Call it as you will. Hillary looked as comfortable as a person sitting upon a porcupine. Rachel Maddow is as inviting as a python and as inimical as the Republicans. Perhaps more so. Her “political miracle” of Obama was partially her doing. She dared to use those words in front of Hillary. It was offensive. I remain distrustful.
Maybe it’s me. At our local level I realized quickly that we were there trying to get a grassroots campaign going among people who never bothered to listen to Hillary in 2008 and really didn’t know anything about her. When Rachel said at the end that it was her first interview with a Clinton it occurred to me that she, likewise, had never listened to her. She spent the 2008 primary season shaking her head on Olbermann’s hour and chanting “Why doesn’t she just get out?” Dan Abrams and his guests were fair to Hillary, and for that he was relieved of his hour and they gave that slot to Maddow. So really, to her, Hillary was a stranger.
Anyway the video and transcript are here in case you missed it. >>>>>
WOW! Could I possibly have been more on target? This email just came in. Now I have Obama’s guy explaining Hillary to me? They never bothered to learn a single thing about her in 2008. She was ready and the best one for the job then. I don’t even know what to say. Speechless. Not a single mea culpa among them. It was all a “political miracle” and a “glorious scene. ” Meanwhile all of this history was right there. Hillary’s history was written over years they never bothered to research until now.
During the most intense days of the 2008 primary, while I was serving as the Obama campaign manager, I would never have imagined writing this email.
But eight years later, I believe Hillary Clinton should — and will — be our next president. She will make an outstanding and worthy successor to President Obama. She will do big and important things — and we will all look back and be proud of whatever we did to help elect her.
Here’s what I (and so many fellow Obama campaign veterans) have learned about Hillary Clinton:
She doesn’t quit — and there were times I wish she had! But you have to deeply admire that strength and persistence. From her job at the Children’s Defense Fund to her work as First Lady of the United States, as a U.S. Senator for New York, and as the Secretary of State, she’s been working everyday to make people’s lives better.
You won’t find anyone in this race more determined than Hillary to make sure every single American has a fair shot to live up to their potential. There is no one more prepared, more diligent, or more ready with detailed plans for how to make it happen.
Hillary will protect President Obama’s legacy — and like President Obama before her, she will make history. I look forward to the day my daughter, who was born a little more than 48 hours after the glorious scene in Grant Park in 2008, will know just as well as my son that she can grow up to be anything she wants, even president of the United States.
The stakes in this election are enormous. The difference between Hillary and a Trump, Carson, or Rubio could not be more profound. Once again, we need a president who understands the challenges we face — someone who can and will do something about it.
Hillary Clinton is that leader. And if we step up to fight alongside her, she’ll be the next president of the United States. Chip in to help make it happen:
https://www.hillaryclinton.com/donate-today/
Go win this thing, Madam Secretary.
Sincerely,
David Plouffe
Still4Hill 
It helped with the group Hillary needs to reach and who follow Maddow and Hayes as the only progs left now that the truly awful Ed is gone. Ed was this elections Olbermann and I was delighted they removed him.
She explained Bill’s incremental steps. Explained she has down ticket plans and without being specific, her leadership councils. 50 state strategy.
There are few places she can go in Bern-land where she can be treated this fairly. At least she was not treated as the enemy. It was more – we want unicorns and ponies and ice cream but we will settle for medicine and pragmatic gains from the sure bet – nurse Clinton.
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All good points. Thank you.
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Karen, I have thought about what you said more than I wanted to for longer than I wanted to for days. I think you are right about Bern-land. The way you describe it reminds me of the If I Had a Boat song by Lyle Lovett that Karen Elson sings at the end of Still Alice and it scares the effing bejesus out of me!
Yikes! This is the voting base we have to bring over after the primaries.
We’ve seen a week of Hillary being almost super-human. But we all know she has no magic wand and cannot work miracles. The Repubs made a bit of a deal out of the coughing fit. Hello? For 11 hours their talking was divided by 12. Her time talking was divided by 1. Of course anyone’s vocal instrument can break down under a strain like that. She is human. She is a graduate of Wellesley and Yale Law, not of Hogwarts.
Your comment hit a bull’s eye. A really discouraging insight into reality.
Thank you, really. Hope you don’t mind that the whole idea of people expecting to ride their ponies on their boats thoroughly depresses me.
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I have a completely different take on the interview. Hillary was so relaxed and seemed to be enjoying herself and answered Rachel’s questions conversationally and was not defensive in the least. I thought it a very good interview and learned a few things. I especially liked that I was reminded of what led up to President Clinton’s passage of DOMA and Ask Don’t Tell. I knew all of that but it was good to be reminded. I do follow Chris Hayes and Rachel. Chris has the more in-depth conversations which I enjoy. Who is left to watch???
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I don’t know. Maybe I have the bar set too high. I measure all of these interviews now against the one with Reverend Al. That was the one where she was relaxed and conversational. Compared to that one, the one with Rachel was more like an extension of the hearing to me.
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I missed the interview. However, I saw Rachel express complete awe at Hillary’s performance during the 11-hour GOPer-grilling this week. So, thinking it couldnt have been so bar?
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saw snippets.. It was a great interview. Hillary aced every question! of course, we knew she would…
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Got to see the whole thing – my hubby had recorded for me (so nice of him). What a great interview. I was particularly impressed with her responses to Rachel Maddow’s questions re VP Biden, and also Mrs. Rodham.
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I too am skeptical about Rachel Maddow and very much disliked the publicity surrounding David Plouffe’s endorsement this week. Both were non-starters for me. I supported Barack Obama enthusiastically in the general election back in 2008–because I am a Democrat and I knew what was at stake–but I still remember vividly how anti-Clinton so many of Obama’s most fervent supporters were. They didn’t believe Hillary had the experience, tenacity, or will to be president.
But they also never thought that Hillary would join Obama and answer his call to become his secretary of state. That’s what true public servants do. I still wonder if Obama would’ve done the same if Hillary had won. At the end of the day, David Plouffe and David Axelrod should be kind and gracious towards Hillary. There were a lot of Hillary supporters who bent over backwards for Obama and who fought and believed in him in the general election. There’s no need to act like Hillary is the “best second choice.” President Obama will have served eight great years by 2017. No need for this kind of reluctant support or haughty optimism today.
I hope with every ounce of me that Bernie’s supporters will be as kind and gracious to Hillary Clinton. I know that everyone cannot support her, but as Democrats, we have bigger fights ahead of us. I know that primary elections can bring out the ugliness of politics, but we must come together. I will support Bernie without reservations in the general election if he is the candidate. I very much hope Bernie supporters will do the same when Hillary is our candidate.
And one more thing: Hillary is fighting to earn everyone’s vote. Seven years ago, I know Hillary wouldn’t dream of going on Countdown with Keith Olbermann. And I don’t blame her. The likes of Keith Olbermann, Ed Schultz, Joe Scarborough, and Mika Brzezinski are all fire starters–could be why MSNBC’s ratings are consistently in the toilet. But today, Hillary went on Rachel Maddow and she has fought for the support of Obama’s political team. That is a fighter. Hillary is willing to reach out to every Democrat and she is willing to take tough questions from any side. There is no coronation. There is no inevitability. She is fighting for all of us. That’s why I am fighting so hard for her to become our President. I know she’ll tackle the tough fights that we have on our hands come 2017.
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[…] She dropped in on Rachel Maddow. […]
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