January 8, 2008
And Now, the Dust Bowl (A.B. Stoddard)
Will four weeks provide enough time for Hillary Clinton to "retool" after losses in Iowa and New Hampshire? Will Clinton alumni like James Carville and Paul Begala save her campaign? Will she be strapped for cash, as is rumored? Will Obama soon poll as well as her in her now-adopted home state of New York? In New Jersey? In California?
Will a McCain victory in New Hampshire focus the country's attention on the strength and importance of independent and swing voters, about how they move the margins for candidates who attract them with their bipartisan, inclusive messages? Will this further hinder Clinton?
What exactly does "I'm in it to win it" mean? What did it mean last January and what does it mean now? Will Hillary preserve her perch in American politics by leaving the race shortly? Will she redeem herself with a comeback? Will she reverse all she gained by losing — the years of quiet hard work in the Senate, working with Republicans and separating from the scandal-plagued years of her husband's administration?
No matter what the results in New Hampshire, Iowa kicked up more dust than we knew last week, and it won't settle for a while.
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What should Hillary do now? What brought her here? I want your thoughts and your questions for ASK A.B. Send them to askab@thehill.com.
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Clinton up 40-34 in NH with 24% reporting.
This post has not aged well!
Comment by lowellfield — January 8, 2008 @ 8:56 pm
I should say that my comment might not age well either. I just read someone finally give a reason why the early returns are favorable to Hillary (that Manchester is Clinton country and is counted early).
Also the Union Leader just accidentally called the primary for Obama, before correcting itself and saying McCain. They may know something.
Comment by lowellfield — January 8, 2008 @ 9:00 pm
McCain's victory in NH is not translatable to other states. McCain, who has co-sponsored Global Warming and Amnesty bills with Obama isn't going to be the consensus candidate. Think brokered convention.
Tim Russert had killed Hillary's chances with that one driver's license for illegals question. Who would've thunk it? Had he not asked it, she'd be all smiles today.
Comment by Igor R. — January 8, 2008 @ 9:17 pm