Why does everybody assume that Hillary Clinton wants to be president?

[TheWraith]

I'm puzzled by the huge, unspoken assumption that seems to be shared by everyone who comments on the political arena, here and on TV: to wit, the idea that Hillary Clinton wants to be president. Why does everyone believe this? Because she ran for the senate? If you want to be president, there are a lot better ways to do it than running for the senate in New York. Senators are almost never elected president, and living in NY doesn't bring anything to the table electorally, either as POTUS or VPOTUS. If she really wanted to be president, why not move back to Arkansas and run for governor? It would make a lot more sense than NY senator. Frankly, I've never seen much of the ambition that most people attribute to her.

[CarbonDate]

1. She's never denied it.

In politics, that's basically an admission.

[TheWraith]

5. Let's make a list.

How many senators have said that they would not want to be president?

I'm betting it's a very short list. The others who, by your defintion, want to be president don't get the level of attention she does.

[clydefrand]

2. I don't assume she wants to be, but I think maybe people

would like to see her in office so we can have Bill back running the show with her. Sounds like a smart move to me. But the repugs will never allow it with their war chest of ill-gotten funds.

[gulfcoastliberal]

3. Her enormous corporate cash war-chest

On Edit: Who owns Citigroup? Saudia Arabians. Who are the Clintons best friends? The Bushs. Who are the Bushs best friends? The Saudi Arabians... Hmmm.


2006 totals:

1 Citigroup Inc $110,470
2 Metropolitan Life $85,000
3 International Profit Assoc $78,300
4 Corning Inc $63,250
5 Goldman Sachs $57,110
6 Skadden, Arps et al $55,550
7 Cablevision Systems $53,900
8 E*TRADE Financial Group $49,600
9 Joint Action Cmte for Political Affairs $49,318
10 Time Warner $45,900
11 JP Morgan Chase & Co $38,220
12 Monster Worldwide $36,500
13 Cendant Corp $35,450
14 Aetna Inc $35,000
15 Baron & Budd $33,000
16 New York University $30,180
17 Consolidated Edison Inc $29,572
18 Rudin Management $28,570
19 UBS Americas $28,400
20 Omnicom Group $28,150

2004 totals:

1 Citigroup Inc $190,150
2 Goldman Sachs $137,170
3 Kushner Companies $119,000
4 Cablevision Systems $104,450
5 International Profit Assoc $86,000
6 Metropolitan Life Insurance $85,500
7 Walt Disney Co $84,850
8 Corning Inc $83,750
9 Time Warner $80,100
10 Skadden, Arps et al $71,600
11 Intl Brotherhood of Electrical Workers $70,075
12 UBS Americas $62,830
13 Viacom Inc $59,775
14 Emily's List $53,775
15 Credit Suisse First Boston $51,500
16 E*TRADE Financial Group $49,600
17 Bear Stearns $47,650
18 US Government $44,750
19 Columbia University $44,455
20 Patton Boggs LLP $44,250

[TheWraith]

7. So? Show me a politician who doesn't have a reelection fund.

Particularly a politician whose seat is as hotly contested as hers is.

[gulfcoastliberal]

13. Define hotly contested? Bill Nelson of FL, then?

I've checked, but if you insist (please note that no has as much corproate cash as Hillary. Citigroup OWNS her):

Helson (D) Florida:
2006 Totals:

1 Walt Disney Co $42,500
2 DLA Piper Rudnick et al $39,350
3 Kasowitz, Benson et al $37,400
4 Morgan, Colling & Gilbert $36,550
5 St Joe Co $32,550
6 Simmons Cooper LLC $31,600
7 Greenberg, Traurig et al $31,468
8 Pajcic & Pajcic $31,200
9 Holland & Knight $29,311
10 Searcy, Denney et al $28,250
11 Baron & Budd $28,000
12 General Dynamics $27,750
13 Paul Magliocchetti Assoc $27,200
14 Northrop Grumman $23,750
15 Carnival Corp $23,500
15 DRS Technologies $23,500
17 Milberg, Weiss et al $22,880
18 Reaud, Morgan & Quinn $20,000
18 Time Warner $20,000
20 Lieff, Cabraser et al $19,000

2004 totals:

1 Milberg, Weiss et al $66,000
2 Morgan, Colling & Gilbert $49,800
3 Holland & Knight $46,777
4 Walt Disney Co $45,250
5 Pajcic & Pajcic $39,000
6 Greenberg, Traurig et al $34,918
7 Panza, Maurer et al $31,724
8 Searcy, Denney et al $30,750
9 Carnival Corp $30,500
10 James, Hoyer et al $26,750
11 Southern Wine & Spirits $26,000
12 St Joe Co $25,750
13 MWH Global $23,950
14 FPL Group $23,750
15 Northrop Grumman $23,500
15 DRS Technologies $23,500
17 Steel, Hector & Davis $23,000
18 American Fedn of St/Cnty/Munic Employees $22,500
19 DASHPAC $20,250
20 Lockheed Martin $19,750
20 Brown & Brown $19,750

[lcordero2]

4. Because being a Senator in NY and being DLC along with

how close Wall Street is...

