Ted Kennedy dumps on Bill & Hillary Clinton

[kingcap72]

ON DEADLINE: Kennedy dumps on Clintons
By RON FOURNIER, Associated Press WriterMon Jan 28, 1:21 PM ET


Ted Kennedy did more than welcome Barack Obama into the warm embrace of his legendary family. He also consigned the Clintons and their brass-knuckle brand of politics to the past.
"With Barack Obama, we will turn the page on the old politics of misrepresentation and distortion," the Massachusetts senator said Monday in endorsing Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination. "With Barack Obama, we will close the book on the old politics of race against race, gender against gender, ethnic group against ethnic group, and straight against gay."
In an eloquent speech laced with stinging subtleties, Kennedy called Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton a friend who "has been in the forefront of issues." But he might as well have called her a "has-been" — a legacy of 1990s-style politics that rewards distortion, cynicism, self-aggrandizement and even failure.
Because that must be what Kennedy believes; there is no other way to interpret the clues tucked between the lines of his address.
Kennedy is ticked at Sen. Clinton and her husband, Bill, for trying to marginalize Obama after his triumph in Iowa's caucuses, according to officials close to the senator. Like many other Democratic leaders, Kennedy worries that playing the race card will divide blacks, whites and Hispanics — and cause irreparable harm to the Democratic coalition.
Kennedy's endorsement helps Obama on a number of fronts: It lends him a measure of the family's political aura; it provides cover to Democratic operatives who were afraid of bucking the Clintons; and it signals to Hispanic voters, who historically are reluctant to support black candidates, that Obama is a rightful heir to the support and adulation earned by the late Robert Kennedy during his 1968 presidential campaign.
But the endorsement also says something about how the Clintons are viewed by many institutional Democrats — some of whom never cottoned to the couple from Arkansas, and only grudgingly accepted their dominance of the party since 1993.
Look at how Kennedy compared Obama to his brother, John F. Kennedy — and, by inference, Bill Clinton to a curmudgeonly Harry Truman.
"There was another time, when another young candidate was running for president and challenging America to cross a New Frontier," Kennedy said. "He faced public criticism from the preceding Democratic president, who was widely respected in the party. Harry Truman said we needed 'someone with greater experience' — and added: 'May I urge you to be patient." And John Kennedy replied: 'The world is changing. The old ways will not do ... It is time for a new generation of leadership.'"
Kennedy didn't have to remind the crowd that Bill Clinton said that Obama was asking voters to "roll the dice" and back him.
Or that Obama has replied that he has the right experience to respond to "the fierce urgency of now."
Line after line of the speech contained a coded criticism of the Clintons, or a defense of Obama.
He said Obama's campaign is "not just about himself," a dig at Bill Clinton, who talks as much about himself as his wife on the campaign trail.
He said Obama will "break the old gridlock and finally" provide universal health care, a jab at Sen. Clinton, who failed to reform health care when given the opportunity during her husband's first term.
He said Obama had the courage to oppose the war in Iraq from the start. "And let no one deny that truth," he added, knowing full well that the Clintons have questioned Obama's courage.
The irony is that Bill Clinton could have made a credible case that Obama's anti-war stance was not a risky move to take during a Democratic primary in Illinois. Instead, the former president smugly dismissed Obama's assertion as a "fairy tale," and some black leaders thought Clinton was dismissing a black man's chance of being president.
Kennedy pointedly said Obama would not be "trapped in the patterns of the past" and could fight for Democratic causes "without demonizing those who hold a different view." Could he be talking about Sen. Clinton, who falsely accuses Obama of not wanting to give all Americans health insurance?

Or perhaps he was referring to Bill Clinton, who acknowledged Obama's landslide victory in South Carolina by noting that another black man, Jesse Jackson, had won the state in the past — so, big deal.
Or he might have had in mind the fact that that Clinton surrogates raised the issue of Obama's drug use as a youth and tried to label him a Muslim (Obama is Christian).
Maybe he had both Clintons in mind. The Democratic Party's most powerful couple twisted Obama's admiration of Ronald Reagan's political success — sentiments they themselves have expressed — into an endorsement of GOP ideas.
Kennedy certainly had the Clintons in mind when he said Obama would be "ready to be president one Day One."
Sen. Clinton likes to say that about herself.
Bill Clinton likes to say that about his wife.
They're a powerful, talented couple and odds are at least 50-50 that Sen. Clinton will win the nomination and extend the Clintons' grip on the Democratic Party. That is, unless the young lion Obama and old lion Kennedy have their way.
"I feel change in the air," Kennedy said.
He has now cast his lot with the promise of a new brand of politics, not knowing whether it will lead to victory — much less any real change. ___

[msdeb]

i'm not a fan of Teds, but uh ted, does the name Mary Jo Kopechne ring a bell? at least when Clinton screwed around on his wife, the woman didnt die.

