Wednesday, May 14, 2008

Thoughts on the Edwards Endorsement and the Need for Clinton Love:

What if this cursed hand Were thicker than itself with brother's blood, Is there not rain enough in the sweet heavens To wash it white as snow? - William Shakespeare

First off, Edwards gave a hell of a speech that highlighted his strengths: intelligence, integrity, compassion (for both Sen. Clinton and the poor) and clarity of message. He is good people, straight up. I think Edwards was smart to stay out of this until now. To me, this endorsement is not about who he likes better as either a person or a candidate. This has to do with a spirited citizen and his noble desire to unite the Democratic party and defeat that crusty goblin McCain.

Edwards did not really make an endorsement today, he called a fight, and the fight needed to be called. He did not play the role king maker, he played the role of referee. So I am, in a way, glad that this came today, after the people that think Obama is a Muslim gave Clinton a decisive victory in West Virginia. Edwards can speak to these folk, and they need to be spoken to, for if we have learned anything from Rev. Wright, its that Obama is not a Muslim. And if we have learned anything from the last few presidental elections, we know that Democrats need to win over at least some poor white men.

But I digress....I love John Edwards. I love him like a brother, a father, and a friend. He is my Tom Brady. As a matter of fact, he was my first choice in all of this. I also think it is important to note that Obama could not have made it this far had Edwards stayed in the race any longer than he did. They were splitting far too many voters that eventually went to the 2008 Democratic nominee.

One thing that did disturb me tonight is the amount of people in that room that booed the mere mention of Hillary Clinton. Granted, for the last 4 months she has behaved like someone that deserves to be booed. As a matter of fact, I have said negative things about her in many ways and for many reasons, all of which were valid, tempered and completely justified. She has been behaving like a Machiavellian wench, and in many ways I hate her for it. But I think we need to stop all of that and embrace her and her supporters, for we will need them in the summer and fall. When people that feel passionately about Clinton hear their hero being disrespected, it disrespects them too, and in the end, it makes them want to disrespect us and Obama. It is a vicious and unproductive cycle that paves the way for a McCain presidency, and possibly the end of all cellular and molecular life on the planet Earth. The bastard isn't going to be on this planet for long either way, so what does he care if he destroys it? But again, I digress...

Be advised, American politics is eerily similar to the world of sports, which is probably why K.O. does such a good job at covering both. But we must be reminded that the loyalty and passion we feel for our candidates (like our favorite teams) often borders on the irrational, even if the reasons that created our passions were indeed rational and sound (like the New York Jets being a bunch of fiendish turds). We need to respect that about the Hillary Clinton supporter, because in the end, we all need to be focused on the same result.

Clinton is having a hard time with losing, which is understandable, because she has probably not lost at much in this life. So we need to be there for her and her supporters...unless they try to take this to Denver, and then its Abbie Hoffman time!!!
Ariba!

1 comment:

Bradda said...

Well said, although I kind of enjoyed hearing her get booed. She's been acting the fool and deserved every bit of it. The Clintonites will come around in the fall after they cry themselves to sleep.