Redstate

Posted at 11:58am on Jun. 10, 2008 Obama's costly primary

By Kevin Holtsberry

This New York Daily News column on the high price of Hillary's losing run for the Democratic nomination received a lot of linkage and commentary yesterday. And understandably so. Many folks, myself included, are enjoying the end of the Clinton era.

Celeste Katz points out that all that Clinton money and name recognition went for naught:

Posted in 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Archived | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 9:32am on Jun. 6, 2008 Obama, Bill Clinton, and the Race Card

Was Bill Clinton right?

By Kevin Holtsberry

Now that the Democratic Primary is finally over and Hillary has admitted defeat - or at least agreed to a phased withdrawal or whatever - allow me to throw something out there that I have been thinking about lately.

Was Bill Clinton right when he claimed that the Obama campaign played the race card on him? The conventional wisdom has always been that the former president used race to try and diminish Obama in South Carolina and it backfired. Then when asked about it he ridiculously claimed that the infamous race card had been played against him. But I am coming around to Bill's side of things.

This new perspective comes from having read A Bound Man: Why We Are Excited About Obama and Why He Can't Win by Shelby Steele. Steele's book is well worth your time for its insights into the issue of race in America and into the unique position of Barack Obama as a presidential candidate.

For an explanation of why Obama had to play the race card, read on.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | Barack Obama | Bill Clinton | Race In America — Comments (2)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 3:33pm on Jun. 4, 2008 The Road to Hell is Paved With Democrats

By Richard H Collins

So the general election has begun. Oh sure, Hillary hasn’t formally dropped out yet and neither party has had their convention yet. But last night John McCain and Barack Obama made it clear that they have switched their attention towards each other.

Obama claimed the mantle of the Democratic nomination, which he had secured not by primary votes alone but by the special party elders, known as superdelegates, and took time to accuse McCain of running for the third term of President Bush. McCain, speaking before Obama, pointed out that despite Obama’s constant mantra of change, and obvious rhetorical skills, he mostly offers standard liberal big government solutions not real change.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton | John McCain — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 9:58pm on Jun. 3, 2008 The Obama Juggernaut Illusion

By Kevin Holtsberry

As the media worships Obama tonight - on his way to clinching the Democratic nomination - it is worth keeping in mind that if it were not for the bizarre rules of the Democratic Primary process Obama would never have had a chance to win this thing. You don't have to be a Hillary shill - and I don't think anyone can accuse me of that - to recognize the simple fact that had the primary process been anywhere near winner take all Hillary wins.

Yes, Obama built a strong campaign organization. He raised a lot of money. And he did a better job of understanding the rules and organizing to win under those rules. But so much of his momentum was a result of the rules which prevented anyone from really winning. Hillary could beat him by hundreds of thousands of votes in critical state after critical state and gain little advantage. He was the underdog who just kept hanging around and eventually Hillary's own stupid mistakes proved fatal. That and his overwhelming support from African Americans was enough to push him over the top.

What the media seems unable to recognize is that Obama didn't decisively beat Hillary but rather eked out a slim lead and then convinced Democratic superdelegates to give him the nomination. But primaries are always about perception and Obama is the master of winning perception. His cool calm demeanor and his rhetorical skills have clearly won over the media. I think this and anti-Clinton sentiment made a huge difference. Democrats feel this is their year and they were willing to risk an inexperienced candidate because they wanted to put both the Clinton and the Bush years behind them. And they wanted a full-throated liberal even if he was untested.

The question is whether this makes Obama seem like a much stronger candidate than he really is at this point. If Hillary can beat him to the degree that she has what does that mean for the general election? If I was an Obama fan, I would be worried.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton — Comments (7) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 11:12am on Jun. 1, 2008 Stephanopolous says Clinton is waiting for more to break on Obama

By Soren Dayton

Former Clinton operative and ABC pseudo-journalist says that Hillary Clinton's campaign is waiting on more to break on Obama and his church, and that that's why Obama left his church yesterday.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton — Comments (11) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 5:33pm on May 6, 2008 Indiana Primary Results Semi-Open Thread.

McCain should win the GOP nomination, by the way.

By Moe Lane

[UPDATE: At 78% it's Clinton/Obama 52/48; clearly CNN is waiting for a couple counties before risking calling the race (CBS already has, for Clinton). There's going to be a lot of excited Obama supporters about this, the poor fellows.]

[UPDATE: With 20% of the vote in, it's 57/43 Clinton. This number will go down, too: urban votes will almost certainly eat into that. Given the exit polls, I'm thinking a high single, possibly double digit victory for Clinton.]

[UPDATE: The first results are in, and with a whopping 3,700 votes counted Clinton is meaninglessly ahead 66% - 34%. That will undoubtedly shrink. - Moe]

As always, results here. Polls close at 6:00, but it's going to apparently be a while before we get actual results - so here's a bit for your amusement until then:

Clinton needs to win, but any win will suit her needs.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | Indiana — Comments (21)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 10:41am on May 6, 2008 Change we can believe in

By Kevin Holtsberry

Obama is wrong about so many things I don't have the time to begin to list them. But I will say this, he does seem to know James Carville:

"Well, you know, James Carville is well-known for spouting off his mouth without always knowing what he's talking about," Obama told "Nightline." "And I intend to stay focused on fighting for the American people because what they don't need is 20 more years of performance art on television. And that's what James Carville and a lot of those folks are expert at ... a lot of talk and not getting things done for the American people."

