The Hillary-Haters’ Book Club Will Never Run (Out) of Things to Read

[DonViejo]

It’s open season once again on Hillary Clinton, and lately it seems as if every one of her detractors has written a book.

Chip, chip, chip. The de-consecration of Hillary Clinton—from untouchable, larger-than-life, ass-kicking icon back to polarizing, hyper-political lightning rod—continues apace.

Yes, there’s still the ongoing simmer of Benghazi, at least in some political precincts. But increasingly that maybe-scandal is being used as a springboard for launching back into a decades-long litany of Hillary controversies. Last week, in her Washington Post blog, former Romney fan girl Jennifer Rubin opened a January 8 post with the ringing assertion, “To a greater extent than any modern politician with the possible exception of her husband and the late Massachusetts senator Ted Kennedy, Hillary Clinton and scandal are inseparable.”

Clearly pleased with this line of attack, Rubin followed up two days later with the contention that, in fact, Hillary has so much baggage that she would have a tough time credibly criticizing pretty much any GOP presidential contender for anything ever. (Rubin starts with the beleaguered Chris Christie, observing cutely, “The woman who thinks politics, like love, is about never having to say you’re sorry and who collects scandals like little old ladies accumulate cats will find it dicey to go after Gov. Chris Christie on the bridge scandal.”)

On January 10, in a less partisan but more ominous warning shot, Politico magazine ran “Hillary’s Hit List,” a rollicking account of the Clintons’ meticulously maintained “favor file” on political “saints and sinners.” Excerpted from their upcoming book, HRC: State Secrets and the Rebirth of Hillary Rodham Clinton, authors Jonathan Allen and Amie Parnes acknowledge that keeping a favor file is standard operating procedure for savvy pols. Even so, the duo stresses the elaborateness of the Clintons’ score keeping and paints a portrait of Clintonites still seething at those seen as having wronged their gal in 2008. One gleefully harsh bit:

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http://www.thedailybeast.com/articles/2014/01/15/the-hillary-haters-book-club-will-never-run-of-things-to-read.html

[apnu]

1. She has a lot of baggage because she has a lot of history. That can also work for her.

Hillary, rightly, gets the benefit of the doubt and sympathy for Bill's indiscretions. I know many women who deeply respect Hillary for how she handled the situation and how she's conducted herself since. That counts, for a lot of people. She is a feminist hero, and that is an awesome weapon to wield in today's politics. Though most women do not identify themselves as feminists, they do respond to strong and powerful women who have shattered the glass ceiling like Hillary has, as so many men. And, perhaps, that's the greatest trick Feminism has played -- advances have been so great that women no longer need to identify themselves by that label but stand up for the principles of feminism anyway. That's awesome.

People can tar and feather Hillary all they want, but it will backfire with just about everybody but the haters that have been beating this drum since 1991. All these books and media do for those cats is keep their bobble-heads nodding. And they are a dwindling, aging, population. They're dinosaurs on the way out.

Full disclosure, in 2008 I was a big Obama supporter, and I recall the Hillary supporters on this forum. There was considerable amounts of vitriol amongst the two camps, and even spawned a PUMA movement that was very troubling. So I will say this to the hard-core Hillary supporters still here: I'd proudly vote for Hillary Clinton for President.

[blkmusclmachine]

2. Queen Blue Dog, DLC acolyte, Third Way patron, and "New" DEM. What's not to love?