Posted on 09/23/2007 3:26:48 PM PDT by West Coast Conservative
**DRUDGE EXCLUSIVE**
President Bush, for the first time, is predicting that Barack Obama will be defeated in the Democratic presidential primaries by Hillary Rodham Clinton.
“She's got a national presence and this is becoming a national primary,” Bush tells author Bill Sammon in the bombshell book, EVANGELICAL PRESIDENT, set for release Monday. “And therefore the person with the national presence, who has got the ability to raise enough money to sustain an effort in a multiplicity of sites, has got a good chance to be nominated.”
Breaking his vow not to play “pundit-in-chief” in the 2008 presidential race, Bush tells Sammon that Clinton ultimately will be defeated in the general election by the Republican nominee.
“I think our candidate can beat her, but it's going to be a tough race,” the president predicted in an Oval Office interview. “I will work to see to it that a Republican wins, and therefore don't accept the premise that a Democrat will win. I truly think the Republicans will hold the White House.”
MORE
Current and former Bush advisers sounded less certain. “It's going to be a very close election,” said Karl Rove, who until this month was the president's top political strategist. “We are at this very narrow divide in politics.”
The election “could go either way,” Vice President Cheney told Sammon, senior White House correspondent for the WASHINGTON EXAMINER, which will begin running excerpts from the book Monday. “Right now, we're sort of in the area where we're pretty evenly balanced on both sides.”
As for Obama, a senior White House official said the freshman senator from Illinois was “capable” of the intellectual rigor needed to win the presidency but instead relies too heavily on his easy charm.
“It's sort of like, 'that's all I need to get by,' which bespeaks sort of a condescending attitude towards the voters,” said the official, speaking on condition of anonymity. “And a laziness, an intellectual laziness.”
Developing...
We all know Hillary will be the dem nominee.
Bring her on!!!
Misleading title
wishfull thinking
I think Dubya has a point. Never underestimate the ability of age and treachery to defeat youth and skill.
Al Gore really needs to run for the Green Party.
Mrs. Clinton is all the DemonRats have.
Why would Bush plug Hillary?????????
NO s***t Mr President we knew that Hill Beast going be Dem nod that they all have DUH
Misleading title and article,has Drudge gone to work for the ap?
Sounds like the President wants the GOP to run against Hillary. He is trying to “kill off” Obama’s campaign.
I am not so sure about this. I don’t like the President promoting Hillary. Just on Friday he had Hillaryhips into the Oval Office, and told her that he would hand off the war to her like Truman did to Ike.. I don’t like that.
At this point, it doesn’t seem that Bush would have a problem handing the torch to another Clinton.
Lazy - LOL!!!
>>>Why would Bush plug Hillary?????????<<<
I’m not sure. It’s pretty common knowlege that Republicans would rather face her than any other candidate.
So considering your average Rat hates Bush, I’m not sure why he should be plugging her, either.
Neither one of them has a snowball's chance in the general election.
"Many of you are well enough off that ... the tax cuts may have helped you," Sen. Clinton said. "We're saying that for America to get back on track, we're probably going to cut that short and not give it to you. We're going to take things away from you on behalf of the common good."
Lord help us all...
the clintoons and bush’s are good friends!
what? huh?
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