ARTICLE UPDATED BELOW
Geoffrey Wheatcroft of The Washington Post FINALLY gets around to asking the question that has been circulating in both the “left” AND “right” bloggospheres for months now:
HEIR APPARENT
Who Made Hillary Queen?By Geoffrey Wheatcroft
Among so much about American politics that can impress or depress a friendly transatlantic observer, there’s nothing more astonishing than this: Why on Earth should Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton be the front-runner for the presidency?
She has now pulled well ahead of Sen. Barack Obama, both in polls and in fundraising. If the Democrats can’t win next year, they should give up for good, so she must be considered the clear favorite for the White House. But in all seriousness: What has she ever done to deserve this eminence? How could a country that prides itself on its spirit of equality and opportunity possibly be led by someone whose ascent owes more to her marriage than to her merits?
We all, nations as well as individuals, have difficulty seeing ourselves as others see us. In this case, I doubt that Americans realize how extraordinary their country appears from the outside. In Europe, the supposed home of class privilege and heritable status, we have abandoned the hereditary principle (apart from the rather useful institution of constitutional monarchy), and the days are gone when Pitt the Elder was prime minister and then Pitt the Younger. But Americans find nothing untoward in Bush the Elder being followed by Bush the Younger.
At a time when Americans seem to contemplate with equanimity up to 28 solid years of uninterrupted Bush-Clinton rule, please note that there are almost no political dynasties left in British politics, at least on the Tory side. …” – The Washington Post
TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS? THREE DECADES OF CLINTON-BUSH RULE? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MINDS? Folks — WAKE UP… don’t even GO THERE. We are a Democratic Republic…
Our brothers and sisters from across the pond think we are 100% DAFT as a society for even CONTEMPLATING a three-decade rule by two VERY CLOSE families; the Clintons and Bush’s. That’s right, the Clintons and Bush’s get along FAMOUSLY behind the scenes as has been widely reported, and to our brothers and sisters across the pond, they are seeing us voting for a MONARCHY from the sidelines and wondering what the hell we are THINKING…
Along with myself. What the hell ARE we thinking, my fellow Americans? ANYBODY but Hillary. Come ON. Wake UP…
***
UPDATE (9:39 AM, CST): The Queen has tapped classified document thief, Sandy Burglar (shamelessly borrowed from draft dodger and liberal troop basher, “Mr. Phony Soldiers” himself; Rush Limbaugh) Sandy Berger, on his shoulder with her royal sceptre in what is (to say the very least) a controversial move:
Sandy Berger Is Unpaid Adviser to Sen. Hillary Clinton
WASHINGTON — Sandy Berger, the former national security adviser to President Bill Clinton who was convicted for stealing and destroying top secret documents, is now advising Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, FOX News confirms.
The New York Democrat’s campaign said Monday that Berger is an informal, unpaid adviser to the campaign. He has been a longtime friend of both Clintons.
Aides to the campaign were unapologetic about Berger’s advisory role… ” – FoxNews
Ummm… I rest my case, folks.
***
Thanks to our good friends at RealClearPolitics for selecting this article to be added to the REAL CLEAR BLOGS roundup (permalink)
Thanks also to The Heretik for linking in
Other bloggers weigh in, courtesy of MemeOrandum: Andrew Sullivan of The Daily Dish; Michael Stickings of The Reaction
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2:45 am on October 8th, 2007 1
[...] Clark Queen Hillary Rodham Clinton — Revisited » This Summary is from an article posted at The Gun Toting Liberal™ — Slightly left of center… [...]
7:32 am on October 8th, 2007 2
When you read the news articles, the question seems to be “can anyone stop Hillary?” I wonder how big her lead would be if the articles were instead “Can Obama catch up?”
I share the hunch that so many others have, that the media feeds us who we need to choose. Hillary is in charge in part because of her name recognition, but also in part because the news sources keep saying her name. Think about how often her name comes up in comparison to Obama, Richardson, Edwards, etc.. I’m not surprised more than half the people support her; she’s all they hear about.
