Posted on 08/13/2007 1:53:18 PM PDT by Baladas
WASHINGTON - Looking past the presidential nomination fight, Democratic leaders quietly fret that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton at the top of their 2008 ticket could hurt candidates at the bottom.
They say the former first lady may be too polarizing for much of the country. She could jeopardize the party's standing with independent voters and give Republicans who otherwise might stay home on Election Day a reason to vote, they worry.
In more than 40 interviews, Democratic candidates, consultants and party chairs from every region pointed to internal polls that give Clinton strikingly high unfavorable ratings in places with key congressional and state races.
"I'm not sure it would be fatal in Indiana, but she would be a drag" on many candidates, said Democratic state Rep. Dave Crooks of Washington, Ind.
Unlike Crooks, most Democratic leaders agreed to talk frankly about Clinton's political coattails only if they remained anonymous, fearing reprisals from the New York senator's campaign. They all expressed admiration for Clinton, and some said they would publicly support her fierce fight for the nomination despite privately held fears.
The chairman of a Midwest state party called Clinton a nightmare for congressional and state legislative candidates.
A Democratic congressman from the West, locked in a close re-election fight, said Clinton is the Democratic candidate most likely to cost him his seat.
'She's so damn unpopular' A strategist with close ties to leaders in Congress said Democratic Senate candidates in competitive races would be strongly urged to distance themselves from Clinton.
"The argument with Hillary right now in some of these red states is she's so damn unpopular," said Andy Arnold, chairman of the Greenville, S.C., Democratic Party. "I think Hillary is someone who could drive folks on the other side out to vote who otherwise wouldn't."
(Excerpt) Read more at msnbc.msn.com ...
She is only unstoppable until she gets the ‘Rat nomination. Her negatives are so high that people will turn out just to vote against her. Many people have not forgotten Hillarycare that she tried to ram down our throats, and she hasn’t given up on it yet.
People say that Obama should be her vp, but he brings nothing to the table; blacks are already going to vote ‘Rat, Illinois will go ‘Rat, and he thinks that HE ought to be president and would probably make a lousy vp as he pushed his own agenda.
Hillary is going to be heir to Ted Kennedy’s liberal throne. Half the country hates her guts. I think she’s running for the money, and it’ll be a Richardson/Obama ticket.
Think "Howard Dean".
L
Bloomers will come to her rescue.
Appropriate.
most Democratic leaders agreed to talk frankly about Clinton’s political coattails only if they remained anonymous,
Ya think?
I don’t entirely agree. None of the Republican candidates are closely identified with Bush.
Even Forrest Gump would be smart enought to vote for Duncan Hunter! LOL, I agree, only the Red and the Dead will vote for the Hill...aka Joe Stalin’s gal!
RUN HILLARY RUN!
And we're supposed to believe that the same gutless wonders who lack the testicular fortitude to tell the Toons where to get off have the nads to do what it takes to protect the nation?!
SNORT.
Hillary must be worried because she had the CNN shock troops going out to the MSM saying we pick out candidates and those detractors would never vote for a democrat anyways.
Its Arkensuation. Agree or Arkencide.
So even the dems fear reprisals, yet when the Republicans would point out reprisals we were never taken seriously. My, my, my how the truth slips out.
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