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Obama-Clinton: The ‘Not on Your Life’ Ticket
A Barack-Hillary fusion would be more like teammates from hell than a dream team. Why would Obama subject himself to a stolen limelight and a neutered presidency?
Dick Morris, who knows the Clinton clan better than most, explained the starkest problem with the veep idyll: “Even if a President Obama can discipline Hillary and get her to play second fiddle, there is not the remotest chance that he can get the former president to accept such rules.” A nation that groaned to consider the prospect of a co-presidency is not ready for a threesome. Only Neil LaBute could script the twisted table talk of a Camp David retreat featuring Barack, Michelle, Hillary and Bill. (The male Clinton just won’t go away either. His extracurricular love life and association with the meretricious financier Ron Burkle was catalogued by Todd Purdum in Vanity Fair in roughly the same news cycle that Obama’s former heavyweight fundraiser Antoin Rezko was convicted in Chicago of 16 out of 24 counts of corruption.)
Another problem with putting two alpha candidates together is that Obama would find himself hostage to Clinton’s loyal supporters, many of whom have seriously threatened to vote for John McCain. Clinton might use this hinge group to bait Obama into ceding certain executive responsibilities to her, making her as conspicuous in the role of vice president as Dick Cheney was not but – cover your ears, darlings – possibly even more powerful.
And this is all to assume Obama wins in November. Apart from a stolen limelight and a neutered presidency is the more immediate danger he’ll face against the inevitable Republican response to a joint ticket. Given the agonized length of this year’s primary, and the damage it caused the Democratic establishment, voters will not have forgotten by late Fall just how much Clinton and Obama loathe each other and how mercenary their teaming up would therefore appear.
The right, as many have already pointed out, will revel in syndicating all of Hillary’s old tricks against Obama, and his meek defenses and counterattacks. And it will not allow her good deed of buffeting Barack all these months go unpunished; newfound chums Richard Mellon Scaife and Rush Limbaugh will surely replay her many lies and snafus going back decades, if only out of a sense of nostalgia.
Inviting this family back into the White House would be more along the lines of plus ça change you can believe in.
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Michael Weiss is a senior editor of Tablet Magazine and a culture blogger for The New Criterion. He also writes occasionally for Slate, The Weekly Standard, City Journal, The New York Daily News and Standpoint.
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28 Comments
1. dvd:The historic period ahead, will provide the blog world and disconnected electorate with the facts of how the mechanics of political green mail actually go down. This will be a time for learning, as the stakes are so high and thus the payolla that is derived from this point forward, will be huge. The period itself has an indeterminate time line, but it will Advance our knowledge of Locards Exchange Principle as its applied to the politics of largess, both within a party and how those parties decisions, fall out on the rest of us. .
Jun 6, 2008 - 5:50 am 2. Spooky:This so called dream team will never happen. If by some fluke Obama is elected president, we would have four presidents, Barack, Hillary, Bill and Michelle.
Jun 6, 2008 - 6:21 am 3. william torres:I feel that Obama won because no one wanted Hillary. He has no expirience. Has a lot of controversy. Even if he was from Mars, hew would had won. No one wanted another Clinton Administration. Talking about another 4 years of Bush, I would wrather have Bush than Clinton. I am a McCain supporter.
Jun 6, 2008 - 6:42 am 4. huxley:I can’t imagine that Obama wants Hillary. On account of her baggage, I’m not sure she makes the ticket stronger either.
Is this anything more than pundit speculation?
Jun 6, 2008 - 6:52 am 5. Sandra M:Hillary blew a quarter of a billion dollars early in her campaign and ran out of money. Just who we want handling the national budget. She had no long-term strategy for winning beyond Super Tuesday. Just what we want in a Commander In Chief.
Barack Obama has NO foreign policy experience and would be as disastrous as Kennedy-Khruschev in Kennedy’s first year. This twit would be as successful in getting the world’s leaders to stop building nuclear bombs as he was at getting people to stop writing about his rancorous wife. And the Republic would be put in grave danger while these four self-absorbed narcissists plotted against each other. Macbeth in black and white, a fun national soap opera if the times weren’t so potentially perilous (Middle East, China-Russia alliance) Plus, imagine all the extreme leftists Obama would flood the bureaucracy with. And you’d never, ever get rid of the Black ones no matter how incompetent (racial discrimination suits would abound). That’s the best argument against Rush’s idea of letting Obama win this one, mess up like Carter and come back in four years.