9:07 am on October 8th, 2007 3
Long Live The Queen?…
Gun Toting Liberal is begging you to reconsider Hillary: TWENTY-EIGHT YEARS? THREE DECADES OF CLINTON-BUSH RULE? ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR MINDS? Folks — WAKE UP… don’t even GO THERE. We are a Democratic Republic… Our brothers and sisters from……
9:46 am on October 8th, 2007 4
[...] the people worried about the coming of Queen Hillary would like you to forget about the mess we inherit from George Bush. Truly this is a case of the nepot calling the kettle [...]
10:55 am on October 8th, 2007 5
Seriously, when the next big terrorist attack hits the U.S., probably during the next President’s first term, who would you rather have in charge? Hillary? Obama? Pretty-Boy Edwards? I THINK NOT. Maybe Giuliani. Maybe Romney. Maybe Huckabee. Maybe Thompson.
This is much more serious than democrats seem to think. You put some weak-kneed namby-pamby democrat into office and the terrorists will have a field day killing American citizens. After 9/11, Even Gore was relieved that Bush had won the election, as was the rest of the nation.
The reason all you democrats get a sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you try to decide between Hillary, Obama, and Edwards is that NONE of them are even remotely qualified to be President.
3:01 pm on October 8th, 2007 6
What’s scary is the pushback if the DNC nominates her- it will implode in her face because there are more people on both sides of the aisle that hate Hillary. in a country of over 300 million people this is the best we can come up with ?
“For God’s sake, Hillary sit down!”
3:04 pm on October 8th, 2007 7
“The reason all you democrats get a sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you try to decide between Hillary, Obama, and Edwards is that NONE of them are even remotely qualified to be President.”
And what did GWB bring to the table in ‘00?
Failed, bankrupt businesses and a legacy for being the most-executing executive?
3:18 pm on October 8th, 2007 8
I knew we’d find some common ground hanginjohnny, even if it is just a mutual dislike of Hillary.
Look around man, the economy is still doing great! No terrorist attacks at home since 9/11. GWB didn’t do nearly as bad as the dem’s are tellin’ ya.
But this isn’t about GWB this time. It’s about who is capable of leading this country, and the world, through the next 4 years of very troubling and troubled times.
9:45 pm on October 8th, 2007 9
I’m lookin for 2 things:
1) A strong, actual LEADER
2) Someone who can ARTICULATE his vision.
(for a reminder of the importance of this: http://reagansbrigade.blogspot.com/2007/10/wanted-articulate-gop-candidate.html)
Rudy?
11:25 pm on October 8th, 2007 10
If you know of one person amongst either the Democrat or Republican presidential contenders let me know. So far I haven’t seen anyone that I’d be proud to call Mr. or Madam President – or one that is worthy of the title.
2:10 pm on October 10th, 2007 11
Buffalo – honestly, I don’t see anyone on either side. Political cronyism produces politicians, not statesmen, and not leaders. If you’re not indoctrinated into the good ole boys club of either party, you’re on your own, which means you’ll never be more than an unknown. We need another one like Reagan, who can climb up through the system and once he’s on top, rewrite the rules, so he owes no one and can lead everyone effectively. I don’t see that person out there, but next year, we have to elect someone.
3:03 pm on October 10th, 2007 12
Dead serious question, F&B. All of that being absolutely true what is the point of voting? I’d truly like to hear your opinion.
3:41 pm on October 10th, 2007 13
Because if you and I don’t vote, just because there is no one on the ballot that we think is competent, then the next President will be picked by someone else, like DaveM, or worse. We have to rationally decide who, out of the available field, is the least likely to destroy the country, and who is the most likely to hire/appoint quality people. Then cast our vote and hope for the best.
5:26 pm on October 10th, 2007 14
Appreciate the response, F&B. If I was inclined to vote I would say to keep someone like daveinboca out of office. Other than in local elections I don’t see much point in voting. The idea of giving someone my authority to do things I don’t want done … strikes me as wrong. If I’m going to get screwed they’re going to do it without my permission.
9:38 pm on October 10th, 2007 15
I understand your point.
May the best man (or woman) win, Buffalo.
6:53 am on October 11th, 2007 16
Look around man, the economy is still doing great! No terrorist attacks at home since 9/11. GWB didn’t do nearly as bad as the dem’s are tellin’ ya.
