The Clintons bring everyone together

Every day now it seems like the other candidates are giving speeches, sending out press releases, and speaking at debates about how they will get their party back to its principles and show their base that they are the extreme Democrat or Republican. You got people like Dennis Kucinich that hopes to rally the liberal base with socialist ideals, and you have Ron Paul that attempts to rally the extreme right wing base with anarchist philosophies. Now, neither of these 2 candidates really stand a chance, but these are the directions that the parties seem to be going in. This unwillingness to compromise on issues is great in theory, but the reality is, politics is all about negotiation. You have to give a little to take a little.

The last president to fully understand this concept was Bill Clinton. He understood that sticking to the principles of the democratic base locks you in a corner with no wiggle room to work out deals that could work in your favor. Everyone loves to criticize politicians for flip flopping or endorsing policies that seem to conflict with what they stand for, but people have got to understand that politics is all a big game. And if you refuse to play the game correctly and you instead stand by a list of ideals that don't resonate with middle America, then you aren't going to be very successful. This is the reality, and this is the way it's always been and always will be.

Bush was able to market himself on this ability of meeting both sides in the middle, and that's how he got elected. But once he was elected, he betrayed the people by refusing to work with those of opposing views. Above all else, this is precisely the reason why Bush's poll numbers are so low. He tried to be everything-republican. His way or the highway. Believe me, history will not remember him in a good light.

That's why at this time more than ever, we need someone that isn't so stuck and stubborn in their narrow ideologies. We need someone who is flexible and understands that a good President has to work with both parties and consider all ideas. The American people's needs and wants are constantly changing, and a good leader needs to be flexible to adapt to that change. This is why we need someone like Hillary Clinton in the White house. A good representative of any group is someone who doesn't let their own personal views get in the way of carrying out what the people want. From what I can tell, Hillary Clinton doesn't really have deep personal views, so this conflict between leader and the people won't even be a factor.

MSNBC touched on this a little bit in an article entitled "Bill Touts Hillary's Work With GOP":

Today in New Hampshire, her husband noted the ways she’s worked with the opposite party, including a would-be rival. And he argued that more attention needs to be paid to candidates’ records and not to "pure politics."

“I argue to you based on a lifetime of experience that if you have spent as my wife has 35 years ... being a positive change maker, that indicates that you would be more likely to successfully execute change as president. If you have proved in the U.S. Senate that you could get things done with Republicans as well as Democrats, that indicates you’d be more likely to succeed as president.”

Bill hit the head right on the nail. In order to be an effective leader, it is essential that you learn to work with all sides and not be so isolated in your own ideals that you fail to see the real needs of every day Americans. I'm willing to bet that no other candidate realizes this fact, a fact that is only realized with a great deal of experience - something both Bill and Hillary have an enormous amount of.

Republicans accuse Hillary of planting questions at their debate

It's one thing to accuse Hillary of planting questions during the democratic debate. Even though that accusation is preposterous, at least it makes a little sense because a candidate would obviously want to receive soft ball questions to make themselves look good. But now they're actually trying to say she planted questions at the republican debate. I kid you not.

From Washingtimes.com:

Retired Brig. Gen. Keith H. Kerr was named a co-chairman of Mrs. Clinton's National Military Veterans group this month, according to a campaign press release. He asked a question last night at the CNN-YouTube debate here, and after answers from candidates, debate host Anderson Cooper asked the general if he was satisfied with the answers.

The general then stood up and delivered what amounted to a two-minute speech, stopping only when the audience of 1,500 booed.

"American men and women in the military are professional enough to serve with gays and lesbians. For 42 years, I wore the army uniform on active duty, in the Reserve, and also for the state of California. I revealed I was a gay man after I retired," the general said.

If you were out working on the grassroots Hillary campaign like we were, you probably missed the republican debate last night. Fortunately we have Tivo. This was the CNN/Youtube debate where most of the questions to the candidates came from questions posted on Youtube from ordinary citizens all across the country. There were a wide array of questions - some silly, some serious, some downright ridiculous. One of the Youtube questions came from a retired general who happens to be gay. He raised a really important question about the failed "don't ask don't tell" policy. Essentially, his question was "why can't gays in the military be openly gay? Aren't we mature enough to accept different sexuality preferences?"

This was a very good question on an issue that has been kept under the radar for a few years, and it is refreshing to bring it back to the forefront. What was great about it though is that this is the one issue republicans are afraid of. They try to shy away from it any chance they get. They want to appeal to the conservative right by showing that they're against gay rights, but they don't want to appear to be homophobic and alienate those who sympathize with the gay movement. What was great about it though is that not only did the gay general submit his Youtube video, he was right there in the audience. It's pretty hard to tell a guy right to his face that he doesn't have the right to be open about his sexuality.

Now, as far as the allegation that he's a Hillary plant? He's the chairman of the National Military Veterans, which happens to be supported by Hillary Clinton. A retired general a member of an organization called "National Military Veterans"? I'm shocked I tell you, shocked.

Apparently we live in an age where we're not even allowed to be members of groups that support our cause. If we're to join any group, apparently we're to check every single member's background to make sure there could never be an argument for conflict of interest. This is an absolute disgrace, and it's pretty obvious that the Republicans are really stretching on this one.

At least somebody in the media actually gets it though, as evident by this headline: Gay YouTube General a Hillary Plant - So What?

