BACKFIRE: CLINTON NH CO-CHAIR RESIGNS! HUGE BLOW TO CLINTON CAMPAIGN - OBAMA LIKELY NOMINEE NOW...

[Dems Will Win]

I do believe that this whole episode just might have made Obama the Democratic nominee. This is an utter disaster for the Clinton campaign. Independents and Democrats are seeing purple over the drug-dealing remark by the Clinton NH co-chair and Hillary saying she had no idea.

JOHNSTON, IA -- In the spin room after today's debate, Obama adviser David Axelrod said that Obama had told Clinton today that "leadership came from the top" in regards to negative attacks and campaigning.

Axelrod said that the two senators spoke for about 10 minutes today, during which Clinton apologized for the comments made by her New Hampshire co-chair Billy Shaheen, who told the Washington Post that Obama's past cocaine use would make him vulnerable to GOP attacks. "Senator Obama expressed to Senator Clinton it's important for campaigns to send a signal from the top as to what type of campaign they want to run. If you send a signal that negative campaigning is the fun part of campaigns and treat it as a sport, then you are sending a signal down the line that it's all okay. They have to decide if they want to send a different signal and certainly by asking Mr. Shaheen to leave that would be a different signal," Axelrod said.

Axelrod went on to say that leadership in campaigns "flowed from the top down," and Clinton's previous comments that the "fun starts" when candidates begin to attack each other set a tone that allowing negative attacks were okay.

The announcement of Shaheen's resignation came just fifteen to twenty minutes after Axelrod's comments in the spin room. The Obama campaign has benefited from Shaheen's comments in more ways than one -- by 1) showing the Clinton campaign as anxious to tear down their opponents and 2) as a money making tool among their own supporters. David Plouffe, Obama's campaign manager, sent out an email requesting supporters to donate to demonstrate their disapproval at Shaheen.

http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2007/12/13/51531...

Shaheen-Gate: Consultants Clash, Pundits Pooh-Pooh Hillary Denial
By Mark Finkelstein | December 13, 2007 - 20:36 ET
This is getting wild . ..

The Iowa caucuses might be a few weeks off, but MSNBC pundits have already cast a resounding "no" vote in a referendum on Hillary's credibility. A bi-partisan consensus of blatherers today rejected the Clinton campaign's denial of involvement in NH co-chair Bill Shaheen's raising of Barack Obama's past involvement with drugs.

Meanwhile, things are getting downright nasty among top consultants to the frontrunners' campaigns . . . and Barack made Hillary regret her latest cackle.

View video here:

http://newsbusters.org/static/2007/12/2007-12-13MSNBCHB...

In the punditocratic equivalent of Dixville Notch, Howard Fineman on Hardball was first to "vote" on the believability of Hillary's hands-off claim.

HOWARD FINEMAN: The notion that Billy Shaheen was acting completely on his own without any knowledge or interest of the Clinton campaign I think is going to be hard to defend. He's in on those conference calls, he's in close-in.

Fineman later branded as "completely phony" the Clinton campaign's claim that Shaheen's statement wasn't "authorized." Said Howard: "that's a big rabbit-hole you can jump down."

Matthews himself saw an elaborate kabuki dance.


CHRIS MATTHEWS: This is a Washington ritual. Someone makes a comment. It's challenged as unfair, evil, dirty tricks. Hours pass, in this case 24 hours, during which the dirty work gets done and reporters begin to ask the questions and the solution is already there in terms of the purpose of the person that made the comment. He got the dirty word out there -- let's start talking about drug use, possible drug sales, the whole thing. And then after he's done the job he resigns from the field, only to be rehired of course several months later in another capacity. I am predicting the last part because it is predictable.

With Norah O'Donnell guest-hosting Tucker, Pat Buchanan and the liberal Bill Press were similarly skeptical.


BILL PRESS: They're panicking in the Clinton camp. I can't believe that Bill Shaheen goes out and says -- plants -- and tries to get a reporter to run with this story, without somebody knowing that he's doing it.

NORAH O'DONNELL: The Clinton campaign has said in no way was this sanctioned or planned, that Bill Shaheen would be able to say this. Pat, you've been involved in presidential campaigns.

PAT BUCHANAN: I don't believe it.

O'DONNELL: Why not? Look, this is an experienced man, his wife has been governor of New Hampshire, he's an able fellow. And to go to the Washington Post and say "ask about selling drugs," nobody thinks that up. Somebody fed that to him.

If there was harmony in the chattering class, there was bad blood to burn among senior advisors to the Clinton, Obama and Edwards campaigns. Check out this epic footage from Hardball of the foodfight involving Mark Penn, David Axelrod and Joe Trippi. A highlight is Edwards advisor Trippi calling a statement by Hillary strategist Penn "garbage."

http://newsbusters.org/blogs/mark-finkelstein/2007/12/1...

