Why Hillary Doesn’t Want Obama To Win
In spite of Clintonista mumblings about Hillary deserving to be on the Democratic ticket, the plain truth of the matter is that she doesn’t want— and can’t afford—an Obama victory in 2008.
An Obama victory in November would deep six Hillary’s dream of cementing her place in history as the first woman president.
Hillary now is 61. If Obama wins, he’ll serve out his four years, and then presumably run again for four more. Either way, it’ll be 2016 before she gets another shot. At that point, she’ll be 69—and John McCain and Ronald Reagan not withstanding—too old to give it another shot. Worse, win or lose in 2012, Obama’s vice president will be the presumptive Democratic front runner.
Hillary will be old news; an old Senator from New York.
On the other hand, an Obama loss in 2008 puts her right back in the driver’s seat for the 2012 nomination. Hillary will be able to argue that Obama was a mistake, and that it was a mistake to pass her by for a shot at the White House.
Given that, it doesn’t make sense to be on the ticket for either Hillary or Obama. On the ticket, or off, she needs to do her best to sabotage Obama. Hillary’s best bet is to continue her quixotic campaign, and to allow her supporters to continue to fester. Four years from now, she’ll be able to tell the voters that “I never gave up on you, even when everyone was against me.”
Some have suggested that Obama offer HIllary a spot in the Cabinet. She’d be crazy to take it, though. There’s much more for her as the Senator from New York. And if she wants to be president, taking a cabinet position would be selling that dream cheaply.
I think there’s a strategy for Obama though, that would get Hillary out of the picture, and on his side at the same time: offer Hillary the first vacant Supreme Court position. After cutting the deal secretly, he could suggest publicly that he thinks Hillary would make a fine Supreme Court Justice.
That’s a deal I don’t think she could turn down. And it would be one that would ensure she works to get her supporters behind his candidacy.
Posted by The Editor on 06/04 at 10:18 PM
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