Friends and foes -- I have begun a new chapter in my failed attempts at 'blogging on the night of the New Hampshire Primaries because, frankly, I cannot withhold my gleeful thoughts from paper (or a computer-screen, if you realistically prefer a less-Colonial medium). With a thoroughly depressing, utterly insignificant start in Iowa under its belt--nice as it was to see a truly exciting candidate like Mike Huckabee prevail--the 2008 Presidential Race has just found redemption.
No, I'm not speaking of Sen. John McCain's victory in the Republican Primaries. While somewhat gratifying that McCain, who was just months ago ousted from the Spotlight due to poor fund-raising returns, could come from behind over Mitt Romney, the feat was not unexpected in context. Instead, I’m talking about the triumphant victory of Sen. Hillary Clinton in the Democrat Primary.
Triumphant? -- you ask. My regular readers know that I have not exactly been kind to Sen. Clinton in the past, finding most of her flagrant propositions ridiculous, guilt-ridden, and naive. Additionally, it may not exactly seem like a small wonder that Clinton, who in several November polls was charted to win the Granite State by 30 percentage-points, was able to pull out a victory.
But I think that the Clinton Win represents one for the American People, particularly those with conservative ideologies. Not only do most polls show (Rasmussen to the strongest extent) that Clinton can be beaten by the Republican front-runners, they also show that staunch-competitor Barack Obama would be able to rip most of the aforementioned Republicans to shreds.
With this, we conservatives, the people who generally know what's Best for the United States, can be thankful for the Clinton Political Machine. Killed in Iowa--Hillary should have followed her Campaign's best advice to
not even attempt to seek victory there in the first place—it has truly rebounded. Sure, New Hampshire voters showed vast signs in Clinton’s favor early on, but to compete against Obama's recent raging, roaring, change-promising (...but never delivering) message was no small feat!
We're starting to see the Clintons of the 1990s come back, terrific campaign-tactics in-hand... only this time, they won't win the Presidency. For this, we can all be grateful. Unless something truly unsightly happens, however, Hillary will ride a wave of success on Super Tuesday, and take the Democratic Nomination by storm. With this nomination in tow, she will only collapse against her sure-to-be more-foundation-based Republican-competitor. After all, a stunning majority of Americans state that they would
never elect Hillary into Office. I would like to think we've all learned a lesson since we allowed Bill to take over the White House.
Hillary's brilliantly-written, dignified victory-speech tonight merely signaled the start of her success at the Primary-level. Instead of merely sitting back and expecting victory, as she unfortunately did in Iowa, she is making sure to stay smart now on all counts. With eloquent, never-too-polarizing messages, Hillary finally delivered an address that made her look more Presidential than tonight's deer-in-the-headlights-looking unexpected-loser Obama. She was firm, assertive, powerful, slick, and unflinching. These qualities, primarily, ensured that she never seemed too womanlike, establishing a campaign where her sex could finally not be considered an issue by the yellow-journalist American Media. (Unless, of course, having a vagina was to work in her favor with female voters -- a pitch no smart-minded Clinton could ever turn down.)
Tonight, I think we've seen the real Hillary unleashed, a Clinton and a Rodham who is as feisty as Godzilla and as falsely-compassionate as Debra Messing on “Will and Grace”. This is precisely why her political-machine-like tactics will win her a nomination. The thought that Obama will be able to rebound in the South, for one, is entirely naive. With Arkansas-homebody Bill and an improvised Southern-accent at her side, Mrs. Clinton will be able to take her own stab at the states that many believe are slam-dunks for Obama or third-wheel John Edwards: South Carolina, Tennessee, Louisiana, Mississippi. After all, the first instances of polls in which African-American voters (a strong group in the deep-South) showed strong support for Obama occurred only very recently, when he became a truly viable candidate.
But Obama won't be considered so viable as soon as he begins to lose frequently and often (coming in the near future). People will realize that he has no substance to his "Change"-campaign and turn back to the seasoned Clinton for promised Progress. (This postulation, of course, presumes that John Edwards does not drop out of the race, which would provide the incorrectly-assumed-to-be-Hard-Left Obama a huge block of Southern voters.) When this happens, it will be all Clinton, all the time. You know Rudy Giuliani’s campaign-effort to take as many “late”-States as possible? Well, that’s Hillary’s strategy too, whether she knows it or not.
