The New York Times today is reporting “turmoil in the Democratic presidential race” even claiming that some are calling for the Democratic National Committee leader, Howard Dean, to be more aggressive in his leadership. More aggressive? Really? It seems the more pertinent question here is, do we really think the Democratic party will implode because two contenders, two historically unprecedented contenders, are currently vying for the Office of the President of the United States? I’m going to agree with Maureen Dowd here and say that keeping them both in competition with one another will only strengthen the eventual winner.
The tenacity of Hillary Clinton has been well documented. For whatever reason, her determination and sheer fortitude to march on amidst the statistics and media onslaught has made her appear less favorable, instead of a more desirable leader.
Conversely, Barack Obama has had to weather a considerably less amount of public odium and controversy, largely due to the excellent manner in which his political campaign has been managed and run, but also in part due to a usual relentlessly vicious media taking a hiatus from contempt and criticism to see what the guy actually has to say.
However, as was mentioned earlier, the democratic race has essentially turned into what all competitions become: a personality contest.
The diplomatic thing for the Democratic party to do is to allow both candidates to continue their campaign, debating leadership while highlighting where their party and the Republican party fall on the issues facing the American people. By making the contest about who is a better leader, Hillary or Barack, and not as much about the nuances of their very similar politics, the Democratic candidates have the chance to sharpen one another (or dull one another) in preparation to serve.
Ultimately, The Diplomat calls for another debate before the Pennsylvania primaries so that less informed citizens have a better opportunity to place a more informed vote. Post April 22nd, Howard Dean can then be a more hands-on leader in order to secure a democratic President for the United States of America.
Tags: Democratic Primaries, Hillary Clinton, Obama
April 2, 2008 at 2:52 pm
another debate? anyone who isn’t informed by this point, just doesn’t want to be.