And by the way, let us never forget to give credit for Russia’s gangster capitalism where it is due. When the Russians under Yeltsin came to the Clinton White House and asked for help in setting up a legal system, they were advised to “watch Law & Order”. THAT to me was Clinton’s greatest crime: telling the Russians to forgive and forget, not to root out and punish the depraved sadists responsible for the murder of so many millions of people. Now these depraved sadists are back and running the country.
I hate listening to speeches almost as much as I hate reading electronics instructions, BUT I did listen to McCain’s poorly delivered speech the other night and it was content-rich. I would like a great orator a la Reagan (and Obama’s popularity rests on the nation’s hunger for it after 12 years of Bush inarticulateness but I’ll happily settle for McCain’s terrific idea of having the President answer the Congress’s questions on a weekly basis (One of C-Span’s greatest weekly hits is the Prime Minister answering questions in the House of Commons) Read Christopher Hitchens’ online column. He (alone) noticed McCain’s suggestion).
I’m not one for political dirty tricks, but….would a pissed-off working class guy, please kill the teleprompter on Obama mid-speech one of these times? Please? Pretty please?
Obama doesn’t like being questioned or challenged. Have you noticed? You could get the impression the man’s running for King — or Emperor. And, given his political associations, including the half-brother and cousin in Kenya (read Dean’s comment in Rick Moran’s column yesterday on Mc-Cain-Obama) what if Obama’s models are those great liberators, Cuba’s Lincoln (NYTimes) or Venezuela’s?
Jun 6, 2008 - 7:05 am 6. tanstaafl:Why would Obama subject himself to a stolen limelight and a neutered presidency?
Neutered and potentially deadly, with the Hildebeest and her criminal husband just down the hall, perpetually plotting their strategy amid the pizza boxes.
Jun 6, 2008 - 7:32 am 7. politicalreacharound:This dream ticket is just that a dream. Hillary supporters need to realize that Hillary’s presidential aspirations are over FOREVER. There is no 2012 there is no VP spot. She’s too much trouble and her supporters wish for her to run again in 2012 assumes way to much. First, McCain would have to win the GE (not very likely). Second, an older Clinton would have to find the energy to give another 14 month campaign a go without the luxury of starting the race as the presumptive nominee(very draining and hard to do). Thirdly, if McCain were to win the GE Hillary’s “I told you so” moment will never happen. Her claims that she was most electable will be drowned out by the Dems (rightly) blaming her for splitting the party and causing the GE loss. Obama suspects that even die-hard Hillary supporters (the ones who aren’t racist) will come around to him by November when they take the time to see that his policies mostly mirror hers. The baggage she brings outweighs the benefits. Obama knows this and surely wont take her as VP. What he needs to do is to focus on 1 or 2 battle ground states (IN,OH,PA,CO,FL,VA etc) and select a VP who gives him a shot to turn a red state blue.
Jun 6, 2008 - 7:38 am 8. Julie:Bang on, Sandra M. I also notice that Obama gets snippy whenever somebody challenges him or even (gasp!) asks him and uncomfortable question about his views or his past. He runs around as if he should already be having his coronation with an attitude of “Why are you getting in my way? Can’t you see I’m supposed to have this?!” I don’t think he’s very strong, and I too am scared about what America will look like after becomes President.
McCain might not be the best speech giver, but I trust him. I hardly knew anything about Obama in January and he seemed fresh, but the more I learn about him the less I like him. He certainly does not strike me as a ‘new’ kind of politician. Quite the opposite.
Jun 6, 2008 - 7:38 am 9. Irish Gal:I nominate my husband. At least he has run his own business.
Jun 6, 2008 - 7:59 am 10. tanstaafl:I also notice that Obama gets snippy whenever somebody challenges him or even (gasp!) asks him and uncomfortable question about his views or his past.
