Taylor Marsh – TaylorMarsh.com – News, Opinion and Weblog on Progressive Politics

This
is the strongest reporting yet leading to evidence that Clinton is out. It’s also incredibly dismissive of Senator Clinton, not that this surprises me, no matter where it originates. Mainly because I have a feeling that’s exactly how many feel now that she’s gone from the race. The line in bold below is the kicker, regardless of the fact that Hillary has been around the political arena long
enough so that Obama’s team knows what she brings, good and bad. But still,
in my estimation, there is no way they wouldn’t vet her through his committee.

Mrs. Clinton has told associates in recent days that she thinks there is little chance Mr. Obama will pick her and that she views the public pronouncements by some of Mr. Obama’s aides that she is under review as nothing more than a courtesy. She has not been asked to provide written documentation to the committee vetting the background of candidates for Mr. Obama. Although Mrs. Clinton probably needs less flyspecking than almost anyone else in the field — considering how long she has been in public life and how intensively her past has been examined — the silence from that corner is being taken by Mrs. Clinton’s advisers as evidence of where she stands on Mr. Obama’s vice presidential list. … … But the Obama camp has done little in public to prepare Clinton supporters for the increasing likelihood that she will not be on the ticket. There is no shortage of speculation among Mrs. Clinton’s supporters that she is very much in the running as Mr. Obama begins closing in on a decision.

No one, certainly not me, is suggesting Senator Obama doesn’t have every right to pick
whomever he feels melds best with him in order to win in November, then govern. It’s also not like I had real hopes Senator Obama would pick Clinton. But
a couple of lines in Nagourney’s piece not only rankle, but offer harbingers
of trouble after his choice is made and the vetting saga leaks out.

The feeling goes both ways. Mrs. Clinton has told associates in recent days that she thinks there is little chance Mr. Obama will pick her and that she views the public pronouncements by some of Mr. Obama’s aides that she is under review as nothing more than a courtesy. … .. But his associates describe that as unlikely, saying that for a variety of reasons, Mr. Obama is not looking to have her as a running mate or serving with him in the White House.

A courtesy?

Marty
Peretz puts definition to the word obtuse, even after linking to Nagourney’s
piece.

I am glad that this finis to her ambitions is now agreed upon.

Agreed upon by whom? Not that anyone seems to have the
grace to let Clinton know what’s going on. After all, she only won many of the
last primaries, not to mention crushed him in the debates, while amassing the
same total votes as he. As I’ve said since Obama clinched the nomination, how
he handles the veepstakes matters. How this finally resolves matters as well and right now I’m not getting that warm and fuzzy feeling.

Hillary Clinton deserves more than courtesy, especially
if the second part of Nagourney’s piece above is correct. That the Obama team
already knows Senator Clinton is out of the running, but Senator Obama is going
on TV, along with his aides, making perfunctory statements to appease Senator
Clinton, but especially her supporters, basically leading everyone on. If indeed
Senator Obama is not considering Clinton, which the report says even HRC believes
is true, he should have the grace to tell her that to her face so she can have
the space to address it separate of him and prior to his selection being formally announced.

No one is saying he has to choose Clinton, though clearly I believe with Hillary
we’d increase our chances of winning by a significant margin. Strike that, I think we’d win in a walk, even though many of us believed Hillary was never really getting the serious consideration from the Obama camp she deserved.

However, if the Obama team has been leading on Clinton and her supporters, of which I
am a vocal and significant member, as this report hints, while simultaneously
the Obama team, including Obama himself, has been giving complimentary talking points
to the media when they know she’s out, they’re going to stir up fury barely buried, not to mention more bad blood, neither of which Democrats can afford if we’re to win in November. Because the truth is much of the support of Hillary’s former supporters is thinly based. It won’t take much to get them to skip the presidential part of their ballot.

I’m reserving
judgment on this one, but I can tell you that what’s swirling right now is not
a good sign and I’m not simply talking about Clinton not being his veep choice.

Disrespect of Senator Clinton from the Obama team like the sort that drips from Nagourney’s piece would be a very
bad sign for fall.

This would be another one.