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What's Wrong with Hillary's Campaign Team?
FPM ^
| 22 MARCH 2007
| Dick Morris
Posted on 03/22/2007 6:04:35 AM PDT by rdb3
Why is Hillary Clinton’s campaign team -- supposedly so experienced and so far superior to those of the other candidates-- advising her straight into defeat?
She’s gone steadily downhill since she announced, and at this rate, Joe Biden and Chris Dodd will be ahead of her in a few months.
One key reason may be that her ‘team’ may not be used to working in Democratic primaries and never expected any real opposition this time. They simply don’t know how to deal with the nuances of a primary, as we can see in what’s happened to her ratings.
Bill Clinton didn’t have a primary in 1996 and Hillary has none in 2000 and only token opposition in 2006. So, two of her top three advisers – Mark Penn and Howard Wolfson,- have had no experience in serious national primary campaigns. It shows. And the third member of the top tier, Mandy Grunwald, is a film producer, not a strategist.
But one thing is clear: All of them, and Hillary, too, expected to simply walk away with the Democratic nomination and then grab the White House. Just like the two New York Senate races.
But then along came Obama.
After his announcement, Hillary had no choice. She had to jump in. But she and her advisers still thought that she could run as a sort of imperial- incumbent- in- waiting whose ascendancy was a given.
That didn’t work.
Obama and Edwards didn’t hesitate to criticize call her on her Iraq war vote. (The one that was never mentioned in the New York Senate campaign) And the Democratic left has repeatedly challenged her conservative positions.
Her advisers thought that they could use the same tactics that they had used in the Clinton White House and in her two virtually unopposed Senate races. And so they attacked Obama.
Those didn’t work.
Instead of helping her, she completely lost her lead over black voters. It was a disaster.
They thought that she would charm the voters once they got to know her.
That certainly hasn’t worked.
It’s going to be a very long campaign and already, she doesn’t seem to be wearing too well. A year and a half more of Hillary as Oprah is not something to look forward to. The flat voice, the canned lines, the “Bill and I” lines are already grating on her listeners. So far, the ‘charm’ hasn’t worked.
They thought that the voters wouldn’t pick up on her flip flops and canned lines.
They were wrong about that. She’s been castigated by the left at every campaign stop and the term ‘scripted’ is probably the single most frequently used description of her.
They thought that they could still treat the emotional and angry rantings of Bill Clinton as if they were the emotional and angry rantings of a sitting President of the United States. So when he said: “Attack”, they aimed.
That backfired.
They thought that Bill Clinton was her ace in the hole – the world’s best political consultant, her private guru, who would guide her to an easy and early victory.
But that certainly hasn’t been true. His clouded judgment and obsession with rewriting his own legacy gets in the way of objective advice.
So, the woman with most brilliant political team in the country has been repeatedly outmaneuvered and outsmarted. She’s on the defensive and going downhill.
Her attack dog Wolfson has been put on the bench. Bill Clinton has been relegated to private fund raisers. And Hillary is tanking in the polls.
Some team!
Look for the ‘team’ to start pointing fingers.
TOPICS: Extended News; Politics/Elections; Unclassified
KEYWORDS: hildebeast; hitlary; obama
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To: OKSooner
You just wait and see what's going to take her place.Obama scares me more than she does. She's not electable, he is. No one knows anything about him, and no one wants to look behind the curtain for fear of being called a racist.
21
posted on
03/22/2007 6:27:51 AM PDT
by
reformed_democrat
("... it's a dishonor to leave your allies." President Traian Basescu, Romania)
To: rdb3
So far, the ‘charm’ hasn’t worked.She's just like Richard Nixon, except she doesn't have his charisma.
22
posted on
03/22/2007 6:27:55 AM PDT
by
HIDEK6
To: rdb3
To: ExTexasRedhead
Yep. How do you factor the Hillary Factor when you're running her campaign? A real conundrum. They've tried every shade of lipstick that exists and damn, if she isn't still a pig.