[TheWraith]

6. You just named three things which constitute no evidence. NT.

[lcordero2]

11. to you maybe

[TheWraith]

19. To anyone with a brain stem.

You're invoking the DLC boogeyman and claiming it as proof that Hillary seeks world domination. I, for one, am a little bit tired of seeing this eeeevil DLC tossed around like it's the antichrist, ahead of even the Republican party in the destruction of the world. It's a phantom, a figurehead for the ultraleft to curse and hold responsible for anything that they find too moderate about the Democratic party.

Besides which, what does being a senator from NY have to do with it? Name the last senator from NY that won the presidency.

[lcordero2]

22. DLC boogeyman?

Does Will Marshall ring a bell? Does PNAC ring a bell? Hello?

http://www.ppionline.org/ppi_ci.cfm?knlgAreaID=85&subsecID=65&contentID=251557

DLC is one of the main reasons why we are in so much SHIT in Iraq and at home.
And as far as being Senator of NY, with all of the fundraising, Wall Street has nothing but easy access.

Thanks to lack of integrity and lack of leadership, I lost two very good friends in Iraq.

[Douglas Carpenter]

23. who do you define as the "ultra-left" of the Democratic Party??

Could you please, if you have time, name one significant Democrat who you would define as "ultra-left"? And more importantly what positions
do these "ultra-leftist" Democrats hold that are so far out of the mainstream as to be defined as "ultra-left"?

Can you name one?

p.s. I myself doubt that Hillary is actually planning to run. And I certainly intend to support the nominee of the party regardless who it is although I will actively support the most progressive nominee that has a chance to win the nomination.

[RoyGBiv]

8. Good question ...

A pseudo-friend of mine has this habit of sending me political jokes bashing Democrats. A recent one had Hillary as the subject. I don't remember the precise words I used to respond, something along the lines of "What is this Republican obsession with Hillary Clinton?" He replied something like, "All I know is, I know a lot of Republicans who are hoping she runs."

I responded, "Yeah, and I know a lot of Democrats who hope she doesn't. What are we to conclude from this in regard to 'obsession'"?

[rasputin1952]

9. Until she says she's running...I generally avoid these types of threads

and put them up with speculation and conspiracy yahooism.

There is no great reason to think she'll run, much less be nominated at this point. 2006 will set the stage for everything that follows that election...till the mid-terms, (which we should all be working on!!!), everything is just air and cheap rationalizations.

[JanusAscending]

10. I totally agree with you!!!

I have nothing but the deepest respect for this woman, but I really don't think she will run either. I adored Bill Clinton, and although he made some critical human errors, I just can't visualize him as "first husband"!!! If you've seen the new TV series about this very thing, you'll get my drift!:hi: I think Hillary makes a GREAT SENATOR !!! I think this all stems from the right wing media wanting another Clinton in office to attack ! My very best friend is praying that Hillary will run, and she just won't hear of any other option. I really don't think she could win it! Maybe she'd do better opting to be a "running mate"? edited for spelling!

[MasonJar]

12. She seems to have done a superior job for New York. If I were

she I'd be keeping that job.

[WinkyDink]

14. She's nuts if she thinks she can win.

What country are we talking about here?
The one that impeached her husband?
The one that stole the election from her husband's VP?
The one that has never yet elected a woman president?

Give it up, Hillary and/or Hillary-lovers. I really DO NOT want a re-hash of Whitewater (who here thinks the MSM will make clear the wastefulness and partisanship of this inquisition?), Monica, the failed health-care plan under HRC's aegis, and/or any other criticism of the Clinton Administration.
Or maybe I should say, jokes. Prurient ones.

[jwirr]

15. I love the Clintons but I do not think she will run because she

is smart enough to know that it will just be a rerun of the hell they went through because of the gossip mongering christians in Bill's terms. It will hinder progress on anything that is important - such as the a national medical health bill. I suggest that we look for the least controversial nominee while still looking for someone with a brain - like Gore, Edwards or Obama. We will need all the cooperation we can get to turn this mess around and take back our country.

[DemDogs]

16. She is running.

She can't win in Arkansas, so that was never an option. The political operatives are already being courted for '08, and she is out there courting them. So is Clark, who also didn't try to go through Arkansas.

[creeksneakers2]

17. The media gave Hillary an image without any foundation

If Hillary does something centrist, they say she's reaching out to moderates. If Hillary does something liberal, she's shoring up her base. The media is convinced that Hillary couldn't possibly do something because she thought it was the right thing.

They say Hillary is consumed with lust for power. I've never seen any evidence of it. When RWs give me this characterization of Hillary, I point out that Ronald Reagan ran four president four times, once against an incumbent of his own party. Hillary has never run. Which one was consumed with a lust to be president?

[win_in_06]

18. If she isn't she could have avoided a lot of headaches by

letting us all know

[madville]

21. The MSM loves talking about it

It will get played out to no end over the next three years. I really believe this country wants some kind of new blood in the oval office. If Jeb ran we would win no problem with anybody besides Hillary. If Hillary runs the Repugs will win with anybody not associated with the current debacle.

[saltpoint]

20. She has so much presidential ambition it gives off an electric charge.

She wants the job badly.

[leesa]

24. Because the media is selling us their choice for candidate.

Either she loses due to RW psychosis about her and the Repubs win, or, she wins but is sufficiently corporate-dependent enough to suit them. Win/win for them.

[Pepperbelly]

25. because they read and believe the right wing talking points.

Period.

She has never indicted any interest whatsoever.