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| Hillary Clinton 'could cost Democrats dear' |
| 2007-09-26 |
| A leaked Democratic poll has suggested that Hillary Clinton, the frontrunner in the race for the party's presidential nomination, could lose the 2008 election because of her "very polarised image". The survey by the Democratic pollsters Lake Research indicated that both Mrs Clinton and Barack Obama, second in the Democratic race, trailed Rudy Giuliani, the Republican front runner, in 31 swing congressional districts. The private memo, leaked to The Washington Post, painted what researchers described as a "sobering picture" for Democrats who believe that President George W Bush's disastrous favourability numbers almost guarantee they will capture the White House next year. All party preference polls show that Democrats are much more popular than Republicans. But when the names of individual candidates are used, the gap narrows considerably. "The images of the two early [Democratic] favourites are part of the problem," the memo said. The leaked poll found that Mr Giuliani, a centrist Republican with liberal stances on issues such as abortion and gay rights, leads Mrs Clinton by 49 per cent to 39 per cent in the swing districts. The former New York mayor enjoyed a much slimmer lead of just one per cent over Mr Obama in the poll, conducted in August. It has long been known that Mrs Clinton has "high negatives" among voters but the assessment of Mr Obama that his "image is soft, and one-fifth of voters do not gave a firm impression of him" was a surprise. The poll found that Mrs Clinton, in particular, could damage the chances of congressional Democratic candidates on the ballot. The sensitivity of the issue was underlined by the reluctance of Democrats to discuss the survey. "We're not commenting on this poll," said Daniel Gotoff, co-author of the memo accompanying the Lake Research poll. "It was leaked and obviously not by us." But Andy Arnold, a Democratic county chairman in Greenville, South Carolina - a key primary state - said: "I'd be a little bit dishonest if I didn't admit that in some parts of the country, and probably my own, having Hillary Clinton at the top of the ticket will have some impact further down. "People have that concern and are voicing it. The thing with Hillary is that most people have their minds made up. There's a fundamentalist crowd who have an inordinate obsession with things sexual and what happened [during Bill Clinton's administration] played into that." He added, however, that "whoever we nominate, the right-wing attack machine will make them into the devil by November 2008". Frank Luntz, a leading Republican pollster, said: "This poll reveals what grassroots Democrats have been concerned about. Hillary is their choice ideologically but not necessarily politically and they're afraid she could lose. "Democrats want to win more than anything else and they will compromise on policy to achieve electability." Mrs Clinton, he said, prompted a series of perceptions that could damage her. "She never admits she's wrong. There's a lack of candour and a harshness to her. She doesn't have any of the typical challenges of a female candidate but that is in itself a challenge. "She doesn't show heart. People see her as strong and a fighter, someone who is qualified and can get things done but she's missing that personal element, that emotional connection. "Rudy does better among independents than Hillary does and in the end the candidate that gets the majority of independents wins the election." |
| Posted by:mcsegeek1 |
| #19 All party preference polls show that Democrats are much more popular than Republicans. But when the names of individual candidates are used, the gap narrows considerably. The answer is simple. The Democrats field a crash-dummy with 'DEMOCRAT' stenciled on its chest. The voters will be happy. It staff can put a rubber stamp in its hand so it can approve every spending bill coming out of Congress. This will make the Left happy. Every weekend, its staff can strap it into a cheap Chinese car and smack it into a wall. This would wouldn't necessarily make the Right happy, but at least they'd see a Democrat president doing something positive for the country. Maybe for libertarians, they could refrain from using the seat belt... |
| Posted by: Pappy 2007-09-26 21:34 |
| #18 Clinton will hitch her This reads better and is closer to the truth. |
| Posted by: Deacon Blues 2007-09-26 19:45 |
| #17 The 2008 race boils down to the old story of the two outdoorsmen returning to their camp to discover one big mean and angry bear clawing through what used to be their gear. The bear turns, fangs protruding, and ripping a loud roar while eying both campers. One turns to the other - "Bob, I don't think you can out run that bear." "No problem Joe, cause I know I can out run you." |
| Posted by: Procopius2k 2007-09-26 19:15 |
| #16 Hillary as Vice President to AlBore's President? If that should happen **shudder**, Al better get a food taster and stay out of parks. Just sayin'.... |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2007-09-26 19:02 |
