The Real Hillary Emerges?
By Justin Gardner | Related entries in 2008 Election, Hillary
People don’t want to vote for a policy wonk. They want to vote for a caring mother.
“It’s not easy, it’s not easy, and I couldn’t do it if I just didn’t passionately believe it was the right thing to do,” she said. [...] “I have so many opportunities for this country. I don’t want to see us all fall back,” she said, her voice breaking in the last phrase.“This is very personal for me,” she said to supportive applause from the small gathering, at which she’d been discussing policy around a table for an hour. “It’s not just political, it’s not just public — I see what’s happening. We have to reverse it.” [...]
“Some of us are right and some of us are wrong. Some of us are ready and some of us are not. Some of us know what we are going to do on day one, and some of us haven’t thought that through enough,” she said.
“When we look at the array of problems that we have, and the potential for it really spinning out of control — this is one of the most important elections America’s ever faced,” she concluded.
The result?
The questioner, Pernold, said she’d come to the event “smitten” by Obama but that she’s now torn. “Showing that emotion, I really find it refreshing,” she said.
A new strategy is born.
UPDATE:
Here’s the video. Original link here.
It feels heartfelt, but the effect of all of those flashes around here sort of minimized the emotional impact upon viewing it.
Still, I think this could work for her.
UPDATE 2:
Here’s her response to all this coverage…
Nobody is debating your passion Hillary. But a lot of people haven’t seen this side of you yet.
Edwards took the opportunity to get jab at her. Bad move John.
Okay, that’s enough for this story. Moving on..
This entry was posted on Monday, January 7th, 2008 and is filed under 2008 Election, Hillary. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.
January 7th, 2008 at 3:48 pm
But what about BARACK OBLIQUE and his SMOOTH TALK EXPRESS??
But seriously, the woman was just (is just) tired, and was just being honest. To little too late for NH. But maybe helpful for upcoming state contests.
January 7th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
Edmund Muskie also showed some teary-eyed emotion when running for President. It did not help him.
We’ll just have to wait and see if this has a similar effect on Hillary’s candidacy. My guess that it probably won’t make much difference for better or worse… but who knows.
January 7th, 2008 at 5:27 pm
The more appropriate questions, imo, should be how many people will be duped by her latest act and will it cause backlash, sending more voters running to Obama?
January 7th, 2008 at 5:55 pm
I agree with Elisabeta. This weepy display was calculated, because Obama has found the formula for Democrats, and she wants to jump on the bandwagon before its too late. What is the formula? Appeal to the emotions of the political consumer. Now your gonna hear a lot about passion. This campaign is not about ideas or issues.
Obama is smart. As soon as this story broke, he makes a stump speech where he said, “There is something in the air. You can feel it. We are cheerful today. We are happy warriors for change.”
While she weeps, he cheers. Keep the attitude positive. Associate good feelings with Obama, and associate weepy feelings with Hillary. Keep that smile glowing, keep that preacher-man inflection in your voice, and make sure to use a lot of happy-feeling words in your speeches. But be sure not to talk about specifics or details regarding the issues. And especially don’t use numbers. Numbers are boring.
And don’t forget to remind everyone that Hillary’s campaign is depressing.
Make a beeping sound like those voting machines every time a registered Democrat eats some candy. Then flash a picture of Obama in front of their face.
January 7th, 2008 at 6:47 pm
It is truly astonishing how fast the narrative on the Dem nomination flipped around. The media has practically conceded the nomination to Obama. I am watching Hardball now, and one of the political analysts just said “Obama is no longer just a candidate, he is a movement, he is an aspiration.”
Sorry. Barack is a candidate. It might be indeed be over, but I just don’t believe it. A lot of politicians got run over after underestimating the Clintons. I think Hillary will be a much better candidate as the underdog than she was as a favorite. This episode is an example.
January 8th, 2008 at 10:53 am
Hillary’s upset was definitively real, but all the stuff she said about wanting the best for the country was questionable.
Feeling sorry for yourself doesn’ t benefit the country and makes people wonder whether they are being manipulated. I tend to distrust people, in this case, politicians that apply pressure via their emotions.
February 5th, 2008 at 11:48 pm
[...] great deeds and of his victory and prophesied the death of the dark Queen until the day came that she cried out in anguish and defeat. But the King unleashed powerful wizards of special interest and once again [...]