On the McLaughlin Group this morning the consensus was that Hillary is almost a sure bet to get the Democratic nomination for President. Patrick Buchanan went so far as to say she is stronger today than ever before in not only getting the nomination but winning the White House as well. But the road to victory is still long and the road to national recovery even longer.
Most of us forget, or do not realize how much physical energy and stamina it takes to be part of a presidential campaign. The physical beating, in the best of times, a presidential candidate must endure is staggering. “The past week was an especially grueling one for those Democratic candidates in the U.S. Senate. They voted Thursday on a war spending bill, then rushed to South Carolina for the first debate of the campaign that night. They then headed west for the California state convention, a major gathering of Democrats with a history of shaping the race (in 2003, it helped propel former Vermont governor Howard Dean).”
“Having California, New York and other big states move up their primaries to Feb. 5 “puts an extraordinary burden on me and my campaign,” Clinton said, a rare acknowledgment of stress from one who has sought to look as if she finds campaigning a breeze.
“You know, we have never had a primary process like this,” she said in response to a question about the earlier-than-ever California contest. “We’re all trying to figure out how to manage the resources, the time, the organizational challenges.” She quickly added: “But I’m excited that California is moving up like it has decided to do.”
While in California Hillary spoke about the need to “replace cronyism with competence”. Hillary also made “an impassioned pitch for universal health care, backed a comprehensive plan to overhaul immigration laws, vowed to follow California’s lead in the fight against global warming and promised to reorder federal priorities that she said have left many Americans feeling “invisible.” But as her first priority, Clinton promised to end the Iraq war and bring American troops home.”
Hillary’s list of policies that need to either be reversed or implemented are long. The long list of priorities that must be addressed immediately also make a strong case for a Hillary presidency. Hillary will not need months of training. Hillary will be ready to lead from day 1. There is not a moment to waste and with Hillary, America will begin to move forward immediately and with a steady hand.
Hillary also had these things to say in California:
“Are you ready for change in America? Are you ready for universal health care that guarantees quality affordable health care? Are you ready once again for jobs that pay the bills for hardworking families in America? Are you ready for a Supreme Court that stands up for a woman’s right to choose? And for an attorney general that stands up for the rule of law?” Are you ready for a president again who actually respects science and believes we ought to listen to scientists on, oh let’s say, global climate change and stem cell research? Are you ready for a government that treats all Americans with dignity and equality no matter who you are and who you love? Are you ready to replace cronyism with competence again?
People are ready for leaders who understand that it is our votes that put them in power. It is our tax dollars that pay the bills. It is our country they are running and we are tired of them believing that they can have a government of the few and by the few and for the few. Those days have got to end.
…Tuesday will be the fourth anniversary of one of the most shameful episodes in American history, in my opinion. The president stood on a deck of an aircraft carrier and declared ‘mission accomplished.’ The only mission he accomplished was the re-election of Republicans. He used fear as a tool for political partisan advantage. Let me be very clear about what happened: The president took us to a pre-emptive war of his choosing based on his assessment of faulty evidence and trumped-up facts. He ignored the warnings of senior military advisers and he retaliated against those who tried to stop it. And once he got the authority to put inspectors back into Iraq, he ignored their findings. And it is something that will stand in American history as one of the darkest blots of leadership we’ve ever had.”
[...] In recent days, because of high Hillary numbers in the polls and Hillary’s commanding presence in the first two debates, many are beginning to see this race as we do. The Quinnipiac poll even suggested it might be time to start thinking about who Hillary’s vice presidential running mate will be. We remain on full alert and active. As we wrote in The Long Road, “…the road to victory is still long and the road to national recovery even longer.” [...]