ABOUT TIME – AT 9:38 A.M. ET: I was wondering when Hillary Clinton would wake up and act like a presidential nominee, and stop kowtowing to the Sanderistas in her party, who will never be satisfied, no matter what she does. Apparently, the awakening has begun. From the Washington Times:
Progressive leaders are still hoping to force likely Democratic presidential nominee Hillary Clinton to the left, but a party insider said Thursday she’s rapidly losing interest in accommodating any more demands from Sen. Bernard Sanders and his followers.
The insider, who requested anonymity, said the struggles of presumptive GOP nominee Donald Trump give Mrs. Clinton far more room to maneuver, leaving her less beholden to the liberal voters who backed Mr. Sanders.
That could leave her on a collision course with progressives, who are still pressing for Mrs. Clinton to drift further toward Mr. Sanders‘ positions on everything from a national $15 minimum wage to stiffer action on climate change.
And...
“I think she will need to find ways to find common cause on policy with Sen. Sanders and his supporters. She is going to need them in November. But she can’t allow them to push her so far to the left that it becomes a liability in November,” said Clinton backer Jim Manley, director of the communications practice at QGA Public Affairs and former spokesman for Senate Minority Leader Harry Reid.
Indeed, the Democratic Party insider told the Washington Times Mrs. Clinton now is “going home” to her “neoconservative ways” and no longer is interested in chasing the affection of Sanders-supporting liberals.
COMMENT: I hope that's true. Clinton has a reputation for being much tougher on national defense than Obama ever was, and national defense is always my first issue.
I suspect Bill Clinton will play a major political role, and his political advice is worth hearing. He was elected president in large measure because he moved the Democrats back toward the center from the island of McGovern where they'd gone to live. It worked.
June 20, 2016 |