When You’re in a Hole…
You know the old saying:
When you’re in a hole, stop digging.
Hillary could well take that old saying to heart. Yesterday, during an appearance at a women’s rights conference, she was asked about the election. Rather than demure and speak about the issues of the conference, she went to DefCon 4 and started into launch mode. In doing so, she yet again put on display her utter tone-deafness and why she is a terrible campaigner. She blamed the Russians. She blamed FBI director Comey. She groused about Trump. While offhand acknowledging that her “campaign wasn’t perfect,” she placed the blame for her loss on everyone but herself.
She didn’t take responsibility for losing the Rust Belt by ignoring those voters. She didn’t take responsibility for letting number grunts override the instincts of her twice elected husband. She didn’t acknowledge rigging the primaries and packing the DNC with loyalists. She falsely accused debate moderators for not asking Trump the hard questions. She didn’t take responsibility for being incapable of articulating exactly why she wanted to be president.
But she showed in high definition and full color the reasons why she really lost – she was a awful candidate. She was a terrible campaigner. Her campaign, just like in 2008, was in chaos most of the time with staff in conflict and competing against one another. But most of all she did, and indeed still does believe it was her turn. This was her election, and it was pre-ordained that she would win. There was no reason to campaign in Michigan; the number grunts said it was hers.
It should have never been close enough for Russian interference or FBI letters to make a difference. Hillary Clinton lost to the worst presidential candidate in US history. Period. Yeah, yeah, she got more votes in the popular, because of big turnout in New York and California, but that doesn’t count, does it? She lost because, as Glen Thrush of Politico put it last September – she was (and is) the “Queen of Coasting”. It was on full display yesterday.
Well, the Queen needs to stop digging and put down her shovel. She’s not helping.
I suspect the misogynist being referred to are the ones who from the pulpits declare women are not fit to serve the Lord as leaders. They can teach SS and in their schools, run the kitchens, but not preach. Didn’t a former POTUS just leave his lifelong church due to their position on women? And the Catholics and some other fundamentalist congregations.
There are some bubbas who are, but IMO, El Jefe does not sound like those guys.
1After reading the responses it appears that the majority of readers believe that there are two sets of rules; one for Hillary Clinton and one for the rest of us. Ms. Clinton can say whatever she wants to say about the 2016 election whenever she choses. The rest of us need to keep our mouths shut or we are misogynists. Doesn’t seem quite fair but I guess rules are rules. It also doesn’t seem too smart because those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it.
The advice to read “Shattered” is excellent advice. Relying on data from 2008 and 2012 instead of paying attention to what was actually happening on the ground in 2016 was stupid. And if any of us dared to say in 2016 that the Clinton ground game seemed to be lacking they were told to shut up and let Robby Mook and his outdated data call the shots. They had their heads so buried in yesterday’s data that they didn’t realize they had lost and needed to cancel the fireworks display until late afternoon on November 8th.
The two doofus Trump boys were going around with a map counting electoral votes. Meanwhile it appears that the seasoned politicians in the Clinton campaign somehow forgot about the requirement that the candidate has to win the electoral college to win the election. That requirement has been with us since the inception of our democracy. Whether we like the electoral college or not its the rule and we ignore it at our peril. Winning the popular vote may give the candidate a mandate but to claim that mandate the candidate first has to win the electoral college.
And now six months later Trump goes around making people look at the electoral map and Clinton goes around saying I won the popular vote. I wish both of them would quit arguing about who has the biggest, um, vote.
But I forget the rule. Only Hillary has the right to discuss the 2016 election. The rest of us had better keep our mouths shut if we know what’s good for us.
2Is this a joke?
Seriously?
It repeats almost verbatim every right wing talking point that has been aimed at Hillary Clinton for years. I’m surprised I didn’t see “shrill” somewhere in there, but it was implied. Thanks for joining the Hillary Haters. I didn’t expect that at this site.
3LItlhorn LLC, thank you. You said it much better than I did. El Jefe can of course write what he wants since he’s supported by JJ, but I of course have a right to avoid his posts. I’ll still come around here since I enjoy JJ’s writing but I’m done with El Jefe.
I despise concern peddlers.
4Okay, just a couple of things, then I’m done.
Contrary to the characterizations voiced here, HRC has not gone around for the last 6 months whining about the election outcome. If she has, maybe I missed it; but I’m a very regular consumer of political news. Her statements were made during an interview, when she was specifically asked about the events and her view, and specifically answered. To compare her post-electoral statements with those of the Crybaby-in-Chief is ludicrous and downright offensive. He’s still holding vanity rallies, for Chrissake.
I did see a brief interview with the authors of “Shattered”. Though it seemed interesting, there was also something creepy about it. I’ll pass on reading it.
For all the faults that Hillary might bring to the presidency, and all the accompanying Sturm und Drang that her perpetual haters would have inflicted upon us all; with her in charge, I wouldn’t be burdened with this persistent existential dread. Translation: she’s not crazy enough to get us nuked.
And just as El Jefe has frequently said, and constantly demonstrated, I don’t care what other people think, either. Hillary has endured condemnation and hatred for her entire adult life. Nothing she has done has ever been good enough. No lie or accusation against her, however outlandish or irrational, has been immediately dismissed for the trash that it is. But there’s no point in trying to debate this. Some people just hate Hillary, full stop. Others don’t hate her, but always hold her to an impossible standard. And regardless of the circumstances, whatever goes wrong will always be her fault, and hers alone.
But this I know, in my very heart. She would have been a goddamn fantastic president.
5After some of you get through the required reading here: “Shattered” you might want to take a look at this. You know, for an alternate view? A sampling:
“Nobody yet has been able to point me to another instance of a candidate apologizing for losing, and that she did so stomped our hearts. Women always have to apologize. We apologize when someone bumps into us. We apologize when we bump into a table. We apologize when we’re right.
But none of those apologies are enough for the Daily News’s Gersh Kuntzman, who gets paid to write like the worst, nastiest diarrhea-mouthed rantings of the New York Post. Here is how he begins.
Hey, Hillary Clinton, shut the f— up and go away already.”
Read more at https://wonkette.com/616573/hillary-clinton-bringing-out-mens-scary-spitty-rage-strokes-again-by-existing-what-a-bitch#RRsPU8ESHSPLUzMe.99
Women always have to apologize. Oh, excuse me, we’re not supposed to cite misogynism anymore because Hillary bad.
6I suppose it’s too much to ask that El Jefe remember the “terrible campaigner” WON THE POPULAR VOTE BY ALMOST 3 MILLION in the face of voter suppression, FBI interference, and foreign interference with the election. Easier to ignore all that and snipe at her for not being a good little girl and being “demure”…frankly I’m sick to death of the crap women have been told since before I *was* a good little girl, excuses to dump on an intelligent, competent, experienced candidate that if she’d been a white MAN you’d have congratulated for speaking out. I’m sick to death of all the lies and the made-up “reasons” why Clinton lost.
So just keep right on blaming the person you never seriously supported and whining about Clinton, you’ll lose the next election too.
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