Dowd on the debate
He’s not a Barack-star in debates — he’s shown that time and again. But he was cool, comprehensive, explicit, sharp and unflappable tonight, and that means he won. But there’s one thing Hillary said tonight that I really quite liked. When Tim Russert asked her to name President Vladimir Putin‘s successor in Russia (whose name is Dmitri A. Medvedev), she said it was “um, Med-medvedova, whatever.” My Hillary hate evaporated when she said that. I laughed, liked her smile.
But I also love the new 2.27 Maureen Dowd column that was written just after tonight’s debate. Here’s a taste:
Hillary Clinton “has been so discombobulated that she has ignored some truisms of politics that her husband understands well: Sunny beats gloomy. Consistency beats flipping. Bedazzling beats begrudging. Confidence beats whining.
“Voters gravitate toward the presidential candidates who seem more comfortable in their skin. J.F.K. and Reagan seemed exceptionally comfortable. So did Bill Clinton and W., who both showed that comfort can be an illusion of sorts, masking deep insecurities. [But] the fact that Obama is exceptionally easy in his skin has made Hillary almost jump out of hers.
“After saying she found her ‘voice’ in New Hampshire, she has turned into Sybil. We’ve had Experienced Hillary, Soft Hillary, Hard Hillary, Misty Hillary, Sarcastic Hillary, Joined-at-the-Hip-to-Bill Hillary, Her-Own-Person-Who-Just-Happens- to-Be-Married-to-a-Former-President Hillary, It’s-My-Turn Hillary, Cuddly Hillary, Let’s-Get-Down-in-the-Dirt-and-Fight-Like-Dogs Hillary.
“Just as in the White House, when her cascading images and hairstyles became dizzying and unsettling, suggesting that the first lady woke up every day struggling to create a persona, now she seems to think there is a political solution to her problem. If she can only change this or that about her persona, or tear down this or that about Obama’s. But the whirlwind of changes and charges gets wearing.
“By threatening to throw the kitchen sink at Obama, the Clinton campaign simply confirmed the fact that they might be going down the drain.
“It’s a hard sell for Hillary to say that she is the only one capable of leading this country in a war when she helped in leading the country into that war. Or to paraphrase Obama from the debate here, the one who drives the bus into the ditch can’t drive it out.”
Argued with a few people who felt Hillary won.
But I say Obama did much better this time around. Unflappable is a perfect word. And he managed, yet again, to make a funny comment.
Oh and I’m sorry, but those cold killer eyes in her profile shot while looking at Obama have never been more…alive. At least to me. She managed to control it though.
Petty comment, I realize.
I was completely in Hillary’s camp until I saw those shoes she was wearing just before the South Carolina primaries. Egads! She won me back somewhat with the way she smiled on some show called “Meet The Press” a couple of weeks ago and I was ready to go all out for her until I saw the absolutely dreamy way Obama spoke to supporters outside a Michigan union hall several days ago.
In tonight’s debate, I very much liked the way the baby-spot backlight brought out the gold in Hill’s hair but she lost me when she stuttered on that one name she was trying to say, (some king in Africa or something).
AND after seeing how nicely tailored Barack’s suit was and the way he flashed that winning smile, (who does his teeth!? I’ve GOT to have their name), I’ve finally decided that I’m 100 percent Obama all the way! It all makes my head spin, to be honest! Well, at least I’m not being asked to name a top “Idol” yet! (though I will say I’ve got it down to five…..okay, seven!)
Walter, you’re too much.
As much as I hate him, when George W. Bush didn’t know the names of world leaders at least he had the good sense to look sheepish about it.
Switching between FM and AM radio some nights on the way home from work, I will roll through Dennis Miller’s program (and no, I don’t hate him). He can be entertaining and more than occasionally open-minded, but he refuses to give up the saw that it is somehow endearing that W is an elocutionary idiot. From “nuculer” to “putting food on your family,” his gaffes have been an embarassment across the board. I am sure the bottom-feeders of right-wing radio will be ridiculing Hillary for the misstep with the Russian name last night, ignoring the fact that on a relative scale, the performance of the current president in front on the microphone would technically classify him as being mentally retarded.
nice work walter…..
Actually, bmcintire, as a resident HE Right-wing bottom-feeder, my first reaction wasn’t to forget W’s problems with the English (Russian?) language in order to bash Hillary, it was to go, “Huh. . . so, it IS hard to remember all that shit.”
If the President did what Hillary did, your biases (and those of Jeff) would be confirmed. When Hillary does it, it’s endearing. Right, check, got it.
“From “nuculer”"
I don’t think any president has pronounced that correctly since Nixon. It seems to be in their manual of how to be a regular guy. Hell, Carter has degree in it and he got it wrong. Tell me that’s not deliberate.
Dowd writes: “Hillary Clinton “has been so discombobulated that she has ignored some truisms of politics that her husband understands well: Sunny beats gloomy. Consistency beats flipping. Bedazzling beats begrudging. Confidence beats whining.”
After this disaster of a primary season, can’t we retire the “Bill Clinton is an electoral genius” card already? The man had no coattails as President, only “succeeding” politically in the second term because his party rallied around him during impeachment. After the White House, he’s been a big *negative* for most every candidate he’s campaigned for, up to and including the worst campaign of his life– this one.
Bill Clinton is done. Hillary? She might have been able to salvage something of a future had she gotten out a couple of weeks ago. But these last few days have probably done her in for good. Last night’s debate featured one of the worst performances I’ve ever seen. Her best hope now is no one was paying attention.