Bill Shaheen quits Clinton campaign
By JOHN DISTASO
Senior Political Reporter
Thursday, Dec. 13, 2007


Bill Shaheen has resigned as a co-chair of Hillary Clinton’s national campaign, UnionLeader.com has learned.

Shaheen last night apologized for telling a reporter that if Barack Obama becomes the Democratic presidential nominee, Republicans will use his admitted past drug use against him. Clinton this morning personally apologized to Obama in Shaheen’s remarks. The two candidates reportedly met at Reagan National Airport in Washington.

In a statement first obtained by UnionLeader.com, Shaheen said, “I would like to reiterate that I deeply regret my comments yesterday and say again that they were in no way authorized by Senator Clinton or the Clinton campaign. Senator Clinton has been running a positive campaign focused on the issues that matter to America’s families. She is the best qualified to be the next President of the United States because she can lead starting on day one. I made a mistake and in light of what happened, I have made the personal decision that I will step down as the Co-Chair of the Hillary for President campaign. This election is too important and we must all get back to electing the best qualified candidate who has the record of making change happen in this country. That candidate is Hillary Clinton.”

...

Obama campaign officials said the comments were part of a negative pattern employed by the Clinton campaign, which, they said, has become desperate as the Democratic races in New Hampshire and first-caucus state Iowa have tightened.

http://www.unionleader.com/article.aspx?headline=Bill+S...

Please recommend if you like shaking things up...

[AX10]

1. And all the pundits jump on Hillary!

[Dems Will Win]

2. This is the last strike for Hillary - Focus Groups were seeing purple over the drug-dealing remark!

Clinton is toast. This is the last thing people will remember before they go in the booth now as the holidays are coming up.

[maddiejoan]

18. The Machine must really want Hillary to win!

Yup --it's quite obvious she's the one the Republicans hope they can run against.

[SOS]

35. Machine, yes

voters, apparently not so much.

[PDittie]

3. Smack dat booty

Just don't tap it.

[HughMoran]

4. I hope Obama can deal with the right-wing murder machine

(as it was described so aptly on MSNBC yesterday).

I hope he's tough enough - the right-wingers have no moral issues to worry about. Unlike liberals who act christian by nature, republicans only say they are christian so they can be anything but...

[KingFlorez]

5. In a week, no one will care about this

There are too many other issues to be worried about.

[riderinthestorm]

10. A week?? Try 12 hours.... nt

[cherokeeprogressive]

13. Okay, I'll play. Let's see if it's a news story Friday morning. I'm betting you're wrong. n/t

[K Gardner]

31. It's Friday afternoon. It's still a story. n/t

[seemslikeadream]

6. I wonder if Mr. Burson Marsteller

will get her out of this one, Penn's company did it for these guys



UNOIN CARBIDE


AND BLACKWATER

AND EXXON VALDIS

AND CHALABI

AND ARGENTINA FASCIST JUNTA

AND THE INDONESIAN GOVERNMENT

AND THE EL SALVADORIAN GOVERNMENT

AND THE NIGERIAN GOVERNMENT

AND SAUDI ARABIA ON SEPTEMBER 14 2001

AND THE MEXICAN GOVERNMENT TO PROMOTE NAFTA

AND ROMANIAN DICTATOR NICOLAE CEAUCESCU

AND SOUTH KOREA South Korea (to avoid discussion of human rights issues during the 1988 Olympics)

AND THE UNITA - The US sponsored Angolan guerrilla army

AND BABCOCK AND WILCOX (for Three Mile Island nuclear accident)

[Dems Will Win]

7. Penn is a pig!

[WillowTree]

8. She certainly does

seem to have more than her fair share of loose cannons on her team.

And she never seems to know anything about them until she's got gunpowder all over her...............

[KharmaTrain]

9. DId Hillary Say It?

Then maybe you have reasons to do your happy dancing...but this was a surrogate...someone from her campaign. It's a one or two day story that will be forgotten by most by the time the first primary ballots are cast and surely will be burried in a lot of other shit in two months.

Yep, it was a blunder...one of many the Clinton campaign has done recently, but this isn't what's dragging her down. The NIE release did her a lot of damage making her Kyl/Libermann vote look real bad as well as her continued instance that her IWR was also correct. If she loses, its on the issues, not what some campaign aparachnik said.

[comradebillyboy]

11. I think you are right about that dumb vote being her main problem,

no one but the left wing political junkies cares about her staff or the drug comment. Maybe Bill can git her campaign organization straightened out. if he can't no one can. I still think she will pull it out, she's smart enough to correct her mistakes. It says something to me that Tweety and his minions bash her every night on Hard Ball. If she's on little Chrissy Matthews shit list she must be doing something right IMHO.

[FyurFly]

12. Hillary will win in 2008 IMHO n/t

[comradebillyboy]

14. I hope so

nt

[journalist3072]

15. You folks on DU are hypocritical if nothing else

You quote the MSM when it suits you, and trash them when it suits you.

