Monday, March 03, 2008

Hillary's Foreign Policy Chops, I Got Dressed Up

It's 3:00 AM and the phone rings...in the White House...and who do you want answering it??? The asked for answer is a gal whose foreign policy experience consists of shaking hands and getting dressed up, and who booted the Authorization of Use of Force vote. Now certainly she's met some people, from a position of no responsibility or authority, meaning exactly not one darn thing. "Hi, I'm Hillary, Bill's wife," is not substantive nor particularly impressive as a qualification.

Now this isn't to say that Barack Obama has some serious experience, nor does it say that John McCain's stay in Hanoi Hilton counts for squat as for experience in foreign policy. Those in any position of responsibility or power for the last 7 years certainly seem to have mostly gotten it wrong, so if I were trying to hang my hat on any of that era it might be self-defeating. I'm about tired of, "I've never been President, but I'm experienced," crap. You don't know from practice how to be President except by being President, and none of these folks are or have been. For Pete's sake, Hillary had no security clearance or access to CIA Presidential briefings, she was, in fact, First Lady - the Prez's wife. It might be rude to bring up certain Presidential doings she claimed to be ignorant of, at least in the context of knowing what the hell is going on.

I want a President who has shown that they have the ability to figure things out and come up with answers, and have the nuts to do it publicly. Hillary Clinton's big foray into public policy was a health care initiative, developed in secret with many of the seriously affected players excluded, it blew up in her face, unsurprisingly. Her response was to blame everybody other than herself, and she still continues to do so. "There were mistakes made," is George II's line, she should have tried something else, like, "I blew it." How about, "I apologize for the Iraq War vote?" Nope, it's BushCo across the board, I never screwed it up, the media is against me, blah, blah.

John McCain scares the snot out of me, he can't keep anything straight on the "Express," and he's headed out BushCo road. It's time for Hillary to take a lesson from the March 3 elections if she doesn't get a real mandate, do something sensible for the good of the people. The people that ad was supposed to refer to, the ordinary Americans that need something other than more BushCo. The Democratic Party she claims to care about. If she cannot get big numbers, it's time for her to show that she has at least some of that judgement thing and get out. It's not about her.

Don't bet on it.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

John McCain isn't much different than the days of his reckless behavior as he was on the USS Forrestal Carrier. He was considered a Hot Dog than and I see little difference today.
As for Hillary and Obama on the Iraq situation there is little difference..the Generals will guide them right or wrong. It's called the Blame game.