From Political Rival to Top Cabinet Position.

It is all but official that New York Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton will become the next Secretary of State under the incoming Obama-Biden Administration. Clinton, who is seen by many as the leading rival of Obama within the Democratic Party, now is taking a huge step over political stubbornness and is accepting a position. Although highly coveted, this position will take her away from the political stage which she has grown to love. Many have argued that the Democratic Party is currently split in two. One group being the strong supporters of Obama who are among all age groups within the party, but with a large majority being those under the age of 45.  While group two are strong supporters of Clinton. The demographic makeup for Clinton supporters are those more mature in age and more women tend to support Clinton.  Supporters of both Obama and Clinton have been mixed in their reviews of this next phase in the Clinton/Obama saga. It seems that the majority of not only Democrats, but Americans as a whole, view Clinton’s rise to the head of the State Department as a good choice.

However, there are some who are very skeptical of this rumored pick. There are some Obama supporters who were very angered by the campaign run by Clinton during the primary season and did not wish to see her attaining a top level position in the Obama Administration. While they understand the reasoning that Obama is picking a “Team of Rivals,” they feel with Clinton at the helm of the State Department she will slowly but surely begin to create her own foreign policies and will push back against the orders from the Oval Office as much as she will follow those orders. With Clinton being married to former President Bill Clinton, his foundation donor lists being in question during the primary season, there are some who would question Hillary’s motivation while working with those international officials who have been major financial backers of her husband.  Then you have those supporters of Clinton who are excited to see their preferred presidential candidate rising to a high level position and they wonder if this choice was all but political. With Clinton being the top rival of Obama’s supporters, many have been quietly murmuring that this choice removes her from the political scene, and that all Obama is doing with the creation of his “Team of Rivals” is to ensure that he is the only leader within his party. They feel this move is to ensure that Clinton remains a strong supporter of Obama’s and is unable to create any new whirlwind that she may decide to run again during the 2012 election (this is of course contingent on the fact that Clinton remains Secretary of State for Obama’s entire first term).

One must also consider what will be the role of a Vice President Biden, who was during the general election, a strength for Obama in terms of foreign policy. Now with Clinton at the head of the State Department, what will this mean to Biden who has vowed to be an integral part of the foreign policy strategies as the issues may arise. This however seems to be far from reality with Clinton in control of the State Department. One thing is clear about Clinton, and that is simple, she is a leader and if she is taking the post at the State Dept. it will have been made clear that she will run the department without much input from Biden unless the orders come from the Oval Office.

Who really knows what this decision will actually mean to President-Elect Obama or Senator Clinton. It is certain that from the outset this seems to be a positive joint venture and will bring the celebrity cabinet that Obama desires.

How Hillary Helped

I think Hillary deserves just a little credit for Obama’s win tonight. Just a little. She motivated many of her supporters such as myself to support Barack Obama for president. She moved faster than any loser in a Democratic primary to endorse and campaign for their opponent. And surely Hillary and Bill’s campaigning in states like Ohio, Florida, and Pennsylvania helped Barack Obama.

Looking back, I think we can say that the lengthy Democratic primary was part of Obama’s success. His national infrastructure that was created to beat Hillary Clinton has been used to defeat John McCain. His debate performances against Hillary taught him how to face off in a real debate.

CNN reported that Obama won Hillary supporters 84% to John McCain’s 15% tonight. Thank You Hillary.

Barack Obama, President

For months I have been mulling a Bob Barr endorsement. But after some consideration, I will reluctantly support Barack Obama.

In the first months of the primaries, I supported libertarian Ron Paul, since I am a libertarian. If Ron Paul would have won the Republican nomination, I am confident he would win in a landslide. But once it was inevitable that Paul had lost the nomination after loses in Iowa and New Hampshire he did fairly well in Nevada and won in Louisiana - people will tell you McCain won it, but Paul did - I endorsed Bill Richardson.

Shortly after that Richardson dropped out, and I endorsed the last good candidate left in the race, Hillary Clinton. I felt Hillary had the executive experience, and that Senator Obama’s only executive experience was on the board of Chicago’s Annenberg challenge, which is not presidential.