[*DIVA!]

Let's call it what it is.. The "smarter" Kennedy's know that the Clinton's aren't electable, and are basically looking at the bigger picture.
I think that his endorsement was more of a demanding that the democratic party change, than a slap in the face to the Clintons. What a great day for him, I hope these endorsements can turn into votes, which turn into delegates.



On the other hand on MSNBC...
They talked about how the endorsements today overshadowed the State of The Union. During the after show a picture surfaced of Hillary shaking hands with Ted Kennedy. Meanwhile Obama's back was turned, they went on and on about how Obama just committed political suicide, and with that he just ended his Presidential campaign...

[kingcap72]

i'm not a fan of Teds, but uh ted, does the name Mary Jo Kopechne ring a bell? at least when Clinton screwed around on his wife, the woman didnt die.

That's why I don't think Ted Kennedy's endorsement really carries as much weight as Caroline Kennedy's because Ted has the Clintons beat when it comes to scandals.

Although I did like what he said in the above speech.

Let's call it what it is.. The "smarter" Kennedy's know that the Clinton's aren't electable, and are basically looking at the bigger picture.
I think that his endorsement was more of a demanding that the democratic party change, than a slap in the face to the Clintons. What a great day for him, I hope these endorsements can turn into votes, which turn into delegates.


On the other hand on MSNBC...
They talked about how the endorsements today overshadowed the State of The Union. During the after show a picture surfaced of Hillary shaking hands with Ted Kennedy. Meanwhile Obama's back was turned, they went on and on about how Obama just committed political suicide, and with that he just ended his Presidential campaign...

I don't agree with MSNBC at all. Obama was sitting near or next to Kennedy the entire night. Just based on the picture he's turning his back on Hillary, not Ted.

[*DIVA!]

That's why I don't think Ted Kennedy's endorsement really carries as much weight as Caroline Kennedy's because Ted has the Clintons beat when it comes to scandals.

Although I did like what he said in the above speech.





I don't agree with MSNBC at all. Obama was sitting near or next to Kennedy the entire night. Just based on the picture he's turning his back on Hillary, not Ted.

It actually doesn't look like that, it looks like he was walking away and she walked up.. Let's see how they spin this though... MSNBC and Pat Buchanan have really got to me a little...

[kingcap72]

It actually doesn't look like that, it looks like he was walking away and she walked up.. Let's see how they spin this though... MSNBC and Pat Buchanan have really got to me a little...

If you look at the expression on Obama's face, you can see he looks pissed. And his body language is saying 'fuck you, Hillary.'

And neither MSNBC or Pat Buchanan are really relevant anymore, so I wouldn't even worry about what they think.

edit:

Here's another photo of Obama and Kennedy.

[arie_skop]

I dont blame Obama for turning his back on Hilary especially after what happened the past few weeks.

[Laurent]

i'm not a fan of Teds, but uh ted, does the name Mary Jo Kopechne ring a bell? at least when Clinton screwed around on his wife, the woman didnt die.

And that's one reason why I think a Ted Kennedy endorsement is a double-edged sword. Kennedy mystique can do a lot, but Teddy has done a lot to tarnish his own reputation. There are some people who will use an Edward Kennedy endorsement as a reason to vote against Obama. Like posted upthread, Caroline's endorsement will probably hold more weight.

[louiswinthorpe111]

I agree. I also read Caroline's statement on the internet and it's very passionate and eloquent. I think it'll do well for Obama.

[sluce]

I don't look to Ted or any Kennedy to decide how I will vote. I am waiting for Grimlock to tell me!

Seriously - I got pissed yesterday when a group of people I know were all excited about the Kennedy endorsement. They are all republicans and feel that if Obama is the Dem candidate we will have another Republican President. They don't think he can win at a National level but they are afraid that Hillary can.

[OCD]

I really hate the whole entire Kennedy family.

[tee-ha-ha]

Let's just hope he doesn't offer either of them a ride.

[*DIVA!]

Thanks King...

I don't look to Ted or any Kennedy to decide how I will vote. I am waiting for Grimlock to tell me!

Seriously - I got pissed yesterday when a group of people I know were all excited about the Kennedy endorsement. They are all republicans and feel that if Obama is the Dem candidate we will have another Republican President. They don't think he can win at a National level but they are afraid that Hillary can.

If they think that then they are thinking about the wrong candidate...Hillary is who the republicans want!!

[kingcap72]

^^No problem, SSDiva.