[Mb-civic] The buzz on Hillary Clinton - Joan Vennochi - Boston Globe Op-Ed

[William Swiggard]

  The buzz on Hillary Clinton

By Joan Vennochi  |  March 12, 2006  |  The Boston Globe

CAN HILLARY Clinton make it to the White House?

She has money, support from party insiders, and nonstop political buzz. 
The Democratic presidential nomination is considered hers for the 
taking. But there is still reason to doubt that the junior senator from 
New York, who is also Bill Clinton's wife, will make it to the Oval Office.

Recent political surveys taken in New York and California show voters 
who say they are ready for a female president, but less ready for 
Hillary Clinton to be the first. Last month, a survey by the Marist 
College Institute for Public Opinion indicated that two-thirds of 
Americans believe another Clinton will run for president, but only 
one-third believe this one can win. The latest national ABC/Washington 
Post poll shows that Clinton garners a 52 percent favorability rating, 
and 46 percent unfavorability rating.

Clinton's political problem is usually described as ''divisiveness." 
Gender bias also plays a role. Republicans are trying to paint her as 
''too angry" to be president.

But conviction might be the biggest obstacle: Does Clinton have it about 
anything other than a desire to be the first female president?

In mathematics, the shortest distance between two points is a straight 
line. In politics, Bill and Hillary Clinton traditionally rely on the 
triangle to get them where they need to go.

In the past, Clinton ''triangulation" meant positioning oneself between 
the Democrats and Republicans in Congress. This time around, the 
Clintons are giving triangulation a new meaning. On controversial 
issues, they are in opposite corners, essentially covering all the bases.

Take the Dubai ports deal. In February, Hillary Clinton denounced the 
deal to allow the state-owned Dubai company to manage some terminal 
operations at six American ports. In March, the Financial Times revealed 
that Bill Clinton, former president and first husband-in-waiting, was 
advising the United Arab Emirates about landing the deal. Last week, the 
Dubai company dropped out of the deal, under pressure from Republicans 
and Democrats who relentlessly attacked the premise that some US port 
terminals should be sold to an Arab state company.

The Clintons are doing the same thing regarding Iraq. Hillary Clinton 
voted for the Iraq war resolution, defends her vote, and says the United 
States must finish what it started. Last November, Bill Clinton told an 
Arab student audience that the US invasion of Iraq had been a ''big 
mistake."

Husbands and wives are free to disagree on politics. But with the 
Clintons, when does a policy disagreement become a strategy to straddle 
both sides of the issue? Should voters take Hillary Clinton's policy 
statements at face value? Or should they see Bill Clinton winking and 
conclude what he says out loud is what Hillary is really thinking?

Most important for the 2008 presidential campaign, how does the 
Clintonian practice of covering all the bases measure up against a 
prospective opponent such as Senator John McCain?

The Arizona Republican cultivates the image of a straight talker. He 
backed President Bush on the ports deal and criticized ''the near 
hysteria" of critics, including Hillary Clinton. He endorses the Iraq 
war policy, although he criticizes aspects of its execution.

McCain happily exploits the image of a man unafraid to say what he 
believes, even if those beliefs are at odds with public opinion. That 
latest ABC/Washington Post poll shows that Americans hold McCain in 
exceptionally high regard. Fifty-nine percent of those polled had a 
favorable opinion of him; 29 percent had an unfavorable view. McCain 
also has broad bipartisan appeal.

Conviction and strength are two ingredients vital to a winning 
presidential campaign strategy. They helped reelect Bush, although over 
the last year, those once-perceived presidential qualities have devolved 
to stubbornness and ineptness.

The 2004 presidential campaign showed that voters don't always have to 
agree with a candidate, but they want to be reasonably clear about what 
a candidate believes. That was part of John Kerry's downfall, and it is 
Hillary Clinton's biggest challenge. What does she believe?

As Mrs. Bill Clinton, Hillary Clinton showed strength in the face of 
political and personal adversity. As a presidential contender, she must 
demonstrate it in a different context.

Together, Hillary and Bill Clinton can win the presidential nomination; 
but they both can't win the presidency. Voters must believe Hillary 
Clinton has the strength to do the job on her own, and the convictions 
to deserve it.

http://www.boston.com/news/globe/editorial_opinion/oped/articles/2006/03/12/the_buzz_on_hillary_clinton/
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