Oh-eight (D): The Hillary filibuster
Posted: Monday, September 24, 2007 9:07 AM by Domenico Montanaro
Filed Under:
Democrats
CLINTON: The New York senator hit all the Sunday morning shows yesterday, including NBC’s Meet the Press. The Washington Post says that she “demonstrated a particularly senatorial skill: the art of the filibuster… Above all, though, in a morning of appearances that yielded virtually no news, Clinton illustrated her ability to talk. And talk. And talk.”
The New York Daily News called it “TV’s Tour de Hillary.” On Meet the Press, Clinton touted her ability to withstand Republicans’ “withering attacks.” “I think I've proven that I not only can survive them but surpass them," she said.
The
Sunday New York Times had a CW-setting piece about Clinton's place in the campaign. "She has been challenged for fund-raising supremacy and news media attention by Senator Barack Obama of Illinois. Former Senator John Edwards of North Carolina beat her to the punch in introducing big policy proposals. But nothing that her main rivals have done has so far has derailed Mrs. Clinton, leading them to begin rolling out aggressive new strategies aimed primarily at her, including courting black voters in South Carolina and stepping up attacks."
In particular, here are two key quotes from Clinton foes… David Axelrod with Obama: “The question is ultimately, Is she credible -- whether people buy her as an agent of change in Washington. If they do, she’ll do well.” Joe Trippi with Edwards: “You used to be able to say the front-runners -- her and Obama -- but I don’t think that’s the case anymore. It’s pretty clear that she has sort of pulled away.”
Also: "The three leading contenders have also adopted decidedly different views of how the race will play out. Mrs. Clinton’s advisers argued that it would probably end on Feb. 5 when about 20 states vote. Though only 50 percent of the delegates will be selected by that day, the Clinton advisers suggested that one candidate would be so far ahead that there would be huge pressure on the other Democrats to rally around the leader.
Mr. Obama has begun preparing for a much more protracted campaign, arguing that it will be in effect a hunt for delegates that could last well into the spring. To that end, he is competing in some unlikely places — New York, for example, where he is holding a rally in Washington Square Park on Thursday — because under Democratic rules, delegates are allocated to candidates based on the percentage of votes they win."
How confident is Clinton? She's missing far fewer Senate votes than Obama.
Speaking of being the front-runner, Clinton can now dangle the VP slot as a way to win more endorsements. Add Evan Bayh -- who is endorsing Clinton today -- to the short list.
The Sunday Washington Post looked at the influence of Clinton's mother on the candidate. "14 years after Hillary Clinton entered the White House with her husband and became known worldwide, the woman she identified as her most enduring influence remains a mystery. Clinton, who famously kept her own daughter, Chelsea, out of the public eye, is even more protective of her mother. No interviews with her or photographs -- and no interviews with Clinton on the subject."
John Grisham headlined a fundraiser with Clinton in Charlottesville, VA on Sunday. The Charlottesville Daily Progress reports the event drew 1,000 people and raised $200,000.
DODD: The Connecticut senator gets the front-page treatment in the New York Times, which notes that his presidential bid is “is the most public chapter in his career-long quest for his father’s redemption.” Dodd’s father was censured by the Senate in 1967 for diverting campaign funds for his personal use.
EDWARDS: Today, at Kaiser Family Foundation's Health Care Forum, Edwards will unveil a new strategy to combat AIDS/HIV. As his campaign likes to point out, Edwards was the first presidential candidate to roll out a health-care plan. Today, his campaign notes, he builds on that plan with specific proposals to combat HIV/AIDS at home and around the world. "The loss from HIV/AIDS is almost beyond understanding,” Edwards is expected to say today. “This is a fight for people's lives. We have a moral imperative to do much more, and do it much better.”
OBAMA: The campaign holds a conference call with reporters at 10:00 am ET to make an Iowa-related announcement.
Doesn't Obama ask for coverage like this when he rails against Clinton's ties to lobbyists? The Boston Globe takes a look at Obama's ties to Illinois lobbyists.
The campaign plans to hold a major campaign event on Thursday in New York City, flexing its muscle a bit on Clinton’s turf. Also of note: There's a "Barack on Broadway" fundraiser set for tonight in New York.
The
Columbia State’s Lee Bandy on Obama’s chances in South Carolina: “In South Carolina, Obama has put together a high-tech and grass-roots get-out-the-vote campaign unmatched by anything seen in the state before. Obama is organized in all 46 counties. Much goes on outside of the public eye or, as campaign organizers are fond of saying, below the radar.”
In addition, Sunday’s Columbia State says it “stands by its reporting as accurate” that Jesse Jackson said Obama was “acting like he’s white” because of a tepid response to the “Jena Six” case. The paper wraps what its coverage with what it calls “The Jesse Jackson fallout.”
Chicago Sun-Times' Sweet examines the most recent memo from manager David Plouffe, and notes how he attempts to raise the expectations bar in Iowa for Clinton. Also, don't miss Sweet's reporting on the SEIU endorsement. Apparently, Edwards won a plurality in the straw poll.
Meanwhile, NBC/National Journal’s Carrie Dann tells us to mark our calendars on Oct. 2 for Obama to commemorate his own five-year anniversary of his giving his first anti-Iraq war speech.
Dann also watches local Iowa TV so you don't have to. On Friday's edition of Iowa Press (Midwestern cousin of MTP -- a TV bible for newbie Iowa politicos and reporters), it was clear that the CW among the long-time gurus is that Hillary Clinton is in a solid place here in the state. The Register's Yepsen said that Edwards is "kind of flat," and we already know how he feels about Barack Obama from his "big loser" column last week. The AP's Mike Glover also made the somewhat brutal assessment that "there is a tradition among Democrats that they shoot their wounded," meaning that Edwards might suffer from a damaged-goods syndrome left over from 2004. Yepsen sees a lean towards Clinton now, but he acknowledged on the show that it looks like the race "could break late."
