Kansas, Nebraska, Washington, and Hillary's GE Wild Card
09 February 2008 1:34 pm by Taylor Marsh
Kansas, Nebraska, Washington, and Hillary's GE Wild
Card updated
Poor baby. David Shuster has managed to make himself the symbol of all things sexist in this primary
season. He's now the vessel into which all outrage can be poured. Clinton remarked
in Maine that she “found the remarks incredibly offensive.” But she
unloaded on Shuster in a letter to NBC News honcho Steve Capus.
“Nothing justifies the kind of debasing language that David Shuster
used and no temporary suspension or half-hearted apology is sufficient,”
Clinton wrote to NBC News President Steve Capus, who apparently had already
called Clinton to personally apologize.“I would urge you to look at the pattern of behavior on your network
that seems to repeatedly lead to this sort of degrading language,” Clinton
wrote. “There's a lot at stake for our country in this election.
Surely, you can do your jobs as journalists and commentators and still keep
the discourse civil and appropriate.” … ..
To add, this is the money quote from the NYTimes' Caucus blog (see reader tiburones in comments): “However,” she wrote, “I became Chelsea's mother long before I ran for any office and I will always be a mom first and a public official second.” Bingo. That's something that hits the heart of every mother in America.
In Washington, Clinton weighed in on caucuses.
“You know, if this were a primary where everybody could vote all day
I'd feel pretty good about it. But it's not. It's a caucus, and you've got
to show up at 1:00. And I already met three nurses outside and I said, “Are
you going to caucus for me?” And they said, “Well, we're working
tomorrow.” – Hillary Clinton
Long before the first votes were counted in Iowa, I weighed in on this issue.
Caucuses are undemocratic. Many people do have to work and can't show up for
hours to vote in them. So they don't have near the weight or clout that primaries
do, because they don't reach out to near enough voters. Caucuses disenfranchise
voters. We need to go to an all primary slate next time.
On another insanity note, seat Michigan, who has allocated their delegates, and Florida. That was going to happen all along. Not Clinton's fault that Obama got outplayed. Tough.
Something else to note is that Clinton is winning all the big states. She's
also winning the states that usually go to Democrats come general election time.
Does anyone believe we'll win South Carolina in November? Idaho? I've got a
challenge for you research geeks, a sort of game. Check out what candidates
in each presidential primary race, since 1972, has won the big states during
the primary season, and compare it to who finally wins the nomination of each
party.
Also, when all these match up polls are done, it's interesting that none of
the pundits are talking about this year's general election wild card: women voters. Nobody knows
what could happen if Hillary is the nominee. Women who aren't paying attention
right now could wake up and get involved if she's the nominee. We simply don't
know what the first woman president in U.S. history could do to the female population.
One thing is certain, it won't depress the female vote. In fact, it's likely
to galvanize it. As many as 20 million unmarried women didn't vote in past presidential
elections. Now I'm not saying Hillary can bring them all out. But with Hillary
at the top of the ticket, women who've never voted in their lives or ever thought
about politics becomes one hell of a wild card. Daughters everywhere will be
noticing, so will their mother's. But unmarried single women will undoubtedly pay closer attention.
Pundits should be talking more about Hillary's wild card, because it's absolutely
real. They may not know what numbers to attach to it, but it's out there waiting to be unleashed.
As for today's happenings, Politico.com is a good place to follow
the returns. Huckabee kicked McCain's butt in Kansas.
A second game for you. Eriposte's “The Quiz Show on Iraq.” See if you know the answers.
