Election Result 2008

Considered a huge success by the left, the Clear Skies Act has been effectively killed in the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee when its votes split 9-9.

Included among the Democrats who voted against the Bush-sponsored bill are Barack Obama (D-IL), Hillary Clinton (D-NY), Barbara Boxer (D-CA), and Joseph Lieberman (D-CT).

These four Senators are significant names in the coming electoral cycle because of their respective histories of battling from the left.

• Hillary Clinton is expected to run in the 2008 primary
• Barack Obama became famous during the last presidential election and there is some talk of him running in 2008.
• Joseph Lieberman ran in the Democratic primaries during the 2004 election
• Barbara Boxer, while she didn’t run for president nor is she expected to, became a champion of grassroots causes when she publicly challenged the outcome of last year’s election.

The Scribe Journal writes:

Ms. Clinton is likely running as she is already desperately trying to soften her image, and place herself somewhere in the middle of the political spectrum. Her 65% approval rate is stratospheric in New York State, where she is up for re-election for her senate seat in 2006. And it’s becoming quite clear–if Hillary runs in the Democratic primaries, she’s as close to a sure thing as one can get in politics.

It’s still over three years away until the election and yet Hillary seems to show a history-making lead. The Democratic primaries may show Hillary Clinton running nearly uncontested.

The far left criticize her for her recent abandonment of abortion legislation and Iraq war views that the left hold dear. She’s changing her image to reflect a pro-life stance and a pro-defence (even pro-aggression) stance against terrorism.

New York Post Online Edition: commentary

he fears a return to “the politics of the ’90s” and Clinton-style triangulation. And other Democratic activists say he’s not alone — a growing number of left-wingers are edging toward an “anybody but Hillary” strategy.

Hillary appears to be changing her image to seem more centrist. She’s changed her views on abortion and is apparently attempting to make herself less distinguishable as a liberal.

“We can all recognize that abortion in many ways represents a sad, even tragic choice to many, many women. The fact is that the best way to reduce the number of abortions is to reduce the number of unwanted pregnancies in the first place.”

Hillary seems to be changing her views on abortion to represent a less liberal stance. This could be because of changes in her understanding of appropriate abortion legislation, but at her age that’s unlikely. Much more likely is that Hillary is vying for a win in the 2008 election and understands her greatest threat to be seeming ‘too liberal’ by the right.

Some writers are already discussing that she may be mistaken to think that she won’t be challenged from the left considering Howard Dean and various grassroots campaigns are in control of the Democratic National Committee.

Hillary Clinton 2008 Push Already in Full Force? - The National Ledger

Is the Hillary 2008 push already in full force? A full three years and eight months will pass before the 2008 presidential elections but it’s never too early to begin to attempt to rebuild Hillary Rodham Clinton’s liberal image. The extreme makeover is on. Hubby Bill believes that if she did run and she was able to win, “she’d make a very, very good president.” Bill Clinton said Sunday, “I think now she’s at least as good as I was.”

With a former president who knows you intimately giving his full support you’ve got a fighting chance. It appears that fighting is precisely what Hillary is already doing as she is stepping up a rigorous speech campaign addressing nearly any crowd that will hear her. She has not officially claimed the bid for president, but her preparations are well under way.

The Marist Poll reports

McCain outdistances Senator Clinton by 12 points. In a hypothetical
match-up for president in 2008, McCain receives the support of 54%
of voters nationwide compared with 42% for Clinton.

Voters divide over whether they would like to see Hillary Clinton or Rudy Giuliani as their next president. Clinton receives 47% compared to Giuliani’s 49%.

John McCain, having run in the Republican Primary in 2000, shows a lead over Hillary Clinton in a poll taken across all potential voters. Hillary has been suspected of having planned carefully for running in 2008 since well before the 2004 election.

McCain, known for his bipartisan respect and his commitment to speak for his values even against party lines, seems to have garnished the kind of respect otherwise reserved for folks like Barack Obama

From The Senator’s Humble Beginning (washingtonpost.com)

“I am genuinely somebody who doesn’t get caught up in the hype,” he says, adding that his wife, Michelle, loves to tease him about his big ears, and that he loves her for that.
“I think me puncturing my own balloon is something that’s not only calculated to endear me to others,” he says. “But it helps remind me of who I am and where I’ve come from.”

The Washington Post has done a story complete with an interview of Barack Obama discussing his demeanor, his popularity, and his approach to his new job. He’s getting plenty of press already and he’s not yet done much as a Senator of the United States.

The Washington Post contrasts Obama with Sen. Rick Santorum and the late Sen. Paul Wellstone in his attitude regarding the elders of the Senate. They were both known for hotheadedness in their first years and the point is being made that such a demeanor is not expected from Barack Obama.

It was in the Democratic National Convention of 2004 that Barack Obama (then not even a U.S. Senator) made his debut performance as an easily admirable politician. He gave an address that made headlines above the usual level for the event primarily because of it’s content. Barack was immediately seen as something new in the political seen because, from his small but visible presence so far, he appeared to be a politician who was more optimistic than partisan.

“That is the true genius of America, a faith in the simple dreams of its people, the insistence on small miracles. That we can tuck in our children at night and know they are fed and clothed and safe from harm. That we can say what we think, write what we think, without hearing a sudden knock on the door. That we can have an idea and start our own business without paying a bribe or hiring somebody’s son.”

-Barack Obama

Immediately after the convention there were news reports where writers spoke of Obama’s passion and linked it to a possible nomination for the 2008 election.