energizing millions of older women in this post-modern feminist era, and for earning more than 18 million votes in the historic Democratic primary race of 2008.
Of course, she'll have a big slog of her debt covered by Sen. Obama's brimming coffers. She'll be awarded a juicy, prime-time speaking slot at the Democratic Convention in Denver in late August.
And judging by the words of both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in the past few days, she would play a major leadership role in pioneering universal health care during an Obama administration.
Will Hillary be offered the VP slot? I doubt it, as she has precious little capacity or proclivity for a second-banana position. She's a strong, vibrant, unique leader, but winces at being a good soldier-follower. And then there's the burning dilemma of what to do with Bill...
My guess is that Hillary Clinton can have a choice position in an Obama administration if she wants it. This smart, ambitious woman will make the best of what comes her way.
And in the great unlikelihood that fate intervenes between now and the August 25th convention... well, she kept her committed delegates, and she did the right thing by party elders.
And she still wants to be president someday.
Bottom line is this: it's over. Probably.
(Photo taken on June 7, 2008: Mark Wilson/Getty Images)
“And she did it as best she could, given her plentiful reserves of pride and anger, narcissism, martyrdom and Clintonian self-pity.”
How can you expect to achieve unity from Sen. Clinton’s supporters with the above comment? Clinton has stood up for all Democrats with her lifetime of public service. She was our First Lady who worked tirelessly for women and children’s issues. I have not forgotten our standard of living under President Clinton. I have not forgotten the how Clinton survived with dignity from endless unsubstantiated attacks from mean spirited republicans. She is an outstanding role model for young women you have no right to treat her in this manner. Just look at Chelsea.
HMMMMMMMMM, ANOTHER COPY DESCRIPTION OF SENATOR CLINTON….. JUST LIKE OBAMA’S SPEECHES. ANOTHER COPY-CAT REPORTER THAT WRITES THE SAME RHETORIC OVER AND OVER. THIS JUST GOES TO SHOW YOU THAT WOMEN ARE JUST AS SEXIST AS MEN… THEY PUNISH A WOMAN IF SHE IS SMART, AMBICIOUS AND STRONG…SOMETHING THE WRITER ISN’T. JUST STOP THE NONSENSE…IT’S GETTING OLD.
I thought she kept her delegates and only “suspended” rather than “conceding” because that will allow her to raise money to pay off her insanely large debt. It was a good speech, though, and she said a lot of things I think she probably should’ve said a long time ago.
“I have not forgotten our standard of living under President Clinton.”
Neither have I and I’m glad we won’t be seeing that come back with another Clinton in the Whitehouse.
How will they reward her, erase her votes on the Iraq Resolution (after all, she said it was only a resolution), the Levin Amendment or the Kyl/Lieberman Amendment? Maybe they can have people forget that last year Melissa Etheridge told her she “threw gay people under the bus.”
I think the “grimace” characterization above is misplaced; it looks like a petty indulgence. I finally watched the BBC clip. This ‘glance down / closed smile’ (not a grimace) image captured in the photo was a constant in the speech. But, in fact, when Hillary said “Barack Obama” she was looking at the camera or the audience, not down at her notes. In fact, I’d call some of her “looks” at the audience to be challenging (they were, after all, booing).