Obama was a state Senator, only active in the US Senate for 146 days, whoever supported him in the primaries (nearly 18 million voters) must have been high on something! But Hillary Clinton (a little over 18 million votes) had the experience to be president. But once Joe Biden was picked, I knew Barack Obama was walking away from just saying “change” and “hope” to focusing on the issues like Hillary Clinton.

Bob Barr seems like a good candidate with seven percent of responders in today’s Rasmussen tracking poll choosing someone besides Obama or McCain. But he still seems like a waste of a vote.

And so I reluctantly support Senator Barack Obama for president.

Hillary nominates Obama at the DNC

When it looked certain that Barack Obama was going to be nominated President of the United States, the state of New Mexico yielded to the state of Illinois who had passed earlier in the roll-call vote. Illinois, knowing that Obama was close to being put over the top, then yielded the floor to the state of New York. In a surprise twist, Hillary Clinton came out, suspended the roll-call vote, and ended the process.

The crowd went wild, people in the audience were in tears, and Barack Obama became the Democratic nominee for President of the United States.

McCain Attacks Obama for not Picking Clinton

I shouldn’t be surprise that the straight talk express has jumped the tracks again… but for some reason I am. John McCain has decided to stop talking about the issues and bring up the Obama VP issue. That’s fine if he wants to critique Joe Biden’s stance on issues, but he’s attacking the VP choice of a person who isn’t even selected as the VP:

Republican John McCain launched a new ad Sunday claiming rival Barack Obama passed over Hillary Rodham Clinton as his running mate for “speaking the truth” about his liabilities.

The ad, called “Passed Over,” features a clip of Clinton and repeats criticisms the New York senator made during the Democratic primaries over Obama’s alleged lack of specifics on issues, negative campaign tactics and his relationship with Antoin Rezko, a former Obama fundraiser convicted in June on corruption charges.

I’m sure the campaign made two ads in preparation for his announcement. One of them is the one we’re talking about right now. The other would be seeking to disenfranchise the Democratic yet Hillary haters while at the same time mobilizing the anti-Hillary Repulblicans.

Is this what American politics has come to, when one party won’t run on it’s own failing platform, but instead chooses to divide another party?

And finally I’d like to say to all the Hillary Clinton supporters, please do vote for Obama, he is way better than McCain who wants to ban pretty much everything (abortion, privacy, safe food, good veterans care and more) except for guns. And if you can’t bring yourself to vote for someone who supports what you believe in, please at least vote for someone who supports what both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama stand for.

Remember, ThinkYouth will be covering the 2008 Democratic National Convention live from Denver next week.

A series of picks for VP

In the past, the vice president has usually been ignored, and has not been given much to do. But this year is different. Since the assemblyman from Chicago got the Democratic nomination, I thought I would most definitely be screwed this election with nobody to support. Until I thought of Hillary as VP. She will be more then vice president, since Obama doesn’t really have much experience. Hillary Clinton was cheated out of the Democratic nomination by a flawed primary process of kindergarten games and not counting votes. She has earned at least to be second on the ticket.

Also, the Obama/Clinton ticket appears to be the only democratic ticket that will win. (Yes, sorry to inform Obama supporters, but if the election were held today, he would lose.). If Obama makes a mistake and does not pick Clinton as a VP, here are some other choices.

My top choice: Hillary Clinton

Joe Biden - Would bring foreign policy experience to the ticket.

Chris Dodd- Would win support of many teachers and education unions.

Ted Strickland- Would get independents and NRA supporters to vote for the ticket.

Ed Rendell- Would win support of steel and other labor unions.

Colin Powell- Would bring a lot of moderate republicans to vote for the ticket.

John Edwards- Could win votes of white working class voters.

The Bad Choices:

Kathleen Sebelius- Is not known around the country, and would probably lose her own state.

Bill Richardson- Not trusted, not tested.

Claire McCaskill- Please see Kathleen Sebelius.

Why Hillary Clinton should be Obama’s VP

Throughout this entire campaign I have agreed with Barack Obama that America is in need of a desperate change. During the last eight years under the Bush administration, the only change our families have are the dimes and nickels left over from paying four dollars for a gallon of gas. But, I also believed that change cannot be accomplished without a leader who is ready, willing, and able to take on the task realizing that change. The American people have spoken, and the Democratic Party has decided that Barack Obama is that leader.