Can we all agree that less James Carville on TV would be a good thing for America?

Posted at 11:30am on Apr. 30, 2008 A conversation with Jim Geraghty

By Kevin Holtsberry

I spoke with blogger extraordinaire and author Jim Geraghty today about the 2008 election - how we got to this point and where we are headed - over at the Stop Her Now Blog.

If you are enjoying the Best. Primary. Ever. and want Jim's take on it click on over and listen.

Posted at 3:01pm on Apr. 28, 2008 Hillary: outsourcing like the Holocaust

By Kevin Holtsberry

Posted first at the Stop Her Now blog.

Did she really say that? Well, not exactly. But her choice of imagery showed a remarkable tin ear given the historical connections:

At the union hall in Gary, she grew so animated in describing the plight of old-line industrial workers that she described them in language from the oft-repeated poem, attributed to the German pastor Martin Niemöller, about the victims of Nazism. “First they came for the Socialists, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Socialist,” goes the version inscribed on a wall at the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington. After coming for the trade unionists, it continues, “they came for the Jews, and I did not speak out, because I was not a Jew.”

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | Hillary Clinton — Comments (0) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 1:31pm on Apr. 21, 2008 God and Hillary Clinton

By Kevin Holtsberry

Faith and religion has become a hot topic in the Democratic primary of late, but the focus has been on Obama's controversial pastor and his comments about bitter voters. Today I spoke with Paul Kengor, author of God and Hillary Clinton, about Hillary's faith and its impact on her politics.

We spoke about Hillary's lifelong Methodism, her abortion extremism, the way the media ignores how Democrats politicize religion, and more. So click over and listen if that interests you.

Posted at 10:44am on Apr. 18, 2008 The Hillary Lie the Media Missed

By Richard H Collins

Wednesday’s Democratic debate forced Hillary Clinton into yet another lie. No, this wasn’t one of her serial exaggerations about her time in the White House. Nor was it a deceptive answer about the scandals that seemed to occupy so much of her time there. In fact, I doubt anyone in the media will challenge the veracity of this particular statement.

When George Stephanopoulos pressed Hillary on whether she thought Barack Obama could win in November she responded “Yes. Yes. Yes.” Now it may be that Hillary felt she had to give that answer or face even more backlash from Democrats who feel her continued attacks on Obama are a huge gift to the presumptive GOP nominee John McCain. It may be that she is being a good partisan by refusing to say that Obama can’t win out loud in such a prominent forum.

But does anyone really think Hillary believes this? Her answer undercut her arguments that night and, in fact, the very rationale for her continuing campaign.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton — Comments (1) / Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 10:54pm on Apr. 16, 2008 Democratic Debate: Who won?

Was John McCain the biggest winner tonight?

By Kevin Holtsberry

I had to watch the Democratic debate in Philly tonight for work. Did you watch or did you find something better to occupy your time?

For those who watched, who do you think won? Did Hillary actually help her campaign? Will all these gaffes and scandals start to hurt Obama? Was John McCain the winner as the Ds went after each other?

I guess this is a modified open thread.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Presidential Debate — Comments (39)/ Email this page » / Read More »

Posted at 6:06pm on Apr. 16, 2008 Live blogging the Democratic debate in Philly

By Kevin Holtsberry

It has been a while since we had one of these, but I will once again be live blogging the Democratic Debate tonight in Philadelphia.

I can see how these things would drive one to drink, but unlike Stephen Green I won't be drunk blogging . . .

This one might be interesting: How will Obama respond to Rezko, Rev. Wright, Bitter-gate, etc.? Can Hillary take advantage of these miscues/scandals without coming off as nasty or desperate? How will the moderators frame the state of the race? Stop by tonight starting at 8 PM.

Posted at 11:17am on Apr. 11, 2008 Super Rich Clintons continue to bleed taxpayers

It's not about giving so much as taking.

By Kevin Holtsberry

Not content to have parlayed their public service into great wealth, the Clintons continue to cost the taxpayers money. It seems that, despite having written a book on it, former President Clinton feels more comfortable getting paid for charity than giving it:

The Clintons have made a $100-million fortune since leaving the White House, but a Politico analysis found that hasn’t kept Bill Clinton from taking full advantage of the publicly funded perks offered to ex-presidents.

In fact, his presidential retirement benefits cost taxpayers almost as much as those of the other two living ex-presidents combined.

The price tag for Clinton’s federal retirement allowance from 2001 through the end of this year will run $8 million, compared to $5.5 million for George H. W. Bush’s and $4 million for Jimmy Carter’s during the same period.

Since 2001, Clinton has received more of almost every benefit available to former presidents — from his pension to his staff’s salaries and benefits to supplies. His $420,000 phone bill and $3.2 million office rent tab both nearly surpassed the totals rung up for those purposes by Bush, Carter and the late former presidents Gerald Ford and Ronald Reagan combined. As a group, they spent $484,000 on telephone service and $3.8 million on rent in the same span.

For why this is emblematic of the Clintons see below.

Posted in 2008 | 2008 Democratic Primary | 2008 Presidential Campaign | Bill Clinton | Hillary Clinton — Comments (17)/ Email this page » / Read More »