Some of the people that the OP cited, are some of the same people trashed by DU when they declare Sen. CLinton winner of a debate. Yet when they trash her, you quote them.

I love the hypocrisy.

One more thing: I'm amused by Barack thinking Sen. Clinton needs a lecture on leadership from him. He wouldn't know it if it bit him.

[Lex]

17. P.S. -- *you* are on DU.

nt

[CatWoman]

32. so am I

and I can't help but agree with the poster 200%

[Lex]

16. Nothing like all CAPS in the subject line to convince me.

I'm sold.

[autorank]

19. Could be. So now we get to find out what the deal is with Obama. n/t

[pnwmom]

20. What I'd like to know is -- is what Shaheen said factually incorrect?

Assuming they have drug-free records themselves, won't any Rethug candidate be likely to attack Obama for his past drug use?

Are we all going to act horrified and pretend that they wouldn't?

[Major Hogwash]

21. The worst part of this is Shaheen acting like a Republican by making the charge to begin with.

And then trying to act like it was something that the Republicans would pull later - all the while he is a Democrat!

Not only is this the lowest, crappy thing the Hillary campaign has pulled lately, but it is simply beyond the level of believeablity that Shaheen was acting out of concern for Obama's chances to be the next President of the United States.

It's even more absurd for Hillary to act like we should believe that she didn't approve of Shaheen's actions beforehand.

Since Hillary has decided to act like a Republican, I will treat her as such.

Let her whine now!

[Bluebear]

22. "OBAMA LIKELY NOMINEE NOW" - based on what exactly?

[Dems Will Win]

23. Clinton's campaign will be irrevocably harmed by this, last night the focus groups

were asked if the cocaine smear was dirty politics by the Clinton campaign, and I thought people's arms were going to fly out of their sockets they were so mad at the Clintons campaign. Even the Clinton supporters vigorously raised their hands.

IT was Unanimous. People in IA and NH will now vote against you if you're campaign goes negative in an extremely stupid and unbelievably clumsy way.

Hillary won;t even win Nevada now,thbe publicity on this is already so bad. That means she loses the first four primaries and then won;t be able to recover in time to win musch more than NY, NJ, PA and CA. The black vote will get REALLY mad the first viable black candidate was tagged as a potential drug dealer and wiull now leave the campaign in droves.

Wait a week or two and the polls everywhere will reflect the counter-reaction against the smear.

Obama is now the likely nominee, Hillary's chances just sank below his.

[Toots]

24. Dream on.....

Only a few weeks to go and we will see but I hardly think that Hillary firing one of her top people for remarks they made will sink her candidacy...And for the record Obama wrote a book in which he went into great detail about all the drugs he used. It is no secret but by the same token it should be used in a positive manner except for the Law breaking aspect of drug use and the decision making process of one that used them..

[riverdeep]

25. You're kidding, right?

Did I wonder into the lounge? This isn't good for Clinton to have someone high up resign, but it's also not something that's going to sink her campaign. She's got access to an incredible pool of political operatives from her and her husband's massive contacts, they'll hire someone, and move on.

As for pubs making an issue out of Obama's drug use, of course they will. They'll make an issue about that, they'll imply that now black men will feel free to start raping white women, that if you're white you'll lose your job to a minority, they'll do all that-it's what they do.

Ironic, of course, considering the Occupier's nickname during the '70's was blowmonkey.

[Dems Will Win]

26. THe news this Friday is terrible for the Clinton campaign.

This is a mortal blow I do believe.

[Mountainman]

27. Most people aren't even paying attention to it. Most know nothing about it.

You make way to much of this stuff. I'd bet if you asked 10 people about what it is you are talking about, 10 out of 10 wouldn't know what you are talking about.

[Dems Will Win]

28. I bet 5 out of 10 have heard in NH and IA

THen when O wins both, the rest of the country surges for him. That's how it works. THis will be in the news for at least a week as the Clinton campaign is so bad at damage control it will last at least a week.

Send Howard Wolfson in to defend her! She's toast.

[Mountainman]

29. My next bet, some day you will utter the words, President Hillary Clinton.

[stevietheman]

30. But people in subsequent states will look at the IA and NH results.....

and if/when Hillary loses both, they will notice.

[Le Taz Hot]

33. How exactly is he going to do this

without the Boomers? He's made it perfectly clear that he'd like us out of the way. Does he REALLY expect to do this with the 20-somethings -- the ones with the lowest voter turnout of all the demographic groups? THAT I'd like to see.

[Dems Will Win]

34. Barack is appealing to all age groups, those over 65 the least

if you look at most polls. He IS a Boomer himself, so he gets that vote NP when primary and general election day comes...

[BenDavid]

36. That is one hell of stretch saying obama will be the nominee.

WOW!

lets see HRC takes Michigan, florida, Nevada, N.H. S.C. Iowa tossup......
Super Tuesday feb 5, hrc wins 18 states of the 19

You see obama folks this is not just about iowa. it is about the other 49 states and this is where obama will go down....

Ben David