Surely, the argument can be made that Barack Obama has valuable experience to offer America. His eight years as a member of the Illinois State Senate, his ten years as a constitutional law professor at the University of Chicago, and his three and a half years as a United States Senator would be a welcome relief for America looking for a president who knows the legislative process, and the Constitution, and what it truly means.

I do not believe Obama’s experience is enough for him to have a successful presidential administration. With Hillary Clinton at his side, as his vice president, they will be an unbeatable force. It is essential to victory that we combine both coalitions that have already been established throughout the Democratic primary. And, only together will these two be able to effectively govern over a stronger America.
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The Isms are Still Alive

This primary saw so many records broken. We had a woman run the longest and most successful primary campaign ever. We had a man who would be the oldest president if he wins. We had an African American take the nomination. We had a Latino run, and be viewed as a somewhat serious threat, and seen as a serious contender for vice president. Then there was an Italian who had a front runner campaign for many months, and we can’t forget that a Mormon ran too.

The primary season was a wonderful example of the diversity of America and a reminder that who you are doesn’t have to define what you will be. But it also was a reminder that isms (chauvinism, racism, religionism, ageism…) are still a problem in America. From the media, to political campaigns, to individuals, this hatred has reared it’s ugly head. But the times when identity became a part of politics, equal opportunity discrimination resulted.

Probably most notable in terms of media sanctioned sexism was Chris Mathews, who has also made many comments indicating his support for Barack Obama, at one time saying Obama made a “thrill” go up his “leg.” He made offensive comments about Hillary saying “The reason she’s a U.S. Senator, the reason she’s a candidate for president, the reason she may be a front runner, is that her husband messed around. [...] She didn’t win it on the merits.” Then of course there is the frequent use of the word bitch to describe Hillary. We heard McCain chuckling and saying that “How do we beat the bitch?” was an excellent question. And then of course everyone refers to Hillary, as Hillary, highlighting her gender in a way that last names don’t.

Even though there was only one candidate with a groundbreaking religion running in the 2008 primaries, Mitt Romney, three religions still came under fire. There was a county chairman working for John McCain that blasted Romney’s religion according to the Boston Globe, “[He] questioned whether Mormons were Christians, discussed an article alleging that the Mormon Church helps fund Hamas, and likened the Mormons’ treatment of women to the Taliban’s.”

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What’s next for Hillary?

It is certain now that Barack Obama is going to be the Democratic Candidate for the election for presidency. Even though Hillary Clinton has lost in her race for presidency, I think she can still be an influential figure in politics.

I hardly think that she should sign up for Vice President. Even though the idea of it is noble, we must consider how the ‘race’ went down. It was a constant stream of attacks from both sides. Not pretty at all. Grudges can and will be held and it will just turn out to be a mess.

However, I think she is the perfect member to serve in the Cabinet. I can see her serving as the Secretary of Health and Human Resources. That way, she can still strive for reforms for affordable health care and other human needs.

She Will Be The First Female President

As Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton said in her remarks in New York last night, “What does she want?”
I have always felt that Sen. Clinton wanted to make history. There are so many ways she can accomplish this. She can be the first female vice president. She can keep all of her delegates for the convention and let them vote for her so she can be entitled to “the most delegates any woman has every won.” Lastly Sen. Clinton is ambitious and tenacious, she can still be the first female president. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is 60 years old, she would be 64 years old in 2012. Obviously she would only run if Sen. Barack Obama did not win in November. Even if Sen. Barack Obama does win she can still come back in 2016. She would be 68, and would be three years younger than Sen. McCain is now, and would be one year younger than President Ronald Reagan was on his first day on the job.

So it is all well and good to enjoy this historic moment in our history that a black man will lead a
major party ticket for president. In fact, it’s important to indulge yourself in it. It’s a beautiful time for Americans. Being a dedicated and bitter Clinton supporter, it is times like these that make me so proud to be an American. But the Clinton supporter in me knows two things about Sen. Clinton: she’s a fighter, and she wants to make history. There is no doubt that this historic fighter will continue to fight and come back in 2012 or 2016 and be our first female president.