You’re not supposed to question the Obamamessiah© about exactly who has helped him be an up and comer in Southside Chicago politics. You’re not supposed to look to him for substantive observations on “policy” or (even) knowledge of how many United States states there are.
You’re just…not
Jun 6, 2008 - 8:41 am 11. Justin:“even die-hard Hillary supporters (the ones who aren’t racist)”
I just love the way that whenever the Dems meet someone they don’t like they always resort to character assassination. It makes me feel good that I hate them so much.
Jun 6, 2008 - 9:16 am 12. John:Utterly tiresome to even think about the so-called “dream ticket”, it’ll never happen. Besides the fact that Obama and Hilary completely despise each other, why would Obama want a Clinton twosome down the hall plotting his untimely demise? I seem to remember some people getting off’ed in unlikely ways during the early Clinton days. Those people are not above anything.
Jun 6, 2008 - 9:17 am 13. Daedalus:Hillary showed a lack of executive ability in her failed health care program in 1992. Hillary showed a lack of executive ability in her failed presidential campaign in 2007-2008. The thought of her handling the affairs of the US Government is scary. However, despite showing that she is a totally incompetent executive, her real drawback is her other half….Bill. No one can control him, including Hillary. It would be a total disaster having her on the ticket, and all it would add to the ticket would be Hillary’s and Bill’s baggage……not something that Obama needs on top of Reverends Wright, Moss, and Pfleger. While we’re at it, lets not forget that we judge our children by their associates, and Obama associates with an unrepentant terrorist bomber, and the man that got him such a nice house deal was just found guilty on 16 counts……What a bunch of losers !!!!!
Jun 6, 2008 - 9:52 am 14. A3k:“Dream Ticket” is a rip off of the Olympic “Dream Team” of NBAers. But Obama/Clinton would be less Magic/Bird than Sampson/Bogues. A poor fit of two “uniques”, but by no means two greats.
If Obama knew anything about history, or really any policy at all, his rhetorical skills might be useful. But his policies seem ripped from a late night dorm bull session rather than from a sober assessment of how the world really is.
In that respect, I’m calling dibs on someone in the Obama camp (most likely the Obamessiah Himself) putting forward the policy equivalent of “photocopy donuts”* in the first 100 days.
* This refers to the moron who got stoned, came up with a brilliant idea then when he woke up the next morning to see what it was he came up with, all he found was a note to himself that read “Solution to world hunger: Photocopy donuts”.
Jun 6, 2008 - 10:04 am 15. Bill N:If Obama were to choose Hillary as his VP candidate he would be signing his death warrant should be elected. The Billery team will do ANYTHING to regain the White House. Should Obama/Hillary win in November, Obama will go the way of Vince Foster before the January inaugural. Hillary thus gains the Presidency, which she thinks is hers by right, whatever it takes!
Jun 6, 2008 - 10:07 am 16. Doc99:If Kennedy could Johnson to be his running mate, I’ve no doubt Obama could run with Hillary. Whether he will is another story.
Jun 6, 2008 - 10:31 am 17. Olivia:Obama shouldn’t choose Hillary as a VP because it won’t make a damn of a difference to a good chunk of her supporters. They were ready to vote McCain yesterday. To a lot of sensible Democrats and Formercrats the MSM, DNC and Obama campaign have little to no credibility.
The guy is radioactive. He has too much baggage, too many radical friends, and too little experience. Not to mention he is arrogant, elitist and holds political views that are too far left.
It was bad enough when all the Democrat party could find was Al Gore, then they offered loser Kerry. I think it’s safe to say that many will cross the aisle guilt-free. I’m sure they’ll blame Clinton but Obama is downright unelectable. DNC Thanatos runs deep. They can lose on their own.
Jun 6, 2008 - 10:54 am 18. always right:We are NOT to question Obama (the list grew everyday) now, while he is supposedly ‘asking nicely’ for my vote.
Is there any possibility that anybody is allowed to question the Obama Presidency? Who’s going to be allowed oversight? Congressional anything (don’t make me laugh).
Once he’s the chosen one, we are all at his mercy?
