Liberal Values Defending Liberty and Enlightened Thought

There’s something about politics which make some people unwilling to agree that they have lost and move on. Hillary Clinton annoyed many by staying in the race long beyond when she had lost any real chance of winning, but at least there was some sense to that. Clinton had obvious personal reasons for remaining in and hoping a miracle would happen. Alegere’s Corner is a pro-Clinton blog which runs with a subtitle saying, “We’re not finished folks – not by a long shot!.” At first glance one might think that this means they are planning to work for Clinton in a future election, or that they will continue to pursue Clintonism. (As if we need people continuing to push for increased Nanny Statism, compromise on principle whenever politically expedient, and a willingness to ignore the basic principles of democracy to promote a political candidate.)

It turns out that they mean they are not finished this year. They really think Hillary still has a chance. They are running a story reporting: Breaking: Eight Supers Switching to Hillary.They actually think there is a chance that Hillary Clinton is going to be the surprise winner at a roll call vote at the convention, as if eight votes means anything, even if this rumor is true. They make a big deal out of a story in The Politicothat exaggerates complaints that the Obama campaign has rubbed some Democratic Party insiders the wrong way. This was inevitable as party insiders never like to share their power with the new guy, but there are far more people who would be upset by a second coming of the Clintons.

Reaction is mixed in the blogsophere. Clinton backer Pamela Leavey at The Democratic Daily is skeptical and writes that “I’m not big on the rumor thing and I really believe it’s important to support the nominee.” Initial reaction from the hard-core Clintonistas who have been frequenting her blog does not appear to be in agreement with this support for Obama. Not surprisingly, No Quarter goes along with the idea of a convention victory for Clinton, envisioning an uprising in Denver if there is not a roll call vote.

If people think the scattered complaints about Obama are meaningful, this is nothing compared to what would happen if Clinton somehow got the nomination. As I’ve discussed many times in the past, Clinton provides virtually none of the reasons which have motivated me to support the Democrats in recent years while she represents the same qualitiesI have opposed in George Bush. Hillary Clinton doesn’t give me much reason to vote for her over and John McCain despite all the nonsense coming from many Clinton supporters that there is little difference between Clinton and Obama on the issues. Besides, someone who ran for president in a manner as dishonest and disrespectful of the basic principles of democracy as Hillary Clinton is likely to govern in the same manner. The Clinton family, like their counterparts in the Bush party, should never be allowed to return to power.

Clintons in the White House with a compliant majority in Congress is a scary thought. Americans realized this in 1994 and acted on the problem (unfortunately also creating a number of new problems). My bet is that they will realize this again and the nomination of Hillary Clinton will guarantee a victory for John McCain. While I doubt I could ever vote for McCain, in many ways a mixed government with a Democratic Congress to hopefully place checks on McCain is less scary than a one-party government under Hillary Clinton.