To: rdb3
All of them, and Hillary, too, expected to simply walk away with the Democratic nomination and then grab the White House. Just like the two New York Senate races. Hildabeast won her first senate race because Guiliani, who most certainly would have beat her, pulled out of the NY U.S. Senate campaign due to prostate cancer. She, as mentioned in the article, ran virtually unopposed in her second senate campaign. Hillary and her campaign staff have become over confident and are paying the price. Bottom line, it doesn't really matter, because da beast will never win the WH ... ever.
25
posted on
03/22/2007 6:35:46 AM PDT
by
BluH2o
To: rod1
"Soon it will be Carville and Begala time. Snake and Forehead know how to take care of candidates like the upstart Obamarama. and watch for the MSM-embedded Clintanoids, Steffi et al., to begin to come to Hillary's rescue."I thought of that too after reading "start looking for heads to roll". It'll happen.
26
posted on
03/22/2007 6:41:27 AM PDT
by
cake_crumb
(When Congress prosecutes wars, you get Another Viet Nam)
To: relictele
Very good analysis. Problem is that with the right handlers she can BECOME anything. Hopefully after she damages her image beyond repair.
27
posted on
03/22/2007 6:44:22 AM PDT
by
cake_crumb
(When Congress prosecutes wars, you get Another Viet Nam)
To: rdb3
Maybe there's nothing wrong with her campaign team, maybe it's the candidate - you can't make a silk purse out of a sow['s ear].
28
posted on
03/22/2007 6:45:57 AM PDT
by
The Sons of Liberty
(It's as simple as ABC - Anyone But Clinton!)
To: reformed_democrat
If I were Senator Obama, I would watch my back very carefully. It would be in his best interest not to ride in private planes or travel to the Iraq war zone.
To: reformed_democrat
"No one knows anything about him, and no one wants to look behind the curtain for fear of being called a racist."That's what worries me about him. But don't forget, it's VERY early yet.
30
posted on
03/22/2007 6:56:19 AM PDT
by
cake_crumb
(When Congress prosecutes wars, you get Another Viet Nam)
To: reformed_democrat
he's not electable....shhhhhhh
31
posted on
03/22/2007 7:01:12 AM PDT
by
Suzy Quzy
(Hillary '08...Her Phoniness is Genuine!!!)
To: rdb3
32
posted on
03/22/2007 7:01:29 AM PDT
by
Gritty
(If the Clintons were stars of a reality TV show, it would be called 'The Connivers'-Bob Herbert, NYT)
To: rdb3
What's wrong with hillary's Campaign Team is that they are campaigning for hillary. ;)
To: rdb3
"They thought that she would charm the voters once they got to know her."
If so, they are more deluded than anyone imagined.
34
posted on
03/22/2007 7:05:44 AM PDT
by
rob777
(Personal Responsibility is the Price of Freedom)
To: rdb3
I think Hillary is running head-on...
...into the political concensus of no more Clintons,
no more Bushes in the next administration.
35
posted on
03/22/2007 7:09:09 AM PDT
by
Liberty Valance
(Keep a simple manner for a happy life :o)
To: rdb3
You can only throw so many ashtrays and lamps at campaign workers. I guess campaign workers aren't as understanding as billy boy.
To: rdb3
We need to have a special medal struck for these people who advise Dem candidates right into the very bass-o-matic of defeat. They may be doing it inadvertently but they are doing America a service worth celebrating!
To: rdb3
What's wrong with her campaign team?
No-one dares tell the empress she's wearing no clothes...
38
posted on
03/22/2007 7:13:57 AM PDT
by
mewzilla
(Property must be secured or liberty cannot exist. John Adams)
To: rdb3
What's Wrong With Hillary's Campaign TeamUm...they got a crappy candidate?
To: HIDEK6
*snort*
And Nixon had better ankles!
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