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I'm a probable Hillary supporter I am leaning toward supporting Hillary myself because I feel she is a very intelligent, tough, compassionate person with an excellent grasp of the issues and good stands on them. And yes, the fact that I think she is the one most likely to defeat the Repubs matters to me (this is not an academic exercise!)
Her Image is Shaped (Like the Rest) But She is Still Herself I will admit that she may sometimes let consultants have a bigger role than they should. But I disagree that she is, as you imply, "not herself." Remember, all candidates heavily use consultants now---they are a complete necessity. No presidential can completely be "themselves" anymore and win.
Digression #1: An Abraham Lincoln Story It will sound like a digression to some (and I apologize for that) but it reminds me of a great Abraham Lincoln story. The first year Lincoln was nominated, the convention was in Chicago, but Abe was in Springfield (at that time, candidates did not even enter the city where the nomination was held. Abe was a long shot, but as a result of a deadlocked convention, he had the opportunity to get the nomination.
His followers came to him in Springfield and said, "OK, Abe, we can get you the nomination, but you have to decide what deals we should make. We can do it with A,B, or C being offered Secretary of State, and D,E, or F being offered Secretary of Defense, etc. (These deals would line up the support Abe needed to secure the nomination.)
Abe replied: "No deals."
His aides looked at each other. No deals meant no nomination. So, they went back to Chicago and made the deals they chose themselves, and "locked the nomination up" (in the back rooms). Then they went back to Abe, told him the deals they had made and said, "If you endorse these deals, you have the nomination. Otherwise, you don't." He endorsed the deals. When it came time for his aides to dome up with a campaign slogan, they chose: "Honest Abe."
Digression #1: An Al Gore Story I watched all 3 Gore/Bush debates. In the first debate, Gore, a college debater, surely felt he did not need a consultant to deal with Bush---a MORON! But he was wrong! Sure, he showed that he was 100 times smarter, knew 100 times more about the issues, and could express himself 100 times better. But he ended up looking like a "bully"---so he "lost" the debate in the eyes of many average Joes watching.
It does no good to complain about media spin---you have to prepare for it and forestall it in advance. Did I understand this beforehand? No. I thought Gore won by a mile. But I am not a media consultant. That is the kind of thing they are paid to know---Americans are extremely sensitive to a Presidential candidate looking like a "bully"---even if the bullying is to expose your opponent as an idiot! (Gore, who is much large than Bush, also stood near him at times, which made Bush visible cower. I know, you're saying so what, Gore just exposed Bush as a coward as well! Nope, that counted against Gore too.)
Back to My General Point about Hillary and Consultants So, like all the candidates now, Hillary has consultants and "image shapers." At times it can get out of hand and it has to be watched---you have to let the genuine person come through. But when you are trying to win an election among a couple hundred million or so potential voters, you have to, to an extent, "be all things to all people."
Hillary vs. the Democrats Another thing to keep in mind about Hillary is that she is running in the general election now---while her opponents run for the nomination. You can debate the strategy (it has risk), but I think it is sound and likely to lead to victory in 11/2008.
Because she is the front runner, she can afford to focus on 11/2008 and shape her image with that in mind. Obama and Edwards cannot afford this strategy. They must run as hard as they can for the nomination and hope to catch up with Hillary. If one of them wins the nomination, you will see a re-shaping of his image for the general campaign. This will look bad, but it is unavoidable for them. If Hillary wins the nomination, she will not suffer such a hit.
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