| #15 Gore/Clinton is the ticket we'll be seeing. Gore will get a Nobel Prize soon and then throw his hat in the ring. Clinton will hitch her wagon to him rather than lose. Her negatives won't matter as a VP and she can slip in the backdoor. It also gives Gore the chance to lord it over the Clinton's for awhile. I'm not saying I like it, or would vote for such a ticket, I'm just calling 'em the way I see 'em. |
| Posted by: rjschwarz 2007-09-26 18:25 |
| #14 While I don't disagree with the characterizations of Missus Clinton as posted here, I strongly suspect that the poll was tailored and released to meet the needs of one or more of her Democratic co-contenders who would love to see her tarred as un-electable in the DemParty faithful's (if that word can be used in this context) mind. |
| Posted by: Sheit tse Tung2686 2007-09-26 17:46 |
| #13 One can only hope Hillary will cost the dhimmis dearly. |
| Posted by: JohnQC 2007-09-26 17:45 |
| #12 don't even try to top Zenster in deadly, razor-sharp snark. Bah! You're being far too generous, Abu Babaloo (adore that 'nym!). Fred and tu3031 top me on an almost daily basis. But thank you for the thought. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-09-26 17:11 |
| #11 Thus begins, "The Blaming of the Shrew" A word of advice to any neophyte commenters...don't even try to top Zenster in deadly, razor-sharp snark. As for me, I'm still trying to find that Swiffer cloth to dust off the bust of Salieri on my bookshelf :-D |
| Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) 2007-09-26 16:47 |
| #10 A leaked Democratic poll has suggested that Hillary Clinton, the frontrunner in the race for the party's presidential nomination, could lose the 2008 election because of her "very polarised image". Thus begins, "The Blaming of the Shrew". A major problem for the Democrts is, I think, that they see everything as "image," and can't even consider the fact that there might be a problem with substance. As the motto of Dr. John David Lewis says: Esse quam videri -- "to be, rather than to seem" |
| Posted by: Zenster 2007-09-26 16:07 |
| #9 Ralph you are spot on. This is a big part of the reason that Lefties see every policy disagreement as a "smear" or "personal destruction". They are unable to separate emotion from anything. That's probably attributable to their pomo relativity. If nothing is real, everything can only be viewed in the way it makes one feel. As to Hillary, she is power hungry to the extreme. This also explains her socialist / totalitarian tendencies. It has nothing to do with big government being objectivly good; it has to do with big governmnent (the bigger the better) giving her more power and control. |
| Posted by: AlanC 2007-09-26 16:03 |
| #8 I'm amused that pundits keep referring to a problem with her "image." A major problem for the Democrts is, I think, that they see everything as "image," and can't even consider the fact that there might be a problem with substance. Similarly, the dig about a problem with "fundamentalists" tries to ignore the real issue and paint it as a problem with emotional reactions on the right. Self-delusion is not the way to solve problems. |
| Posted by: Ralph 2007-09-26 15:12 |
| #7 ...s the inheritor of the blood-soaked totalitarians of the 20th century. She is Stalin in a skirt. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-09-26 14:59 |
| #6 Hillary has beliefs of her own, but she is hiding them now. I think she is a true believer in the 1960s New Left's program, and is the inheritor of the blood-soaked totalitarians of the 20th century. |
| Posted by: SR-71 2007-09-26 13:37 |
| #5 She has no beliefs of her own and stakes her positions on what she thinks will play best. My take is a little different. I think she has strong beliefs but will tailer her position to what she thinks will play best ... until she is elected. |
| Posted by: lotp 2007-09-26 13:33 |
| #4 Interesting take from a couple of black women I know at work: they'd never vote for Hillary because of the way she stuck with Bill after the Monica affair. What my friends were saying was, essentially, "if she doesn't respect herself why should I respect her?" |
| Posted by: Steve White 2007-09-26 12:59 |
| #3 Ditto what Darth said - I also know some VERY leftist folks who woh't vote for the Hildebeest. Suck on it, Dems. If you want to cleanse your party of people like Joe Lieberman and Zell Miller to make it acceptable to George Soros and Markos Moulitsas, you deserve a clobberin'. |
| Posted by: Ricky bin Ricardo (Abu Babaloo) 2007-09-26 12:58 |
| #2 She is a power-hungry sellout. She has no beliefs of her own and stakes her positions on what she thinks will play best. Oddly, this is what makes her comfortingly predictable. |
| Posted by: gromky 2007-09-26 12:50 |
| #1 She will have a hard time winning an election with a good opponent. I have several liberal friends that would not vote for her or vote because they think she is a sell out and power hungry. |
| Posted by: DarthVader 2007-09-26 12:39 |