CLINTON vs. CLINTON?….Steve Clemons claims that Harry Reid is signaling to Hillary Clinton that if she decides not to run for president in 2008 he’ll give up the majority leader’s position to her in 2009. (Reid’s office denies this.) Ezra Klein, reading the tea leaves about a Hillary presidential run, says:
Folks in the know tell me that Bill [Clinton] is actually the least enthused about her candidacy, as he believes McCain will be the 2008 nominee and no Democrat can defeat him. I wouldn’t be surprised if Hillary, slowly realizing that her left flank is collapsing, may be grudgingly accepting Bill’s conclusion.
I have exactly zero high level sources to my credit here, but this really doesn’t sound right to me. McCain unbeatable? After eight years of a Republican presidency? Not only does that sound indefensible as a general proposition, but it doesn’t sound like Bill Clinton, either. He’s always struck me as the ultimate fighter, the guy who never gives up and always thinks there’s got to be a way to win.
In any case, I sure hope this is wrong. If Bill Clinton really has given up on 2008, it’s a bad sign. John McCain may seem like an affable guy when he hits the Daily Show or pops up on Good Morning America, but his foreign policy would be a gold-plated disaster. We just can’t afford another four years of Republican macho posturing in place of actually making progress against Osama and his buddies.
