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Last Updated: Jul 10, 2008 - 12:32:05 PM |
I want to take you back to the spring and summer of 1992. The first George Bush was in office, and it was election season. His main challenger was – of all people – Ross Perot. They were running neck and neck in the polls. Coming in a distant third was Bill Clinton.
My vote was pretty much up for grabs early in the election cycle. The problem was, there didn’t seem to be anybody worth voting for. Bush hadn’t impressed me in his first term, and I thought Perot was a bit of a nut job. The one person I knew I would never vote for was Bill Clinton. And it wasn’t because he was some ultra-liberal wingnut. In fact, Clinton ran as a “New Democrat,” a conservative, even; his true colors didn’t come out until after he took office.
But that didn’t matter to me. I have, believe it or not, voted for Democrats several times in my life. What did matter was the fact that the first time I saw Bill Clinton on television, I instantly disliked the man. I could tell that he was the slimiest, sleaziest politician I’d ever seen – and that’s saying something. This guy oozed “used car salesman,” and the revelations about his womanizing in Arkansas only added to that disgusting persona.
I was beyond surprised – I was flabbergasted – when he was elected that fall. Now, I have plenty of Democrat friends who have voted for people I would never support. But I understood those votes. These were Democrats voting for Democrats, just like Republicans vote for Republicans. But how could they vote for Bill Clinton?
And what was worse, people continued to support him after numerous scandals proved my initial reaction correct. From Whitewater to the Travel Office firings to Jennifer Flowers to the Buddhist Temple scandal and Paula Jones, seemingly intelligent people stood by this guy. They even re-elected him.
And even when the Monica Lewinsky affair turned into perjury and impeachment, people still remained loyal to Bill Clinton. What’s worse, his wife was then elected to the Senate from New York State – twice – after never even having lived there.
This is not just a case of sour grapes. Like I said, I didn’t like the first President Bush much, and I liked Bob Dole even less. I would have voted for a decent Democrat – I was actually pulling for San Nunn, a Democrat from Georgia, to run in 1992.
I just couldn’t understand how anybody could support a sleazebag like Bill Clinton, regardless of political party.
But now I get it.
It was apparent back in 2000 when Hillary was elected to the Senate from New York that she was getting ready for a run at the White House, and by last year it was fairly obvious that she would coast to the Democratic nomination. I was pretty certain that nobody would stand in her way, and that – much to my chagrin – she would also probably win the presidency.
But along came a 46-year-old, first-term, ultra-liberal Senator from Illinois named Barack Obama. This is a guy who only won his Senate seat in 2004 because his Republican opponent, Jack Ryan, withdrew from the race after public disclosure of his divorce proceedings revealed allegations of sexual misconduct.
And Obama is cleaning Hillary’s clock. I couldn’t figure out how this could happen. How could this almost-nobody, first-term Senator from Illinois beat a CLINTON?
And then it struck me: because my liberal friends hate the Clintons as much as I do; they just hate Republicans more. Bill Clinton was the first Democrat to serve two terms in the White House since FDR. He beat the vast, right-wing conspiracy. He gave the Republicans hell.
And if you’re a partisan, be that a Democrat or a Republican, you’ll deal with a lot of ugly to keep a winner around. You won’t like it, but you’ll do it.
But now things are different. For the first time since 1992, Democrats can vote AGAINST a Clinton without voting FOR a Republican, and they’re savoring this moment. It’s like being freed from prison – albeit a prison of their own choosing.
Look at all those who have come out in support of Obama. John Kerry recently announced his support. The Kennedy family said that he reminded them of JFK. Teddy Kennedy has actively campaigned for him. Representative John Lewis, Democratic Representative from Georgia and a long-time civil rights leader, recently withdrew his support of Hillary in favor of Obama.
There is a sense of jubilation and celebration in the Democratic Party that I haven’t seen for years. The media attributes this to Obama’s amazing oratory skills and his message of “hope,” but at most that’s only half the picture.
Hillary is right when she says that Obama offers only empty words. But that doesn’t matter, because they’re words not offered by a Clinton. The sense of joy in the Democratic party springs from the freedom of the ugly that is the Clinton machine.
And I say good for them. Good for the Democrats. They’ve hopefully (don’t count out a Clinton until the final vote is cast) thrown off one of the most disgusting political families in American history. I’m proud of them. I won’t be voting for Obama come November, and I am confident that McCain will handily win the election, but to be free of the Clintons deserves a celebration regardless of political party.
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