Jun 6, 2008 - 11:05 am 19. AJ:Correct, Mr. Weiss. I have said this all along. Liberals like it because anything no white or non male is great for these racists/bigots, but this aint occuring. For one, Michelle, who hates Hillary (and American) will not allow it, and secondly, even Obama is not that dumb (perhaps). He knows he’s a radical left nutjob so he cannot choose another one. He has to go a tad more moderate.
Jun 6, 2008 - 11:20 am 20. My new WordPress MU Site » Blog Archive » Obama-Clinton: The “Not on Your Life” Ticket:[...] FOXNews.com wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptA Barack-Hillary fusion would be more like teammates from hell than a dream team. Why would Obama subject himself to a stolen limelight and a neutered presidency? [...]
Jun 6, 2008 - 11:50 am 21. Grassroots Conservative Majority - Returning the Republican Party back to fiscal and moral responsibility » Blog News:[...] Obama-Clinton: The “Not on Your Life” Ticket – Pajamas Media [...]
Jun 7, 2008 - 7:16 am 22. test » Blog Archive » Obama-Clinton: The “Not on Your Life” Ticket:[...] mniquette@dispatch.com wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerptA Barack-Hillary fusion would be more like teammates from hell than a dream team. Why would Obama subject himself to a stolen limelight and a neutered presidency? Read the rest of this great post here [...]
Jun 7, 2008 - 1:47 pm 23. skippy:Clinton needs to leave and find a cause – ala Al Gore.
Jun 7, 2008 - 5:25 pm 24. john augustine:International healthcare, so purposefully and profitably pushed by her husband’s foundation would be a good start.
She should head the foundation.
It would give her an international audience, keep Bill in check and let her missteps fade from the collective minds of the voting public.
Obama won’t ever make it to the white house Mccain will Crush him and it will be so embarrassing for all these smart ass reporters that America won’t elect him ( Hillary would have won easily and everyone I have asked agrees , just the media has its paid for heads up their butts.), and he would have lost all those earlier contests if the News media had done it Job better and released all his church crap earlier , but of coarse they knew and held it till later . He will not even win NY or CA states that have a long record of voting GOP . Obama people are so Naive , Please riot after you lose so we can fill our new jails because of your lawless actions.
Jun 7, 2008 - 9:40 pm 25. clinton saying that obama will not be another king or kennedy:You are so Dumb that we are going to lose AGAIN to Another Bush , its just that he is Black , everything else in their history is almost the same . No military experience , no Business success , very little travel exposure , and on and on , oh yeah he talks better then a retard , good job .
[...] his running mate, I??ve no doubt obama could run with Hillary. Whether he will is another story. …http://pajamasmedia.com/blog/obama-clinton-the-not-on-your-life-ticket/Edwards Takes Side in Clinton-MLK Controversy ” FOX Embeds ” FOXNews.com… King, but through a [...]
Jun 10, 2008 - 9:33 am 26. Bennett:Obama should choose Ron Paul for his Vice President. That would be the true golden ticket.
Jun 10, 2008 - 1:01 pm 27. Zach:Oh yes, Ron Paul would definitely run with a big-government spendocrat such as Obama (or McCain for that matter). Paul is on a completely different level than any of these other candidates.
Jun 10, 2008 - 8:51 pm 28. Judy R:“I’m not one for political dirty tricks, but….would a pissed-off working class guy, please kill the teleprompter on Obama mid-speech one of these times? Please? Pretty please?” OMG, that would be like the screen falling down to reveal the little man in the Wizard of OZ. BO would be stuttering and sputtering, totally blank…LOL. As a Hillary supporter, I really do laugh at the all encompassing power and evil intent attributed to this woman. Rumor and innuendo have the ability to create a legend comparable to Big Foot in politics with about as much validity. Clinton supporters don’t want her within a mile of radio-active Obama. First, they don’t want to feel guilt about not being able to vote for a Obama/Clinton ticket because of serious doubts about HIS character. Second, it would be more of what the female population has had to endure repeatedly, the older, more experienced woman having to train the younger, inexperienced guy to take her job. Sorry, we’ve had way too much of that already.
Jun 11, 2008 - 4:40 am