As far as that goes- let’s just be thankful that AQ, Hezbollah and whatever terrorist clique of the month have a lot of ground to cover. The 9-11 plot was years in the planning. Spain and Britain weren’t so lucky after 9-11. Pakistan is still a hot point, as are other places in the globe. People being aware helps also.
A President taking full credit for a good economic cycle is just tacking on credit where it’s not due, to some extent. Industry, and innovation and basic economic dynamics are at play. Bush was riding off of the previous admin’s changes. These things don’t happen over night, and policy implementation takes years before you see the full effect.
6:56 am on October 11th, 2007 17
Appreciate the response, F&B. If I was inclined to vote I would say to keep someone like daveinboca out of office. Other than in local elections I don’t see much point in voting. The idea of giving someone my authority to do things I don’t want done … strikes me as wrong. If I’m going to get screwed they’re going to do it without my permission.
Buffalo on October 10th, 2007
B-
Who’s to say that voting to give someone authority to do what you would like to see done is the same as your neighbors?That’s the beauty/curse of the system- it is not tailor-made for any single individual ( unless you count Unitary George,lol)
Not voting is yielding your chance to have some impact, some voice. Bitching and moaning never got anything accomplished.
Peace.
6:58 am on October 11th, 2007 18
Re: Reagan
“the good old days weren’t always good, and tomorrow’s not as bad as it seems”
Billy Joel
“Keepin the Faith”
11:29 am on October 14th, 2007 19
“Political cronyism produces politicians, not statesmen, and not leaders. If you’re not indoctrinated into the good ole boys club of either party, you’re on your own”
hey we actually agree on something- i’m sure you’re thrilled.
do we really need another reagan though? wasn’t he the guy that couldn’t ‘remember stuff’? i mean gw and clinton are slippery little weasels, but you can’t top a CIC who defends himself by conveniantly ‘forgetting’ things; and at least we didn’t have to worry about the past two imbeciles wandering off and getting lost in the mall.
and then you go on to talk about which presidential candidate is least likely to destroy the country as being your current voting criterion…pretty bleak, buddy. and you wonder where truthers and proletarians come from.
“If I was inclined to vote I would say to keep someone like daveinboca out of office.”
-Buffalo
let’s get this legislation rolling man, let’s get it on the ballot- DaveinBoca must never, ever, EVER -under any circumstances- be allowed to run for office.
And just to be fair F&B, my voting methodolgy is just as bleak as yours- that is, just pick the person who everyone’s making out to be the craziest.
4:01 pm on October 14th, 2007 20
Oh yeah, I’m thrilled, no really, I am.
Your memory of President Reagan appears to be even less clear than that which you would attribute to him.
History will be much kinder to President Reagan than you have been.
Another big difference between liberals and conservatives becomes clear as well. Liberals tend to have no respect for other people, especially people who have sacrificed themselves and dedicated their lives to making things better for others, whom they disagree with politically.
They also tend to have no respect for traditions that have contributed to the incredible success this country has seen over the last couple of hundred years or so.
I’m not talking about anyone in particular here, just tendencies.
Liberals also haven’t done much for this country or her people since the 1960’s. About the only thing they ever do is whine and complain about how bad everything and everybody else is, but never really step up to the plate themselves.
That is why most people, as they become older and wiser, become conservatives.
I’m sure you’ll agree, DaveM.
4:26 pm on October 14th, 2007 21
i’m sorry F&B- but what a load of BS, really.
hopefully some other callous liberal will ’step up to the plate’ here for me…you’ve got me pinned in a corner. darnit!! help!!
it’s funny, first you claim conservatives are the nice, respectful people, then you go onto bash the left going all the way back to the 60’s.
try being a little more consistent.
8:28 pm on October 15th, 2007 22
You Yanks are so into yourselves. Doesn’t it seem strange to you that nothing has happened since 9/11 and that your country is going down the pan. All you God Fearing, Gun Toting inbreds need to get out in the real world. Not the world of Oprah,Al (G)Bore, Dr. Phil or the world as presented by your controlled media, but the real world were real people live in real countries. It is about time you voted for someone in your country who cares about your country and not about what is going on in other places most of you could not find on a map. Out here we care about each other We do not care if they are black/white, anglo saxon, catholic, muslim or what ever. So do something good for the rest of the world and stay home and leave our world alone.
