Obama needs to soften the blow to his supporters. Many of them won't understand why he chose the mean old lady who said bad things about him. So, he fakes hard-right with Hagel and then chooses Clinton.
Hagel would be a good choice as Secretary of State. He could help bring an end to the Iraq war and provide political cover for the Dem's who were hurt badly for decades after they forced an ending to the Vietnam war. But VP should be out of the question for him.
To claim that Hillary is more of centrist than Obama is simply silly. If the events of the last 2 weeks tell you anything its that Obama will shift anywhere and he is certainly no progressive.
Did I say she was more of a centrist? I did not. She is perceived as more of a centrist but that wasn't even my point. I was comparing Clinton with Hagel. Hagel is far right IMOP and Clinton is a center-left centrist.
If Obama doesn't get elected he can't move the country to the left and he can't get us out of Iraq. So, if he moves to the center on a few issues that does not mean he has abandoned all his progressive principles. It's called being politically pragmatic.
I would rather him get 80% of the progressive agenda done then none at all. We've only won 3 or the last 10 presidential elections. The "real" progressives who ran and lost the presidency have not gone on to move the country to the left.
The first rule in politics is to win. Then you can try to enact your agenda. Franklin Rosevelt campaigned as a centrist/concervative, but once elected he moved the country way to the left. He promised the county that he wouldn't take us into WWII and then did just that and defeated the facists. God bless him for lying through his teeth and making the country a much more progressive one.
it's interesting. what you call "political pragmatism" for Obama is what many people call "triangulation" when it is applied to Clinton. Oh, the hypocrisy.
It's rich isn't it? I'm watching this all unfold and wondering to myself why anyone is surprised. Maybe I'm too cynical, but people never fail to disappoint me. :-)
I love the Clinton's and think Bill Clinton was one hell of a president. I completely agree with you.
If Reagan had Bill Clinton's economic record they would have carved his face on Mount Rushmore.
I was considering leaving the Democratic party based on the treatment of Bill and Hillary Clinton. I came to my senses, but it still pisses me off.
Obama's already hedging on Iraq. It's the only issue on the left he's got now, and he's getting ready to be 'pragmatic' about that one too.
I do not know what "progressives" are thinking. No one is going to just pull out of Iraq. The situation is far to unstable and complicated. But we will get out much sooner with Obama than McCain. But it won't be tomorrow either way.
I really wish the left would grow up and be a little more pragmatic. Hillary is not the devil and Obama is not going to get us out of Iraq next year. But he will get us out of there as soon as the conditions allow.
