On Bulldozers

I want you to look very carefully at this photo of Hillary Clinton's victory speech last night in Philadelphia. Maybe it's hard to see; a larger, clearer pic can be seen here.

Hillary won this primary because of seniors (she won them 63-37) and white women (66-34). Obama won African-Americans by 9-1.

So Hillary's celebratory crowd should have been very white, and skewed older... but it doesn't. Look at this photo. It's Obama's demographic. This is an overwhelmingly young, multi-cultural crowd.

Hillary won fair and square, but these photos present an image that is a lie. She should be surrounded by white people, mostly women, much older than the attractive, enthusiastic twenty-somethings standing behind her.

It begs the question, do the American people really want another President who lies to us?

In what is probably her most famous quip from last night, Hillary said, "You know, some people counted me out and said to drop out. But the American people don't quit and they deserve a president who doesn't quit, either."

I think that statement, combined with the photos ripped from the "Wag the Dog" playbook, perfectly sum up the kind of presidency we can expect from HRC, which would not be a return to Clinton theatrics, but a continuation of Bush Bulldozing.

Clinton's dogged pursuit of the presidency is starting to feel like Bush's dogged pursuit of the war in Iraq. There's no way Clinton wins her war, or Bush wins his, without engendering great hatred from vast swaths of the American public. In fact, nearly 70% of our nation disapprove of Bush and this war (or something outrageously high), and yet he soldiers on.

Is Bush not the very embodiment of a President who doesn't know when to quit? He bulldozes on because he fiercely believes in his vision for what the world needs. Despite the protests of so many nations, and so many in his own nation, he soldiers on... because Americans deserve a President who doesn't quit?

Well, Hillary, we've had almost 8 years of a President who doesn't quit. The last thing this country needs is four more years of a President who doesn't know when to quit, who soldiers on despite the great harm it will inflict on our nation, who gracelessly fights even when there is no way to win this battle without a lot of blood and a lot tragic loss, not the least of which would be the destruction of the Democratic party, and whose end result feels less like a victory than a supreme, aching loss.

Photos that reflect an alternate reality? Promises to never quit when winning fair and square has long since ceased to be an option? The fact is, the American people deserve a President who knows when to quit. We've had 8 years of the alternative, and the monstrous devastation can be seen throughout the world. Do we really, really need to be told that after 8 years of Bush, what we need is another prophet who knows better than we do what is best for us?