Comparing Hillary Clinton’s and John McCain’s characterizations of Barack Obama as “condescending,” “elitist” and “out of touch” with Obama’s remarks describing his recognition of bitterness among rural Pennsylvania voters who feel abandoned by the federal government, one can only view her comments as patronizing (matronizing?) to the very voters she hoped to influence. When Clinton says she does not detect bitterness among Pennsylvania voters she may be saying more about her lack of perception than about the voters themselves.
Clinton gives no indication of responding to voter feeling, she simply asserts what she wants to see. Obama's causal relationship between why he thought Pennsylvanians were not supporting him in droves at least acknowledges that Pennsylvanians have issues that disturb them. While the causal relationship between voter support and economic condition may be debatable, there is nothing condescending in stating that people feel bitter, especially if they say repeatedly in so many ways that they do. Feeling bitter does not mean you just give up and quit as Clinton insinuates.
Someone not in touch with personal feelings can hardly detect the feelings of others. Obama is definitely in touch with his personal feelings. He has no need to manufacture them for the camera; they are genuine. His justifiable anger came through pointedly in his response to Clinton’s and McCain’s comments on Friday, providing clarity to his message that voters need to hear. Obama was considerate to apologize to any who felt offense at his comments. In reality he has offended no one: his intention was not to offend. Each of us must take sole responsibility for how we react to anything if we are to control our own lives.
Posted reactions to Hillary Clinton's statement and to the initial story on the CNN web site were at least ten to one in favor of Obama right from the start. This strong response is enough to indicate that Obama may benefit from the incident. The story was initiated by a “citizen journalist” claiming to be a major contributor to the Obama campaign, present at an event for fundraisers who, like herself, had "maxed out." The veracity of her story is hard to comprehend: this “supporter” issued, not one but two, articles critical of Obama in the Huffington Post last week based on this single event. She then managed to get this story to CNN in time for their Friday news broadcast. She stated she held onto this story for several days, "not wanting to harm the campaign" but finally had to release it for journalistic reasons. She also said she always brings a tape recorder to events. The result was a poorly recorded snippet from Obama’s complete comments aired on national television with no context other than her chosen spin and that of CNN.
Waging a hard campaign is one thing, waging a campaign structured to attack your opponent on any grounds no matter what the cost is quite another. The contrast between the Clinton and Obama campaigns has become painfully evident especially during the past few weeks. Obama has passed up numerous opportunities to ridicule Hillary Clinton over repeated Bosnia “miss-statements” and then Bill Clinton’s re-awakening of the Bosnia debacle. Bill’s remarks provided plentiful ammunition for ridicule, with his illusions to Hillary’s declining faculties because of age, together with misrepresentation of her remarks as an understandable one time slip when “exhausted,” These should at least bring an end to the “three o’clock phone call” ads. Clinton, in contrast, has attacked Obama full throttle at every conceivable, and even not so conceivable, opportunity. Hopes that the Clinton campaign would improve in tone with Mark Penn’s departure seem difficult to realize.
Though the outcome of this long and difficult Democratic campaign may be impossible to predict, two things at least seem evident. First, it is more important for the Obama campaign to maintain the positive tone it has employed thus far regardless of the result. This campaign has been truly a campaign for and by the people. Second, it is vital that the Democratic Party not be so wounded by negativity during the weeks ahead that Republicans are effectively handed victory in congressional races as well as in the presidential campaign.
Clinton seems intent on bringing Obama down at all cost; to the point of doing all she can to ensure McCain’s success in the presidential campaign if she is unable to win the Democratic nomination for herself. McCain and Clinton seem cozily allied in this instance, declaring each other to be the only qualified candidates. Perhaps the nightmare ticket would be Clinton/McCain or McCain/Clinton. What a dream!
Though such an outcome is of course unlikely, the effect seems more real just now than any vestige of Democratic solidarity in the present campaign.
The following link leads to CNN stories on this issue, beginning with Obama’s remarks:
http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2008/04/11/obama.remarks.cnn
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