Emil Amok » Hillary–Asian America’s candidate

Hillary–Asian America’s candidate–scores on electability

If you missed the debate last night you can read it here.

After all the debates this campaign, this one really did feel like the 15th round of a championship fight.

With Obama in the delegate lead, he was in major avoidance mode, being more defensive than not, trying to hang on and not slip up. Clinton, knowing she must win, was on the attack. But her best punches were the ones directed at both Obama– and John McCain.

Clinton won this debate, by going aggressively after Obama at first, which seemed to frustrate him and throw him off balance. But then Clinton opened up her stance slightly, looking ahead to a McCain confrontation. She assumed victory, split the focus and helped make this a fresher debate. You could look at Hillary with new eyes again and see her in a side to side comparison next to Obama and the imagined foe, McCain. And then you could see where she would be the better candidate in a head to head with the GOP. It was a risky ploy, but Obama couldn’t counter.

Clinton’s line about having baggage that has been “rummaged through” before, is actually a strong admission. She can stand up to whatever the GOP throws at her.

Long-time Hillary supporters should get a second wind from this debate. Many who were on the fence have gone with Obama. Others were wondering when Clinton would turn it on. By using the electability issue in what could be the final debate, she put together her strongest winning performance. She’s established herself in the victorious middle and exposed the vulnerability of Obama to the GOP’s mainstream concerns.

Obama supporters should worry. His discomfort showed.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/16/us/politics/16text-debate.html?_r=1&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print

CLARIFICATION

A previous comment posted on this blog about John McCain was sent to me by a reader as a current story. It was, however, based on a 2000 incident regarding McCain.

Comments

I wonder how many people actually saw the debate last night? I mean if they aren’t in Pennsylvania, would you get a sense of “been there, done that?” It’s the problem of the long campaign.
Debate fatigue sets in.
So if you were convince to switch once over the course of the campaign, are you switching back? Are you more sure about your candidate? Or has Hillary raised enough doubts to solidify your advocacy—for her? Or him?

At this point, however, would anyone dispute that with the most Asian American states already spoken for, Hillary is the candidate for Asian Americans?

–Emil on Apr 17, 2008
Is it possible that all the race talk bouyed Obama in the last few weeks, but now the nuts and bolts of “electability” have brought him down?
He might still be able to beat McCain as well. But the right has a lot more mud to throw at him than they would at Hillary. Battle-tested Hillary would be an “iron maiden” against the GOP after this tough battle with Obama.

–Emil on Apr 17, 2008
I missed the debate - symphony rehearsal, but I heard from the conservatives that even the mainstream press gave Obama failing grades. I disagree that Asians, who have evolved from one notch more conservative to one notch more liberal than whites are natural Hillary voters, especially when McCain currently appears to be better at drawing people from the clueless middle than either Hillary or Obama, and there are too few McCain hating “real” conservatives to matter. Hillary annoys me because I think she should know better, but nothing she’s got scares me as much as the “finally proud”, “god dang America but I disagree with my pastor”, and “gun loving jesus freaks” business. I really don’t care about the whole Bosnia thing, it’s silly but it’s not a sign of somebody who is a walking “I am not a liberal” “I am not a Black Liberation Theory person” “I am not an elitist” lie. I dislike Hillary because she’s a liberal, (more liberal than her hubbie) not because of any fundamental character or integrity problems. I actually think given the political engagement level of most Asians who tend to be either liberal as hell (minority) or comatose (vast majority) will go for somebody generic like McCain rather than a firebrand like Obama, or a slightly less shrill Hillary.

–awarthurhu on Apr 17, 2008

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