Hillary did an admirable job of staying on message. Hillary did an admirable job of staying on message. Hillary did an admirable job of staying on message. Hillar hillar hha arh ah hillah hilla hark Hillarydidanadmirablejobofstaying onmessagehillarydidanadmirablejobofstaying onmessagehillarydidanadmirablejobofstaying onmessagehillarydidanadmirablejobofstaying onmessagehillary(dong)

Of course she did.

Good luck with that.

Of course, seating the delegates of Michigan and Florida is nothing to do with disenfranchising voters; it's about Hillary Clinton doing everything she can to be the nominee. If you doubt that analysis, ask yourself if Hillary would be worried about disenfranchising voters if Obama has "won" Florida and Michigan. Hardly.

Also:

"a mismatch of words and action" - you have to laugh. "I obviously had a lapse", "I was sleep deprived". Hardly inspiring stuff

"there are so many exciting reasons to continue this"...yep, Pen. is getting tighter by the week, with one poll giving it to Obama by 2% now (prev. poll +26% to Clinton). Will there be any exciting reason to continue if Obama wins Pen?

Dzwonka and adianc, I think you're being a bit tough on her appearance here. It's a softball interview, and -- for the most part, she sounded good -- warm and personable.

The Tonight show isn't a really good place to talk policy, so the main talk was "social politics", and she was fine.

The only part where I felt she sounded disingenuous was when she talks about Michigan and Florida. If she had simply said something like "My campaign, Obama's campaign, the party and the states are negotiating a solution to this problem. We have to solve it and we will find some solution that makes everyone comfortable", she would sound like a statesperson. During that stretch of the interview, she sounded like a gamesplaying politician.

But that was a 2-3 minute piece of a 14 minute interview. And aside from that short stretch, she sounded like someone I would be proud to support in the general election.

Can someone point me to the info of where "Obama's Campaign" is the one that killed the Michigan Revote? The only source i've seen for such a claim is the Clinton Campaign. Everyone else i've heard said that Michigan's Democratic Party killed the revote. Her whole analysis of the FL and MI problem was Truthiness to the Nth degree.

"Two other states moved up their primaries without being punished" - Well, that was because they didn't try to move them before super tuesday. FL and MI were WARNED not to do it, were told they wouldn't be counted, and still did it. The other states kept the rules. Jay's analysis was pretty darn good.

The rest of it she was alright, but she needs to find a different way to talk about the Recounts.

As someone who has very little love for Hill, I must say, from a purely political standpoint, she did an excellent job--articulate, funny, and--as Norm mentioned--on message. (It is rare that Hill is ever actually funny, but she finally managed not to make a joke sound so calculated and forced--perhaps she's learned a thing or two from Obama?).

Now, politics aside, much of this was nonsense, including Leno's fawning treatment: The comparison with McCain being down during the summer is simply an absurdity--the voting hadn't even begun then, and so is utterly unlike Clinton being 'behind' now, after most states have already voted, and she has no plausible path to the delegate nomination.

And of course, while she was smart to tease herself about the sniper issue, I wish she would have just left it at that--rather than cynically suggesting that she merely confused events of the "hundreds of countries" she visited (imply, oh, it happens all the time, this sniper stuff, I must have confused Bosnia with all those other danger jobs I did). Yeah, right, like being responsible for designing the White House Christmas card?

If Obama was in the position Hilary was in he would be doing exactly the same thing. It's called politics. Also I think not letting FL and MI vote properly is stupidity of the highest degree considering how important FL could be.

Also I think not letting FL and MI vote properly is stupidity of the highest degree considering how important FL could be.

Fine, but don't Blame it on Obama. Blame it on the Repugs in the state legislature that did it! Then, when Obama finally does get the nomination, you won't swing FL and MI towards mccain because Obama "disenfranchised voters". This sort of in party talking points about obama that are half-truths don't help democrats. That's the ONLY complaint I have about Hil's campaign. She can stay in all she wants, but stop blaming Obama, stop "Shame on you", stop "Obama's Lawyers", stop "as for him being a muslim, i'm not so sure", stop "there are two patriots in this race", stop "I have experience, but as for Obama, he had a speech in 2002".

If she'd knock that garbage off, I'd be more inclined to give her slack.

I dont blame Obama. He is doing what he thinks he needs to do to win. That is fine. I blame the democratic party for stopping Florida from voting and handing it to the GOP on a silver platter. However, if Obama wanted a revote I do believe it would happen. I also think it would be in his best interests. If he is as confident in his ability to win this race as he should be then he should push FL and MI to have their say so it doesn't cost him later.

