Why Hillary Clinton Could Easily Lose To Donald Trump
The prospect of Donald Trump winning the Republican nomination for president makes me very nervous. But nowhere near as nervous as the prospect of him running against Hillary Clinton in the general election.
It shouldn't be that way. We have every reason to think that, running against a compelling center-left candidate, Trump would end up losing in the biggest popular-vote landslide since Richard Nixon slaughtered George McGovern in 1972. Trump has the highest unfavorable ratings (nearly 58 percent) of anyone running for president this cycle. His outrageous, rude, racist, sexist, and vulgar tirades, not to mention a long and murky history of largely unexamined business dealings, make him an extremely ripe target. A strong opponent would leave him in the dust.
But Hillary Clinton is not a strong opponent — against Trump, or anyone else.
The problem isn't ideology. As a center-left neoliberal, Clinton fits right into a political sweet spot — affirming the importance of reality-based policy expertise at home and abroad; showing a willingness to cut deals to get things done; and displaying an appreciation for the crucial importance of markets in generating economic growth, along with a recognition that tough-minded regulations (and a generous safety net) are needed to minimize the corruption and injustices to which markets are prone. This combination of idealism and pragmatism grows out of the core neoliberal aim of creating a society as fair as possible within a world of intransigent political and economic constraints.
In comparison to the xenophobic bombast of Donald Trump, a smart and savvy neoliberal candidate should look like a paragon of prudence — and the stronger choice by far to lead the nation.
Unless that neoliberal candidate is Hillary Clinton.
The issue isn't Clinton's gender. Want to blame sexism for the dearth of viable female presidential candidates in the United States? I'll be right there with you. But the distinctive troubles of this particular female presidential candidate are not primarily a function of misogyny. They follow, instead, from the U-Haul full of baggage that she brings with her everywhere she goes.
more...
http://theweek.com/articles/608383/why-hillary-clinton-could-easily-lose-donald-trump
= new reply since forum marked as read