I know there will be a first female President, and I know that thanks to Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, that road is now possible for young girls across this country. But as I stated before, Sen. Clinton will make history as she has done throughout this campaign, and make her victory be as historic as last night’s win by Sen. Barack Obama.

I think the most important thing is that the Democrats of this country have continued to move forward in diversity in their party. The Republicans have lacked that skill. To think a black man or a woman could be President, where are the Republicans in this race for diversity? Did they not nominate John McCain? That’s a real change. Oh yes, it is today when I know I am proud to be a Democrat and an American.

An Appeal To All Clinton Supporters

Obama has said it, and CNN, MSNBC, and all the other major news networks agree. Obama has got the democratic nomination for president. I’m glad, but I thought that the Clinton supporters might not be, so here is a little letter to all the Clinton supporters out there.

Dear Clinton Supporters,

There’s no doubt, this has been a tough campaign for both sides, and they’ve both fought hard. Right now, it might be hard to imagine, but pretty soon your great affections for Senator Clinton and dislike of Senator Obama will subside, just as what happened to me when Kucinich dropped out of the race. I would have loved, and would still love, to see Kucinich as president, but it obviously isn’t going to happen in 2008. That’s too bad, but I have moved on and done what is best for the Democratic Party and, more importantly, the county. I have decided to support Obama. I have can see that Obama is a man who, even if he isn’t the best candidate the country could ever hope for, is certainly better than McCain.
Naturally, there will be a period of time when you may be sad or angry about the way these results have turned out, but as good Democrats and good Americans, soon you will need to put the past in the past and look towards the general election. When you do that, you will have to do it without letting any leftover bitterness distort your view of the remaining candidates.

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BREAKING:Clinton Open to Veep slot?

Hillary Clinton has said to New York Lawmakers that, if offered, she would be open to being Barack Obama’s running mate.

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Huge Victory in Puerto Rico for Sen. Clinton, But What’s Next?

Hillary Clinton San Juan, Puerto Rico Victory Speech

Whoever thought that Puerto Rico would really matter in a presidential primary? As seen in the last week, Sen. Hillary Clinton and Sen. Barack Obama have been competing in Puerto Rico for their 55 pledged delegates. This commonwealth doesn’t get a vote in the general election, but the Democratic Party has continuously given them a vote in the primary season. Since they have historically come at the end of the primary season, they usually don’t matter. But with Sen. Hillary Clinton behind Sen. Barack Obama in the delegate count she needs every delegate possible.

It was thought that Sen. Hillary Clinton would win this commonwealth because of her success within the Hispanic community throughout the States, and with 98% of the vote counted Sen Hillary Clinton won 68% of the vote compared to her rival Sen. Barack Obama’s 32%. It is a land slide victory for the former first lady but it isn’t enough. She needed these type of victories earlier on in the season, it is too late now. Yet, one shining element from this victory is her gain of nearly 140,000 votes to the popular vote which she has been declaring is hers. She said in her victory in speech in San Juan, “We are winning the popular vote. Now there can be no doubt. The people have spoken, and you have chosen your candidate. And it’s important where we have won. We are winning these votes in swing states and among the very swing voters the Democrats must win to take back the White House.”

According to abcnews.com Sen. Clinton is ahead of Sen. Obama in popular vote; 17,671,202 for Clinton and 17,354,733 for Obama. Those numbers are including Florida and Michigan after yesterdays Rules and Bylaws Committee rulings. If Mrs. Clinton can hold on tightly to her popular vote count, it could be an intriguing talking point for persuading those highly regarded superdelegates. Yet, I must say it hasn’t worked yet so I doubt it will work now. Sen. Obama is now 50 delegates away from the nomination, and no superdelegate majority would suppress Sen. Obama of that victory.

Hillary Clinton in all of her political pull could be using this as a talking point for something else, the Vice Presidency. Oh yes, Mrs. Clinton could be taking this straight to Sen. Barack Obama once he wins the nomination on Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. But how would a conversation like that go? That is yet to be seen. As time keeps going Mrs. Clinton keeps marching on…to the United States Naval Observatory to kick out Vice President Dick Cheney.

We Need Unity

After the recent Rules and Bylaws meeting in Washington D.C. It is all but inevitable that Barack Obama will be the Democratic Nominee for President.
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