Anyone notice just how often she says "you know"? It seems at least as "trademark" as Obama's characteristic falling intonation... I'm surprised Amy Poehler on SNL doesn't use it in her portrayal....

I've noticed the "you know" for a long time, but this was the first time I noticed that she actually never says "um"... Any time most people would say "um" or some other filler, she inserts "you know". I suppose that's been trained by political coaches....

Hillary Clinton said:

I had a lapse.

Yeah, right. A lapse which results in some outrageous story of her and her daughter dodging sniper fire and running for cover. That's not a "lapse". That type of outrageous memory is either a lie or some sort of bizzare delusion. She even remembered the opening ceremony being cancelled. If she had dodged sniper fire some other time and was confusing the two, okay. But Hillary Clinton has never had to dodge sniper fire. And I don't find it all that funny that she made up this fantastical story of bravery. First of all, would she subject her daughter to sniper fire? Second of all, does she really believe, even in a state of sleep deprivation that the military personnel charged with protecting her would subject her to sniper fire? No matter how this is parsed, this story of hers is way over the top.

Hillary Clinton said:

"When you are supporting someone you love, you really do take it very much to heart"

Perhaps this explains what Michelle Obama said.

Hillary Clinton said:

"Well, I think Michigan and Florida really believe that the rules haven't beel applied fairly"

"In both cases the Republicans in the state kind of pushed it for their own party reasons and so the Democrats went along.."

This is another lie. What she said is true for Florida, but in Michigan, it was also the Democrats who decided to vote early. Governor Granholm, the Democratic governor of Michigan, signed on to Michigan voting early.

But there's no doubt that a 4-3 ruling by the Michigan Supreme Court last Wednesday saved that state's Jan. 15 presidential primary, which was in danger of being scrapped over a dispute about whether it adhered to the state constitution. The winners are likely to be Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton

Hillary Clinton said:

"So you've got 2.3 million people who came out and voted and all of a sudden they're being told, hey wait a minute, we don't think you count. Well, I think they do count and we've gotta figure out how we make them count"

Okay, so with the above comment she's making the case for "they do count", and then she turns around and says:

"All delegates votes are equal"

Jay Leno:

"Can they overrule the popular?.."

Hillary Clinton replies:

"No. They have to, they, they vote, their one vote counts like every other delegate's vote counts, but neither one of us has enough delegates to win the nomination. And, so, people say, "wow, but these so-called superdelegates, they might determine it", but that's the process. If they vote for for whom they think would be the best president, then that will count"

What happened with Michigan and Florida is also "part of the process". So "they do count" for Hillary as concerns Michigan and Florida, although that is part of the process. However, she's all for the "process" as concerns Superdelegates even if it goes against the popular vote. So as far as Superdelegates are concerned I guess that "their votes" don't count. And she lied all within one statement. She says "no", and then continues to explain how Superdelegates can, in fact, overrule the popular vote. Wow.

Hillary Clinton is even pushing for the "pledged delegates" to change their vote.

She's clearly feeling desperate if she has to push for superdelegates to crown her the nominee and for pledged delegates to go against the will of the voters and vote for her.

And as concerns Michigan, there's this:

Organized labor in Michigan opposed a lot of the ideas for how to go ahead with an early primary, because they felt that Governor Granholm was essentially gaming the system to create an early win for Hillary Clinton.

Why didn't Hillary Clinton speak out about the Michigan and Florida delegates back in 2007 if she cares so much that their "votes count"?

I am very leary of Bill Clinton and Hillary Clinton flexing their muscles to force Democrats to crown HIllary. We have had two members of the Bush royal family in the executive branch, and then to have two members of the Clinton royal family in the executive branch just stinks too much for me.

So what she "misremembered" her trip to Bosnia. It happens. Have you ever told your friends a story and totally exaggerated it? Or when you tell a story for the 1000 millionth time and instead of seeing Kevin Bacon on the street and waving it turned into you having a 5 minute conversation with him and he seem so laid back and cool.
Yea yea yea, she's a presidential candidate but so what, she and Obama are only human. And by the way, they are both career politicians.

Anyways, why should the voters of FL and MI be punished for what they did not have a hand in doing? Yea they were punished for moving their primaries but at the beginning of this election no one thought it would be such a close race, as we all know. Shouldn't all the democrats in this country have a vote in such a monumental race (and I'm not talking about the whole blackie vs. broad thing). For the last whatever elections it has pretty much come down to Super Tuesday. At this point, usually no one cares about states like OR because who care about what the 20 something Portland hipsters think or the patchouli smelling hippies.
I started writing this comment with a point but I've babbled.

