Legal Commentary

Clinton Campaign Misfiring

By Big Tent Democrat

By Big Tent Democrat

Speaking for me only

On Monday, during a press conference call, I asked Howard Wolfson about Clinton supporter PA governor Ed Rendell's criticisms of NBC and NBC's inaccurate coverage of the Trina Bachtel story. I specifically asked if the Clinton campaign would ask NBC to correct its false reporting. Wolfson had no answer for me and Hillary Clinton's campaign has had no answer for the unfair media coverage it has received, particularly from NBC.

What happened instead yesterday and today was Bill Clinton reviving the Tuzla sniper fire story. Instead of a going on the attack against a Media that will never give them a fair shake (a strategy that has paid political dividends before for this campaign), the Clinton campaign instead reopened an old wound of its own. It seems that it is intent on being a Media punching bag. If this is the type of "fight" Hillary Clinton will bring to a general election campaign, then she has no chance. Today, more than ever, I am convinced that Barack Obama is more electable than Hillary Clinton. More . .

Instead of focusing on how the Media will unfairly distort and misreport an issue and story, and what Hillary Clinton said about it -- (a paramount issue, indeed, perhaps the central issue of Hillary Clinton's candidacy), the Clinton campaign's chief surrogate discussed a trivial, unimportant and politically harmful issue instead. In a word, this is simply political incompetence.

What if, instead of stepping back into one of Hillary Clinton's lower moments of the campaign, Bill Clinton had instead discussed the Trina Bachtel story. How to discuss it? Look no further than how Paul Krugman did it today. This was a political layup. The Clinton campaign not only did not make this easy attempt, they did not even try.

This is a campaign in disarray and without a plan or, seemingly, a clue. Hillary Clinton's political strengths are her image as a fighter and on issues like health care. (Oh BTW, some of these issues are really important too.) Here was a chance to showcase these advantages. And it occurred to no one in the Clinton campaign to take this clear opportunity. Again, this can only be described as political incompetence.

Full post as published by TalkLeft on April 11, 2008 (boomark / email).