9:20 pm on October 15th, 2007 23
David-
where are you from?
i like your attitude. a little harsh but us yanks do deserve a good spanking at this point. all of us.
10:01 pm on October 15th, 2007 24
Hi Dave ‘Ghosts in my Clothes’ M. I am from the best country in the world “Australia”. We don’t take shit but our politicians are the same as everybodys pretty bloody useless.
10:59 pm on October 15th, 2007 25
If any of you guys on here are still not sure you are being manipulated by your government and it does not matter who is President, because we all know the president has no power and that he is controlled by his backers. Have a look at this web site http://100777.com/faketerror and go to how to create an angry American, but still no Vietnam type demo’s, what a pity.
10:04 am on October 16th, 2007 26
there are millions of us in the US who realise we’re being manipulated, but most of us are caught between the bipartisan BS, which divides us so sharply.
i’ve said it a million times that what we need is more political parties, and to have them be taken seriously.
the ‘more smarter’ people here know the gop and dnc are both chalk full of doodie head liar pervert scoundrels.
and i visited the page you linked to.
i’ve thought of the behavioral sciences theory, the propaganda, madison avenue, Goebbels…
this is nothing new, the ruling classes have always been able to manipulate their minions onto the battlefield, long before Pavlov.
So how is it you Aussie’s have been spared all of this?
surely there must be some problems there, too?
10:19 am on October 16th, 2007 27
Lies and doubletalk- how these clowns can say they “didn’t” say something when a journo is quoting them…that’s chutzpah, that’s cajones. that’s self- delusionism on par with OJ Simpson.
10:33 am on October 16th, 2007 28
hanginjohnny- what are you talking about?
1:49 pm on October 16th, 2007 29
David Miller: “your country is going down the pan” — You forgot to add that this is your opinion. And clearly it is an opinion that is founded in jealousy and formed by ill-informed internet news sources. What is Audtralia’s GDP? About 650 billion at a 2.7% growth rate last time I checked. Ours is 13,200 billion at a 2.9% growth rate. Now, exactly which “pan” is the U.S. going down?
“All you God Fearing, Gun Toting inbreds” — People in island nations should be careful about who they call inbreds. People who live in glass houses should not throw stones
“Out here we care about each other We do not care if they are black/white, anglo saxon, catholic, muslim or what ever. So do something good for the rest of the world and stay home and leave our world alone” — So, Mr. Miller, what is it exactly that Australia has done for the rest of the world??? I’m just curious, really, since our school system is so bad most of us couldn’t even find Australia on a map. Oh yeah, isn’t Australia that island over by New Zealand???
9:26 pm on October 16th, 2007 30
Well F&B, where do you want me to start. Not exactly sure if your figures are correct, but your telling the story: “Ours is 13,200 billion at a 2.9% growth rate. Now, exactly which “pan” is the U.S. going down?” For a country that is ten times our size inpopulation you are only double our GDP and about par on growth rate. Mmm. “So, Mr. Miller, what is it exactly that Australia has done for the rest of the world???” Mouse over to this website and wet your appetite on the inventobility(??) of australians. We have universal health care (Seen Sicko have we). We stay out of other peoples backyards,ie. Guatamala, Honduras, Angola, Venuzuela, Vietnam,Korea,Grenada,Afganistan,Iraq,Cuba. There will be no world peace while you Yanks think you are Gods Gift to solving the worlds problems, you may want to stop. I am not talking about you the average Joe in the street, although you must take some blame for allowing your Governments to get away with what they have. From what I have seen (and I have been around I am 58) and what I have done. You need to be less introspective, you did not invent the world, there are 6 billion other people out there trying to survive the things that your cartels have managed to try and control.
