There was a special circle of Clinton hell reserved for people who had endorsed Obama or stayed on the fence after Bill and Hillary had raised money for them, appointed them to a political post or written a recommendation to ice their kid’s application to an elite school. On one early draft of the hit list, each Democratic member of Congress was assigned a numerical grade from 1 to 7, with the most helpful to Hillary earning 1s and the most treacherous drawing 7s. The set of 7s included Sens. John Kerry (D-Mass.), Jay Rockefeller (D-W.Va.), Bob Casey (D-Pa.) and Patrick Leahy (D-Vt.), as well as Reps. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), Baron Hill (D-Ind.) and Rob Andrews (D-N.J.).
What is amazing is to read the quotes of the Axis of Evil, and realize how almost totally wrong they were about our president.
Let's look:
Former Sen. John Kerry
“Barack Obama can be, will be and should be the next president of the United States. … Who better than Barack Obama to bring new credibility to America’s role in the world and help restore our moral authority?” (Jan. 10, 2008)
Yeah, Guantanamo Bay is still open, we have a drone kill list, and neither our friends nor enemies think we will use effective force or diplomacy to advance our interests or impede our enemies (as if we even recognize we have enemies! Just friends we haven't made yet, right?).
Wow. This display of Kerry's brain power would explain a lot.
Sen. Ted Kennedy
“I believe there is one candidate who has extraordinary gifts of leadership and character matched to the extraordinary demands of this moment in history. … I’m proud to stand with him here today and offer my help, offer my voice, offer my energy, my commitment to make Barack Obama the next president of the United States.” (July 28, 2008)
He's probably lucky he didn't live to see what he got.
Sen. Jay Rockefeller
“Barack Obama is the most qualified person—Democrat or Republican—to lead our country in the face of enormous challenges—the very real threat of terrorism, economic uncertainty and instability at home and abroad.” (Feb. 29, 2008)
Yeah, thank God for President Obama. Otherwise we might have al Qaeda holding cities in Anbar province, a dead ambassador lying in a pool of his own blood in a ransacked and burned diplomatic outpost; record number of people out of the work force and health regulations so confusing and fluid that nobody knows if they can afford to invest in their business; and a Middle East and Far East simmering and boiling with new wars and rumors of war. Oh, and the Obama administration says income inequality is horrible after five years of their leadership.
But by all means, thank God for President Obama. The planetary core didn't explode and fling us in to space, so there's that on his record.
Sen. Claire McCaskill
“This is a man who has incredible intellectual heft … who is not afraid to figure out a new and different way to tackle problems … Only once in a generation does a leader come along that has that particular gift. … Barack Obama is, I believe, right for the country this time.” (Jan. 13, 2008)
Yeah, not since Jimmy Carter has a politician assumed we cause our problems abroad and that spending more money is the solution to our domestic problems. Wow. Talk about thinking outside the box.
Sen. Bob Casey
“This campaign is a chance for America, a chance for America to chart a new course … I believe in my heart that there’s one person who's uniquely qualified to lead us in that new direction, and that is Barack Obama.” (March 28, 2008)
Stagnation at home and lack of respect abroad. That is a new course, you have to admit. Heck of a job in predicting, Casey. Check your heart.
Sen. Patrick Leahy
“We need a president who can reintroduce America to the world and actually reintroduce America to ourselves … I believe Barack Obama is the best person to do that.” (Jan. 17, 2008)
Yeah, President Obama reintroduced an America that reads foreigners' mail and listens to their phone calls; and did the same with Americans on top of his introduction of executive legislative powers that everybody feared Bush would develop to create a Bushtatorship.
Although Barack Obama may surely be the best person to have done that, I'll admit.
Rep. Chris Van Hollen
“I enthusiastically support Senator Obama. He will be our nominee, and now it's very important that we all unite behind his candidacy. He has energized millions of new voters, and if we can sustain that momentum by coming together, he will be the next president of the United States.” (June 4, 2008)
Energized. Manufactured. Whatever. What difference, I wise woman once opined, does that make at this point?
But Van Hollen comes the closest in good predictive powers by focusing on campaigning success. That our President can do.
Former Rep. Baron Hill
“If we are going to develop real solutions for Hoosier families, for America's families, we have to move past the partisan gridlock. I believe both Senator Clinton and Senator Obama want to do that and I believe both are formidable candidates. But, I also believe that only one of them truly can. … I have decided to support Senator Obama.” (April 30, 2008)
Hahahahahahahaha!!! Help our families? Hah!! Move past partisan gridlock??!! Stop!! You're killing me!! Clearly the funniest of the lot of sevens.
Former Rep. Rob Andrews
“There have been signals coming out of the Clinton campaign that have racial overtones that indeed disturb me. … I had a private conversation with a high-ranking person in the campaign … that used a racial line of argument that I found very disconcerting.” (June 3, 2008)
Yeah, that hurt. Playing the Race Weapon is reserved for use against Republicans. There's a "red line" against using them in blue-on-blue contests. Unforgivable.
And thus ends the review of how our best and brightest--who are also in deep doodoo with Hillary(!)--in 2008 saw the potential of hope and change embodied in that blank slate of a man upon whom everyone drew their deepest hopes for change in our future.
I really think Hillary needs to dial them up to 11.