I couldn't have said it better myself. Hillary's support is so wide and omnipresent, that it would be almost impossible to find someone that isn't tied to her campaign somehow. I could pick 5 random guys off the street and have them ask questions during a debate, and it's pretty likely that at least one of them would be a Hillary supporter. Face it folks: she's that popular. If you had her massive support, you wouldn't have to spend your time worry about her supporters. It's that simple.

For any of you out there that might be getting discouraged by all these bottom of the barrel tactics, I'd like to refer you back to the Grassroots Hillary Oath. We are going to win this folks, and there's nothing they can do to stop us.

Flipper TV: Exposing the Republican Front Runners

Folks, with the competition getting fierce these days where Hillary is getting smeared from all angles, we're always trying to get dirt on the other candidates and catch them in uncompromising situations. Well it looks like the Democratic Party had the same idea, and they actually followed around Republicans on the campaign trail in disguise as supporters, in order to catch them in their most embarrassing moments. This is the most genius idea yet, and we're a bit jealous that we didn't think of it first.

This morning we received an e-mail from Mike Gehrke, Research Director for the Democratic National Committee:

Dear VFHO,

I've got something for you.

For a few months, we've had Democratic Party "trackers" recording hundreds of hours of Republican candidates in the field. From event to event, we've got footage of some pretty revealing moments. Some are regular Americans putting a candidate on the spot with a tough question. Others are blatant contradictions. A lot of it is just the standard candidate stump speech.

The footage isn't high quality, but it's straight from the field -- and there is a lot of it. Since there's more than my team can realistically process, we've decided to throw it up on the web and put the Party's most powerful asset -- you -- to work.

As soon as a tracker leaves an event in Iowa, New Hampshire, South Carolina, or wherever they're taping a Republican candidate, they'll head to a computer and upload it directly to a special section of Democrats.org called FlipperTV. That means you'll have a chance to go through the latest video the same time we do.

Nobody has ever done anything quite like this before, but with the Internet giving ordinary Americans like you access to the tools you need to change an election with the click of a mouse, we need to make sure you have everything you need to do just that. The video is yours -- you can just let us know what you find, or you can take it, re-mix it, add music, and make your very own ad out of it. It's up to you.

Take a look:

http://www.democrats.org/FlipperTV

Back in March, I told you about our program to hold the GOP accountable for everything they say on the 2008 campaign trail. We launched a website dedicated to the Republican presidential hopefuls, and created a rapid response group in PartyBuilder that people like you could join to get the latest campaign news.

This video is part of that program -- and part of the work that the Democratic Party is able to do because of your help.

Take a look at the video, forward your favorite clips to your friends, and make a contribution of $20 to keep this and other programs going strong through the 2008 election:

http://www.democrats.org/FlipperTV

What are Rudy Giuliani, Mitt Romney, John McCain and Fred Thompson telling voters in Iowa and New Hampshire?

I'll give you a hint -- it's not what they're going to say in tonight's Republican debate.

As the Democratic Party's Research Director, I spend a lot of time watching what the candidates say when they aren't on CNN or Fox News. Believe me, they're like entirely different people when they're speaking to just a few dozen people in Des Moines or Manchester and don't think the cameras are rolling.

But don't just take my word for it -- watch the video yourself, and let us know right away if you find something noteworthy:

http://www.democrats.org/FlipperTV

People like to say that Democrats have a tactical advantage because we're better at using the Internet. Let's show them just how far ahead we actually are.

Let's get started,

Mike Gehrke
Research Director, DNC

P.S. -- Be sure you join the PartyBuilder group on that page so we can get you the latest clips everyone finds.

This is just the ammo we need in order to expose these con artists for what they are. We haven't had a chance to view all of the videos yet, but if they meet up to Mike Gehrke's description of them, they're sure to be a laugh riot. This is precisely what we needed, and it couldn't have come at a better time.

When you get criticized by Republicans, you must be doing something right

The unrelenting smear campaign against Hillary Clinton has been going on for as long as she has been running, but now the Republican candidates are starting to get in on it too. But for different reasons. You see, the media has had somewhat of a personal vendetta against Hillary right from the start, and they've done everything they possibly can to run her good name through the mud. They do this for ratings, and they love to bring someone up only to tear them down. More importantly, they thrive on chaos, and it doesn't matter to them if our nation suffers because of it - that's just more money for them to make on the backs of the working class. But the Republican candidates do it out of fear. They do it because it plays to their quickly diminishing base, in hopes that they can somehow rally the few loyal Republicans who haven't seemed to wake up to the fact that we need some change in America.

usatoday.com has an interesting article about this phenomenon, and it really speaks to just how low Republicans will steep when they're desperate and out of ideas. Instead of focusing on the issues as Hillary has done all along, it seems that Mitt Romney and Rudy Giuliani's secret recipe for success is to accuse the other of mimicking Hillary Clinton. First of all, I have to take issue with someone comparing a candidate to Hillary as an insult. She has put forth numerous proposals that she will enact as President, many of which address the growing problems we will soon be facing as a nation, and she has more experience in the White House than all of the candidates combined. Second of all, this really gets down to the core of what the Republicans are all about: empty rhetoric, an over reliance on smear tactics as a result, and a growing trend of separation politics that attempts to marginalize those with opposing viewpoints. I say bring it on Republicans. Bush's approval rating is at a historic low, and if the Republican strategy is more-of-the-same with an dismissal of new ideas, then this will most certainly set the stage for an inevitable victory for Hillary Clinton.