In the end I'm voting for Obama but can we stop being so lame about this sniper/not letting people vote thing?

teetora: You aren't reading Joann's comments. It's not Hillary "wanting votes to count" that bugs people, it's...

So as far as Superdelegates are concerned I guess that "their votes" don't count. And she lied all within one statement. She says "no", and then continues to explain how Superdelegates can, in fact, overrule the popular vote. Wow.

I'm all for free elections, but jesus, If my state legislature said that everyones vote counted for 5 regular votes, that sort of s**t should be punished, and not counted, regardless. If MI and FL have such a problem with it, they needed to speak up to their state legislature before they moved the date.

But that's not the real point, like Joann said above. Even if we do say, "ok, your votes won't count for 5 people, let's do a revote", then it's intellectually dishonest to then talk about how Superdelegates can do whatever they want, regardless of popular vote.

Right?

"If Obama was in the position Hilary was in he would be doing exactly the same thing. It's called politics."

If Obama were in the same position the race might well be over. He was the insurgent, if he had come up short then he might have dropped out or turned the campaign down to simmer. That's what Huckabee did, and that's "politics".

She was the frontrunner forever, and was crowned before the voting started by a lot of party elites and media people. The party elites who went with her do not want Obama to win after they picked the wrong side. I think people emphasize HRC's and Bill's personality driving her on, but in fact I think it's more her supporters and closest advisors that are very much opposed to her quitting. They are telling her: "This is how politics works; you fought your whole life for this and it's not over; don't quit on us." No candidate with any nerve can resist that kind of thing, even if they wanted to. But it's still bad that she's "in it to win it" at this point and in this way.

If it were a different candidate in this position they would not be running this kind of kamikazee, hard-hitting campaign in April, with almost no chance to win.

Maybe I am completely wrong on this, but isn't it a lot closer a race if we aren't discounting two of the most populous states in America? Oh and I agree with it being a joke if she doesn't win the popular vote, but wins it via the super delegates. Whoever wins the popular vote should be the candidate.

Who cares about what the legislature in FL or MI did or didn't do? That has nothing to do with the people in either state that would actually just like to vote for their candidate.

From the interview:

"It's only april." [pause]

This strikes me as very Obama-esque. I think she is indeed learning a few things from our next President.

What happened with Michigan and Florida is also "part of the process". So "they do count" for Hillary as concerns Michigan and Florida

So very true

According to the Clintons...

Superdelegates overriding the voters - part of the process.

Pledged Delegates voting for someone other then whom they were elected to support - part of the process.

Florida and Michigan being punished for a rules violation and having their delegates apportioned by either a caucus or 50/50 split - NOT PART OF THE PROCESS(was part of the process back when Harold Ickies Voted for it and Hillary supported it).

JoAnn - How can you equate Bill's road to the W.H. with the son of Prescott Bush? And, how can you equate W. with Hillary - a really brilliant woman - I think it was Robert Reich who said when he was at Yale with Bill and Hillary, Hillary was definitely the brightest of the three of them (and Robert and Bill are no slouches).

I don't get that AT ALL.

I do think Clinton did herself some good here, even though I disagree with her qualification about the Bosnia story and her feelings about Michigan and Florida. she cam off as very personal and knowledgeable on the one hand. on the other, the Dems knew the rules about the elections, Michigan and Florida bumped their polls too early, Clinton hedged her bets and made sure she had a presence in both states while Obama and others stuck to the party line. So yeah, HRC ended up "winnning" those elections. But guess what? The rules were clear and dems da breaks.

Anyone notice just how often she says "you know"? It seems at least as "trademark" as Obama's characteristic falling intonation... I've noticed the "you know" for a long time, but this was the first time I noticed that she actually never says "um"... Any time most people would say "um" or some other filler, she inserts "you know". I suppose that's been trained by political coaches....

I first noticed this in her interviews with the Des Moines Register. Since you brought it up, though, Colin, I tracked her "ums" during this interview: at least 11. The "you knows" did outnumber the "ums" though.

"Like" also serves as a different "um."

I believe that is one seriously hideous suit color. I cannot imagine seeing her ugly clothes every day for four years.

Aaaaaargghhhh! Planet Onegoodmove has been kossified and taken over by the Obamaoid people!!!!