|
Edited on Sat May-24-08 04:38 PM by unblock
i can only speak for myself, but i'll be presumtuous and pretend to speak in the voice of all obama supporters.
i think the world of senator clinton. i think she was an amazing campaign asset for bill clinton. i absolutely LOVED that he said that a vote for him was a two-fer. i cheered her on when she tackled the health care issue head on and was devastated when the managed healthcare and insurance lobbies ran the most expensive political ad campaign in history to lie and distort and kill what would surely have been an great federal program.
many people would be far better off financially had her program become law. the insurance industries would have had less excess capital to invest, which, in turn, might have softened some of the asset bubble/burst problems we've seen lately. at least, we'd have less of a mess than we're in today.
hillary was, all in all, a great first lady, and a heroine for taking all the crap the republicans could dish out. there is not a doubt in my mind, or should be in anyone else's, that they used sexism to diminish the power of a tremendously capable woman. it spoke volume about hillary that she took it with grace, pushed back firmly but appropriately, as it spoke volumes about the true character of the republicans.
i was tremendously excited when i first heard that hillary was angling to become a senator from new york. not only was i excited about her becoming a force in the senate, but the transparent positioning for the white house also was fantastic. a woman president! and not a margaret thatcher type, either (is there such a thing as "woman in name only"? "wino"?)
when hillary started her run i immediately became a supporter. of course! when it appeared her nomination was a foregone conclusion i was quite happy with that result. she'd be an amazing president and the precedent would serve women and america well for generations to come.
i had heard obama at the 2004 convention and thought, what an amazing orator this is! this guy could be president some day. yeah, right, i thought. as if this country could ever elect a black man.
then he threw his hat in the ring and made all the right moves. he said all the right things. he managed to appeal to all sorts without abandoning the left. he positioned himself as a reasonable human and not as first a black man. he changed the tone of political discourse. he offered hope in a way that harkened back to -- well, to bill clinton's "man from hope" 1992 campaign.
when the primaries came to connecticut, i practically flipped a coin to decide who to vote for. after teetering on the edge, i voted for obama, although i was quite happy that i was facing a "win-win" choice.
since then, i have become more and more excited about obama. that this country might actually have a black president is every bit as exciting as the idea of having a woman president. both groups have suffered and much healing needs to happen before america can be at peace with its own people, and, barring a black woman president, one group or the other would have to wait. it is indeed unfortunate that we as a country are dysfunctional on more than one level. but we try, and we make progress, albeit in fits and starts.
as amazed as i have been at obama's performance, i have been equally disappointed in hillary's. in a purely strategic sense, she made many mistakes and let her supporters, myself included, down. she didn't guard her flank and positioned herself in the center for the general election before shoring up the left to win the nomination. i think she was ill-advised. but she will learn and she will grow and she will be better, of that i have no doubt.
but know this, first and foremost. being disappointed with hillary, IN NO WAY means anything negative about hillary's supporters. you fought the good fight, for a good cause, and for a good person. the cause of women, the power of women, and the rights of women have been and will continue to advance as a result of this ground-breaking campaign. no woman will ever be dismissed politically, and no one will ever say that america can't elect a woman.
obama is nothing if not politically astute, and he will reach out to hillary's supporters. not, perhaps, to hillary herself, but to her supporters. he will win you over not just because the alternative is the clear misogynist, mccain, but because WHAT HE DOES is bring communities together. hillary's supporters are a big part of our community and he will reach out to you and EARN your support.
just remember that hillary and her supporters are two different entities. criticizing or expressing disappointment with hillary's campaign does not mean any criticism or disappointment in hillary's supporters. you are all amazing people and we are looking forward to a united democratic party fighting, together, full-force, against mccain.
we are positioned to take back washington from the republican stranglehold that has led our country down the wrong path since 1980.
TOGETHER, YES WE CAN!
|
Printer-friendly format
Email this thread to a friend
Bookmark this thread
(1000+ posts)
Send PM |
Profile |
Ignore
