My Hillary Problem

I would prefer to keep my ultimate political leanings up to the guesswork of my readers, but I find I must come clean about certain of my feelings for Hillary Clinton, Presidential Candidate. I have been very impressed with Senator Clinton of New York. She has done great things for her constituents and by and large made the right calls on her votes, including the tough call on the Iraq authorization for which she is unfairly taking a lot of heat (it was the right vote at the time and one must go back to a 2002 mindframe to see that -- but that is a can of worms for another post). And Bill was nowhere in sight in the Senate -- this really was her own "thing" and she did it quite well. Her Senate career has been admirable up to her "suspension of belief" grilling of General Petreaus, which was, after all, really part of her Presidential campaign.

The Hillary running for President is a throwback to the first Clinton administration with the hostility to the press, paranoia and efforts to dominate the national dialogue with talking points (e.g., speeches vs. solutions). My problem is that when we are dealing with the Clintons as a package deal, I find I cannot take anything they say or do at face value and I am often surprised at how often even critical members of the media swallow hook, line and sinker, things that I think are calculated to create a particular message or buzz. Some did catch on to the purpose of the periodic crying. A better example is how Hillary and her campaign are allegedly upset with Bill for his behavior in South Carolina. IMHO, everything Bill said and did in SC was calculated by the campaign -- if the campaign is upset, it is only because the tactic didn't work. If she had won SC or done better on Super Tuesday, we would be hearing about what a great strategic move it was to unleash the former President. This is a throwback to the Monica scandal when the press, with one wet eye and one dry eye, reported that on a particular day, the President undertook the difficult task of telling his wife that the allegations were true -- as though she hadn't known for months already. The press will always fall for drama and a good yarn.

My other problem is the inevitability thing -- with all the talented women in politics, law, government service and American business, why is Hillary considered to be not only the best qualified but also seemingly the only qualified female presidential prospect? Because she says so? It goes along with the old meme about Bill being one of the most brilliant men alive because he could multi-task (talk policy on the phone and do a crossword puzzle at the same time, and as we found out, who knows what else). Hyperbole does not serve Hillary well. She is extremely intelligent, has spent a lifetime in the public eye and has a mostly exemplary Senate record. She is an excellent candidate. Let the facts speak for themselves rather than trying to convince us, by tiresome rote repetition, that she is Wonder Woman.

Deval Obama

Last I checked, plagiarism is stealing, and it can't be stealing if the use is authorized. As far as the "passing off as one's own" part, it is not as though Obama is claiming discovery of a new mathematical theorem, scientific breakthrough or cribbing from The Autobiography of Malcolm X in The Audacity of Hope. Nice try Howard, though I do fear there are folks in Wisconsin who may take this claim at face value. Nevertheless, if Hillary is running on "solutions," I don't see how this helps.

Don't count her out!

The Clintons are actually best when they are cornered (see the budget battle, 1996, impeachment, New Hampshire . . .). Despite the title of this article, it reveals that all the old hands are back on deck and ready for a showdown.

I Guess We're Not All Fans

I missed this when it ran Sunday, but it is worth a late link. Must have been Callas . . .

http://www.doonesbury.com/strip/dailydose/index.html?uc_full_date=20080210

Obama is Winning?

I have been looking for an Obama site to counterbalance the link to Hillaryis44.com. I think I may have found it here:

http://www.obamaiswinning.com/

Food for Thought

Debra Burlingame, does, understandably, have a particular point of view which is 180 degrees from that of the "Jersey Girls," both viewpoints having been indelibly shaped by 9/11. But this article addresses a late Clinton administration issue that has not received sufficient serious attention (as opposed to the Marc Rich pardon or the alleged removal of "W" keys from White House typewriters). The FALN pardons may have had a direct relationship with Hillary's run for the Senate and therefore by extension her current run for the White House. I have never heard or read a convincing refutation of Burlingame's version of things from Hillary's camp -- not spin, but hard evidence that these particular individuals were worthy of release and not hard core terrorists. At least one kid was killed at Fraunces Tavern so the victims were not all public servants and moguls. She does make one error -- "Bojinka" was the plot to simultaneously explode several airplanes over the pacific, not a plot to crash airplanes into buildings. This error makes me want to see either support or refutation of her other claims. But on its face, at least, her article does give one pause.

http://online.wsj.com/public/page/opinion.html?refresh=on

Clinton v. Obama

Fascinating results over the weekend. This race continues to defy analysis, hence Hillary cannot be counted down and out just yet. Check out the curious, unofficial site "Hillary is 44" linked on this page for signs of how her campaign may be responding.

Rough Translation

This blog takes its name from Simon Boccanegra's great address to the Genovese Council Chamber in Arrigo Boito's revised libretto of Verdi's opera named after the title character. Boccanegra, the Doge of Genoa, with a checkered past (as a pirate and unwed father) rises to greatness by imploring the warring factions of his republic (the Plebians and the Patricians) to come together in peace. This sentiment was not lost on the newly unified Italians of Verdi's day nor should it be on our divided country today as we head into the 2008 election. Common sense and common ground are both in short supply. My commentary will hopefully look for both. The political links provided reflect a broad spectrum of opinion, both reasoned and extreme (as one needs to know what everyone is thinking, not just those with whom one agrees). There are also links to the official Republican and Democrat presidential candidates and interesting unofficial sites as well.

The operatic origin of the site name reflects my other passion and passtime. I am a particular fan of Verdi but also enjoy works by composers of many different nationalities and historical periods. I plan to post reviews of performances I attend. Links are provided to other interesting opera bloggers and the singers I particularly enjoy, including some "up-and-commers."

At times, I hope the two worlds reflected on this blog will intersect and provide some especially interesting commentary!

Benvenuti!

Plebe! Patrizi! Popolo dalla feroce storia!
Erede sol dell'odio dei Spinola, dei D'oria
Mentre v'invita estatico il regno ampio dei mari,
voi nei fraterni lari vi lacerate il cor.
Piango su voi, sul placido la dove invan germoglia
Il ramo dell'ulivo piango sulla mendace festadei vostri fior,
E vo gridando: pace! E vo gridando: amor!