Wolf Blitzer: Don't Count Hillary Out

[DeepModem Mom]

CNN: February 20, 2008
Blitzer: Don't count Hillary Clinton out

(CNN) – The political momentum is clearly with Barack Obama. He has been impressive. But don’t count Hillary Clinton out yet — she has a formidable political machine and lots of ardent supporters.

Obama has won ten contests in a row — almost all of them by significant margins. But Clinton still has time to come back between now and March 4, when there are major contests in Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island. There is no doubt she is facing an uphill struggle, but it would be premature to say it’s over. I say that as a reporter who has seen Bill and Hillary Clinton bounce back before. During the 1992 Democratic presidential campaign, he was considered politically dead after the Gennifer Flowers scandal erupted. But he overcame that and became “the comeback kid” in New Hampshire.

Her political viability was undermined dramatically when her disastrous health care initiative collapsed after he became president in 1993. Some pundits began calling him a lame-duck in 1994 when the Democrats lost their majority in the House and Senate. But he came back to defeat Bob Dole in 1996 and won a second term. Then, there were all the other scandals during his eight years in the White House, including Whitewater, Travelgate, Monica Lewinsky and impeachment. Some suggested he would have to resign. I was CNN’s Senior White House Correspondent then, and I remember those days vividly.

But Bill Clinton survived and even thrived. His job approval rating during his final year in the White House was in the mid-60s. President Bush’s right now is in the low-30s. And Hillary Clinton sailed to victory over Republican congressman Rick Lazio in 2000 in the New York Senate race — even though she had never really lived in New York, and many accused her of being a carpet-bagger.

In short, I think it’s fair to say she’s in serious political trouble right now. But given the Clintons’ history, it would be a mistake to say her quest for the presidency is over. If she manages to win in Texas and Ohio — and that still is possible — she will go on to Pennsylvania on April 22, and this roller coaster political season will continue.

http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/02/20/blitzer-dont-count-hillary-clinton-out/

[Avalux]

1. Yes, but her formidible political machine is in debt and fighting amongst itself.

Her ground game here in Texas is in disarray. Something needs to happen fast if she's got any chance at all.

[rodeodance]

6. Very Red South Texas: newspaper says about 6,000 showed

Forum Name General Discussion: Primaries
Topic subject Very Red South Texas: newspaper says about 6,000 showed
Topic URL http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x4695973#4695973
4695973, Very Red South Texas: newspaper says about 6,000 showed
Posted by Ilsa on Thu Feb-21-08 10:43 AM

up to see and hear Bill Clinton speak in our city of about 65,000:



Hillary’s Pickup man
Former president makes pitch for wife from back of a truck

http://www.victoriaadvocate.com/847/story/198845.html

[Avalux]

7. Not the ground game.

Here in San Antonio they are not organized and are having trouble understanding our election system.

[DGoldman1212]

15. Same in Austin...

Clinton's people are ridiculing the Obama headquarters in Austin because it is located right in the middle of downtown on Congress Ave, meanwhile, they are out near a strip club in South Austin. They are trying to point to this as a latte liberal elite group of Obamites versus the "dunkin' donut democrats" for Clinton. (I'm not making that up, they really said that! LOL)

[Hell Hath No Fury]

13. I agree...

she's not to be counted out, but if she doesn't wrap up Ohio and Texas decisively, I think she is in a world of trouble. I honestly think any attempt on her part to play with the Florida/Michigan/Super Delegates thing if Obama wins the delegate count would be utterly disasterous for her -- it would look like she was trying to steal an election from a fellow Dem and arouse a great deal of resentment from Dem voters who might abandon her in the General.

[scheming daemons]

2. Wolf is hoping.... so that CNN can keep their ratings up through the early spring....

...

[harun]

10. bingo (n/t)

[scheming daemons]

3. Also... Wolf outlines all the times that *BILL* has rebounded.....

...Hillary does not have such a history yet.

[DJ13]

4. Blitzer never met a corporate sponsored candidate he didnt love

He cant help himself, he gets weak kneed around candidates with ties to corporate campaign cash.

[kennetha]

5. Remember the Red Sox!!

Seriously, what basically Hillary has to do is regain her winning Super Tuesday coalition. The next three states in play TX, OH, and Pa are much more demographically favorable to Clinton. IF she repeats her Super Tuesday performance among various constituencies, she wins. If she doesn't she loses. End of game.

So the question is whether she can "win back" her core constituencies. The only place where she really lost them and not completely was in Wisconsin. But there are lots of peculiarities to Wisconsin that won't be repeated elsewhere.

I predict that Hillary's in tonight's debate will focus heavily on issues that matter to women, to hispanics, and to downscale whites. She won't spend so much time attacking Obama at all. She will spend most of her time trying to remind those constituencies of what they once loved about her.

She will also try to take a little bit of the bloom of the Obama rose. But that is not at all her main task.

Again, is she replicates her Super Tuesday or Florida voting patterns, she will win the next three. If she doesn't, she won't. It seems that simple.

[demokatgurrl]

8. I love Hillary but Blitzer is an effing moron.

The way he behaves during debates, as though it's all about him, is annoying and ridiculous.
What does he know about anything.

[ORDagnabbit]

9. mister AIPAC propagandist says dont count her out... joy.

time to get diebold in on the action.

[Barack_America]

11. Aw Wolf, you were really hoping for that Press Secretary gig, weren't you?

Unfortunately, it's not just a matter of *winning* those states, she needs to destroy Obama. To say that's unlikely would be an understatement.

[marylanddem]

12. I am so disgusted

by the way these shills, despite all evidence to the contrary, continue to assert her viability - My God, the woman is an automaton. I dislike her so much & will find it VERY hard & possibly impossible to pull that level if these shills have their way...And I won't be alone.

[rodeodance]

14. pray--tell, you seem bothered by this strill. ha ha.