Hillary

An op-ed writer in today’s The New York Times addresses a little-discussed issue in the Obama vs. Hillary "electability" debate: strongly-held anti-Clinton sentiments of right-leaning (and by extension, of right-leaning, independent) voters. Right or wrong, Stanley Fish writes, Hillary is vilified by so-called "Hillary Haters" for being "a feminist and for not being one, for being an extreme leftist and for being a ‘warmongering hawk,’ for being godless and for being ‘frighteningly fundamentalist'.” Clinton is an "empty vessel", Fish argues, for all that Conservatives detest. Given the voracity of Clinton opposition, one might ask, "Who, among the Democracts, then, is most electable?" "Who can win over the greatest number of independent voters?" There is little doubt, as Fish points out, that Hillary is a lightning rod for Republican ire--the GOP's unifying counterweight to a much (and deservingly) maligned Republican George W. Bush. But is that enough to convince Democrats to place their bets on America's willingness to vote for a black presidential candidate? (Race seems to be the "electability" issue that seems to give most Democratic voters pause.) On the Republican side, frontrunner McCain—who appeals to many voters who might cross party lines-- suffers an inverse risk: His lackluster support among Party loyalists may result in a diminished turnout of the Republican base on Election Day. With the country so evenly divided in recent elections, winning the support of independent voters and mobilizing new voters will undoubtedly play a significant role in determining who ultimately takes the White House.

The Not Vote---the decider??

Since last night's class, I have done a lot of thinking about Joey's comment about who people are not voting for. While this concept should not have an influence in people voting preferences, it seems that not everyone in America votes based on merit. With Edwards leaving the race, this idea, in which people will vote for a candidate because they do not want to vote for the other candidate for superficial reasons of gender or race, receives new light. For the first time in the history of our country, the Democratic Presidential nominee will be a member of a minority group in our country. A female has as real shot at being President, and an African-American has a real shot at being President. It has been said that a majority of Edwards' votes has been because he is not Clinton. It is important to point out that he is also not Obama. So who will these votes go to on Super Tuesday and the rest of the primaries? The answer, presumably is a combination of sorts. Those who preferred Edwards for his positions on politics will have give their support to whichever candidate they align with better at this point. And, those who voted for Edwards for superficial reasons now have the decision to make about which Joey was talking. Let's hope that there are more people in the based on merit boat than the superficial one. It is amazing that this race still continues to get more interesting every day.

Candidates' electability

The 2008 Presidential campaign is a surprised. Indeed, based on the controversial results of the Bush administration partly because of the Iraq war, a democratic victory seemed to be easy. In Europe, we are used to what we call alternance or the change in power. On the other side of the Atlantic Ocean, people think that belonging to the same political party than George W. Bush is a handicap. It makes no doubt that a democratic candidate is going to win, and it is the reason why the European media are largely covering Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama’s campaigns. Yet, the campaign is widely more open than it appears to be and, like in every presidential race, candidates have to prove their ability to resolve people’s issues. Democratic candidates have no advantage over republican ones. A January-14 article published in the New York Times points out that Senators Clinton and Obama have both to fight to prove their electability. Obama’s victory in Iowa and Clinton’s one in New Hampshire have shown democratic voters’ confidence in the two candidates for competing against a republican. Surprisingly, republican candidates don’t have this electability issue. More substantial issues seem to be at stake according to a survey conducted by the New York Times. Americans’ prime concern is no longer the Iraq war, but the economy; 62 percent said they believe that the economy is getting worse. For republican sympathizers, now the question is which candidate will be able to improve the country’s economy. This survey points out the role played by voters in setting the agenda; if the Iraq war is no longer their main concern, it is going to help republican candidates to put a distance between them and the Bush administration.

Post inspired by article: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/14/us/politics/14poll.html?_r=1&th&emc=th&oref=slogin