Anti-Hillary Sentiment Tests Spiritual Principles

In the past few months, I have moved from generally worried that Hillary Clinton will be the nominee to full-on panicked that she will be. In this same period, I have moved from concerned that she might not win the White House if she were the nominee, to terrified that she will be President. [Note: Unlike most of the media, I do not assume that she will win the primaries. Stratified random samples of likely voters are not the same as real voters. I am still hopeful that the contrarian people of Iowa and New Hampshire will come to their senses.]

My spiritual and practical principles have kept me from ranting about this much in this blog. Why? Because I believe that wherever I put my attention and energy will bear fruit. So I should put my attention on what I want (peace, prosperity, sustainable development) not what I don’t want (war, poverty, global climate change–aka Hillary for President–hey, I wonder if her handlers considered that as a slogan “Hillary for President–war, poverty, global climate change!”).

I truly believe that one of the reasons that George Bush got (re-)elected President is the amount of energy that was focussed anti-Bush instead of pro-Kerry. The whole country was thinking Bush Bush Bush and so it happened.

Now I keep thinking Hillary Hillary Hillary. Here’s why I don’t want her to be the nominee:

• She’s for the war. She’s never stopped being for the war in Iraq and now she’s helping move along the war in Iran.
• She’s got no articulated position on how to address global climate change quickly and effectively as president. There’s no evidence that it is even in her top 10 issues.
• Her health care proposal could have been written by Republicans, it is a joke.
• There is no evidence that she has any closely held beliefs about anything–what does she care about except gaining power?
• She’s a “centrist” without having any appeal in the center–the worst possible combination. She really is Republican light but the Republicans and center hate her viscerally. So we’re forced to run a pro-Hillary (or anti Bush–no matter who the nominee is Democrats will run against Bush) campaign without being excited about anything she does.
• Nobody could galvanize and organize the Republicans like Hillary.

1. Now I am aware of the inherent contradictions in this piece and in the list above.
2. I’m equally afraid of Hillary winning and not winning in a general election–that I think makes some sense. Basically, she can’t be the nominee because both outcomes are bad either we get a Republican as President, or we get Republican-lite as President.
3. If being anti-something is such a powerful force, than that might be what gets her elected in the general election. And that’s true.
4. I can’t get the numbering to turn off in this blog so I’ll end it on this thought: if anything in this column resonates with you, go out right now and work really hard for John Edwards or Barack Obama and then when the first primary results are in, coalesce around the candidate that shows the most chance of beating Hillary. But please, concentrate on being pro-them instead of anti-her.