9:28 pm on October 16th, 2007 31
Sorry forgot the website for what Australians have done for the world.http://www.whitehat.com.au/Australia/Inventions/InventionsA.html
9:41 pm on October 16th, 2007 32
Dave ‘Schizotypal’ M, What problems do we have in Australia?? Just the general corruption and incompetent management of business. I saw a show about Enron on discovery. I did not have any idea what was going on except the fact that it was big and the regulatory bodies buried there head in the sand(shades of J Edgar Hoover) This seems to be a feature lacking in Australia. Our press and government bodies are more open to scrutiny. Our press although manipulated in a minor way is quickly brought to heal by the readers and the types of controls the Government imposes on the use of the media. We have talk back radio here that is unbeleivable on its criticism of government and big business, however they still get away with stuff now and again. No we are not without are problems but they are minor compared to yours. Try this radio station 2GB you can listen to them on the net.
11:57 am on October 17th, 2007 33
Sorry David, recheck your math, our GDP is over 20 times the GDP of Australia.
I checked your web site, very impressive list. I’m surprised Crocodile Dundee and Olivia Newton-John weren’t on it. Of course you realize that we can’t really post a list of American inventions, it would be so long it would crash the Internet (also one of our inventions).
You are correct, we didn’t invent the world, but we know Who did.
“There will be no world peace while you Yanks think you are Gods Gift to solving the worlds problems, you may want to stop” — Do you really believe there will be world peace if we stop???
It is always much easier to see the speck in your brother’s eye than to see the log in your own eye. Maybe if all the Europeans and Australians and South Americans and Asians got off their collective lazy butts and helped correct some of the problems in the world, the United States of America would not be forced into the position of doing it alone.
It’s very easy to sit back and criticize the U.S. for doing a bad job when all the people doing the criticizing don’t do anything but complain. I guess you can’t do anything wrong if you don’t do anything.
12:32 pm on October 17th, 2007 34
hanginjohnny- what are you talking about?
Dave ‘Schizotypal’ M on October 16th, 2007
oh, sorry , was referring to Cheney being interviewed, where the interviewer said “you said, and I quote…” and good ol’ brass balls Dick said “I never said that..” If they quote you that means you said it in imho! Thing that irked me was that the journo didn’t pursue it….spineless! …and no it wasn’t on Russert’s “Cheney Friendly” Meet The Press ( that doesn’t ask the tough questions ). It was a lady reporter on another channel.
9:01 pm on October 17th, 2007 35
Well F&B you may well be right about the GDP, but you did not invent the internet. Just because your military had a communications system that was computer based
and they then passed it over to the public who took it over and evolved it into the internet as we know it. But getting to more important things. I want you to check your history. Most of the problems in the world today were the result of Colonialism either British or some other European country. The majority where not benevolent, they were the result of trying to gain wealth. These countries generally pulled out of these countries at the end of WW2 or just after. Now if you look at my list of the previous email you will see some of these countries mentioned. These are the countries your country has been involved in. Either directly(military action) or covertly(propping up dictators)and then with military action. Now the result is that we have less peace on earth due to you Governments actions. there are a few theory’s on this at other places on the net. You may want to check them out, one that comes to mind is the Hegelien Theory. Anyway good to debate with you.
10:09 am on October 18th, 2007 36
Absolutely, Mr. Miller. We’ve beat this one to death, but there will always be something new popping up to argue about. My experience at GTL’s blog has been that even people with diametrically opposed points of view can remain civil with each other (for the most part
) and everyone gains from the dialogue.
10:38 am on October 25th, 2007 37
More civil that John Hawkin’s RWN blog- I’ve seen jackals treat each other better sometimes. Name calling, four letter words, the whole shebang.
That’s not dialog or debate, just plain old sandlot bullying and trash talking.
12:40 am on October 26th, 2007 38
hegelian theory- now you’re talkin’, my favorite; not a very favourable view of capitalism, but Socialism doesn’t work so sorry china-mart, but thanks for taking our money and making a laughing stock of our people. china-mart is darwinism at work.
wtc 7, how’d it come down again?
1:32 am on October 26th, 2007 39
Saw a movie last night it is from Google Video, it is called Zeitgeist(I think that is the real name of a person) anyway it is very good and worth watching. Says a lot about what George W is up to. Also I did not know that there are no income tax laws in the US and that income tax collection was unconstitutional. After all that is how the USA was formed, because of George 3’s tax regime on the original states.