The most telling moment of the debate, for me, was when Russert presented/cornered Hillary with her promise of 200,000 new jobs in upstate NY against the reality of 30,000 lost jobs. I swear for a split second she looked like she was going to pass out. Her eyes bulged, her mouth widened…tough, tough questions (surprisingly) by Russert last night.
She recovered instantly and gave a nice little answer pandering to dems (i.e. if gore had won those jobs would have been created)…but it was a typical rationalization…
…conversely, while I don’t agree with a lot of what Obama says, his logic is remarkably consistent and clear in these debates and there is always a wider scope to his reponses with very little double-speak. He continues to lose some credibility whenever he tucks his tail between his legs at the mere mention of islam, but who can really blame him when otherwise intelligent people believe he “used to be” muslim. I guess alienating a few million muslim voters is what it takes to set the record straight.
I just want to see a Democrat in the White House. If it’s Obama the press will at least give him the first 100 day freeride that Bush got for the first 6 years. Hillary will immediately be blamed for everything, day one. Russert is scum, doesn’t deserve to be Bill Moyers’ fluffer.
At least the liberals are finally putting out someone is as as far left as you can be. Now if he would ahve any pride and actually admit he’s a liberal it would be better.
I’m a pretty big Obama supporter, but I don’t think this is the last time we’ll hear questions about Minister Farrakhan during this election season.
Obama tried to thread the needle last night (denouncing Farrakhan’s hate-speech, but not explicitly rejecting his support) so as to not piss off either his black or Jewish supporters. It wasn’t a great answer and left him open to further questions in the future.
If GWB had said something like that in one of his debates, it would have been trotted out endlessly in clips on the evening news to prove that he had no clue about foreign policy.
“If GWB had said something like that in one of his debates, it would have been trotted out endlessly in clips on the evening news to prove that he had no clue about foreign policy.”
Not really. Although it’sbeen quite obvious Bush has no clue about foreign policy.
This is the Walter Sobchak we all love.
Jimmy Carter had his own unique mispronunciation of “nuclear”. Most politicians mispronounce it “nook-yoo-ler”. Carter always came out with something like “nook-uh-ler”.
Medvedev’s name is pronounced “MYED-vee-dyev”. It means “bear” — pretty appropriate for the next Russian leader (no chance Putin’s guy will lose).
Bush doesn’t need to mispronounce anyone’s name to prove he’s clueless about foreign policy. The whole GOP spin in 2000 was that he didn’t need to have a clue — he’d be surrounded by responsible adults who knew what they were doing.
Sadly, the steely-eyes of Hillary are simply a reflection of the huge grudge she’s carrying around. For all of her feminist credentials, the fact is much of her “experience” came from her marriage to a philandering political hound-dog who has continually humiliated her on stages large and small, local and international. For all of the casual abuse she has suffered, aren’t we smart enough to know she deserves to have a place in history as the first female President of the United States? We owe her.
Bill and Hillary are a drama of Shakespearian proportions. The Bard could have made insanely dramatic plays of both The Bush familoy, The Clintons, The Jacksons and Tom Cruise. Obama is more like a Hollywood movie so far, but who knows what we have in store
Way to obfuscate:
SEN. OBAMA: You know, I have been very clear in my denunciation of Minister Farrakhan’s anti-Semitic comments. I think that they are unacceptable and reprehensible. I did not solicit this support. He expressed pride in an African-American who seems to be bringing the country together. I obviously can’t censor him, but it is not support that I sought. And we’re not doing anything, I assure you, formally or informally with Minister Farrakhan.
MR. RUSSERT: Do you reject his support?
SEN. OBAMA: Well, Tim, you know, I can’t say to somebody that he can’t say that he thinks I’m a good guy. (Laughter.) You know, I — you know, I — I have been very clear in my denunciations of him and his past statements, and I think that indicates to the American people what my stance is on those comments.
Obama is falling into a trap i.e. Farrakahn. Black voters, as a block, aren’t going to desert him over that; in black political circles Farrakahn tends to get the same regard as a crazy drunk uncle who you still invite to Thanksgiving but don’t take seriously (it’ll get dicier when McCain challenges him to denounce Sharpton.) While Jewish voters really COULD (and for good reason) hold it against him if he seems at all connected to the Nation of Islam.
JFK: “Cuber.”
“From “nuculer”"
I don’t think any president has pronounced that correctly since Nixon. It seems to be in their manual of how to be a regular guy. Hell, Carter has degree in it and he got it wrong. Tell me that’s not deliberate.
Dave – I didn’t know you had your own bottom-feeder radio program. So sorry to have missed it. And yes, you are right, that shit is hard to remember. How to construct an understandable sentence in your own language, however: not so tough. Except, of course, for Dubya.
Wrecktum: “I’m a pretty big Obama supporter, but I don’t think this is the last time we’ll hear questions about Minister Farrakhan during this election season.”
I don’t really get why Obama has to be held to a higher standard for a Kevin Bacon-like Farakkhan connection than Bush did for endorsing Bob Jones University.
Griff: “For all of the casual abuse she has suffered, aren√ɬ¢√¢‚Äö¬¨√¢‚Äû¬¢t we smart enough to know she deserves to have a place in history as the first female President of the United States? We owe her.”
Doesn’t she really owe us for putting our country through more abuse by endorsing Bush’s policies?