Sure, Obama will still carry some support. He has beer-binging college-aged voters behind him, as well as more than a few pompous celebrities (Oprah, Halle Berry, Matt Damon, George Clooney, and others all drank the Kool-Aid). But so what? As seen in New Hampshire, which is home to both Saint Anselm University and Dartmouth College, these blocks didn’t pull through for him as much as he had hoped. Obama’s reliance on young Independents is proving especially tough given the group is rapidly--and in large quantities--hopping on the John McCain Train. Let’s be real: Hillary was the favorite going into this race and her ardent, persistent staffers are going to ensure that she comes out of the winner. (NH is just confirmation of this.) They’re now in full attack-mode, and many are joining their ranks out of patronage to the Clinton Brand.
The result of a Clinton Victory is, as I said, a Republican Victory. Various Rasmussen polls show Rudy Giuliani, John McCain, and Mike Huckabee--the three frontrunners now that Mitt Romney is pretty much a non-story---all beating her. And what a terrific group of candidates these three make for! Giuliani has strong principles when it comes to National Security, John McCain understands the realities of bi-partisan policymaking, and Huckabee would do a great job of bringing the Family back into American life. I would be happy to see any of them as President, and I think all true, realistic conservatives also view them all as viable (if imperfect) candidates.
Heck, even if Hillary were to win the Presidential race, it would be nowhere near as much as a disaster as an Obama-victory. Whereas Obama’s liberal-propositions are actually moderate enough to pass in a left-leaning Congress, Clinton’s are so out-there that they wouldn’t even come close to cutting the mustard. Sure, she’d probably try to create a more-neutral Universal Healthcare Bill than the one that she has already proposed in order to see it through, but I doubt that it would actually make it into legislation. Sure, she might appoint another Ginsberg-esque judge to the Supreme Court, but that wouldn’t do enough to overthrow the strict-constructionist foundation set forth by George W. Bush in John Roberts and Samuel Alito. And, sure, she might withdraw some troops from Iraq, but she would certainly listen to Military Leadership more than the senseless Obama or the clinically-insane Edwards. Hillary might be a terrible choice for President, but she would be nowhere near as awful at the job as her cohorts in the Democrat Party.
On this crisp January evening, we can all be glad that the 2008 Presidential Race is finally coming into its own. We can be also hopeful that we will not be voting out of “convenience” as we did in 2000 or 2004, but because we truly admire a candidate. (It will mark the first instance of this in my lifetime, as I was not around to see the full-glory of the Reagan Administration.) Whether this candidate comes in the form of Rudy, Mike, John, or even dark-horse Fred, the Republican nominee will no doubt reign victorious so long as they are competing against Everyone’s favorite political-genius of an ultimately-unwanted candidate, Sen. Hillary Clinton.
Before the Devil Knows You're Dead (available now on DVD!) - Number 10 on my Top 10 of 2007 is now available for the mass market. It was criminally underseen last winter, and now deserves as wide an audience as it can get. In a grave tale of morality, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Ethan Hawke, Marissa Tomei, and Albert Finney all deliver some of the best performances of their careers. The film, directed by seasoned veteran Sidney Lumet, represents that rare find that will both leave you on the edge of your seat and thinking at the same time.
Nancy Drew (available 3/11 on DVD) - What many critics dismissed as a standard confection for twelve-year-old girls was actually one of the most fun movies of the year. In the lead role of the famed title child-detective, Emma Roberts sparkles and charms in a performance that proves that she may just be the next big star in Hollywood. This is pop-entertainment at its best, enjoyable for kids and adults alike. On this instance, I'm prepared to say what I always scrutinize others for saying: screw critics.
August Rush (available 3/11 on DVD and BluRay) - Another picture that was unfairly scrutinized by critical elites, August Rush is a good, old-fashioned weepy that is nearly impossible not to like. Sure, there's some clear manipulation committed on behalf of director Kirsten Sheridan (Jim's daughter), but that's to be expected. Communicating the true power of music through a conventional but well-done lens, the movie works despite its formula. In the lead role, Freddy Highmore is a near-revelation and supporters Jonathan Rhys-Meyers, Kerri Russell, and Robin Williams are darn good, too.
Wristcutters: A Love Story (available 3/25 on DVD) - In art-houses across the country, this little gem discovered at Sundance gained something of a cult-audience. In other circles, nobody saw it. Now that it's on DVD, they'll have their chance. Despite an awkward-feeling tone in its second and third acts, the movie comes together with an unpredictable, killer ending that perfectly justifies its surreality. On the acting front, lead Patrick Fugit does a solid job, but the real miracle is Shannyn Sossamon, who does turns in some absolutely wonderful work.
