This is a very hard letter for me to write, so please bear with me.
I’d like to ask you, with all due respect and humility, to step down as a Democratic Candidate for President of the United States.
Please understand this is not because I believe you can not or should not lead this nation. Please understand that I find you qualified, capable, and worthy. Please also understand I want nothing more than to see a female as the leader of the free world. I would be pleased and honored if you were that female.
However I am finding, right or wrong, many citizens of this country seem to react to you on an emotional level. Emotional, not practical. They can’t seem to see your record. They can’t seem to see your policy. They just hear or read “Hillary” and venom or praise spews.
I thought that with your candidacy, would come reason. I thought that you would be able to get a fair shake by main stream media, by voters, by sexists, and by soccer moms. I thought over time people would begin to see that you really are an effective politician.
I was wrong.
Tonight, I’m typing as I watch you speak in El Paso, Texas. I’m sad. There really is no other way to put it-I’m sad.
I truly believed you would be the best person for the job, and I had this nagging thought in the back of my mind that is now at the forefront. The thought that drove me on Super Tuesday to Vote for Senator Obama and the thought that is the driving force as I write tonight: Senator Hillary Clinton divides this country.
It’s not fair. It’s not right. And under just about ANY other circumstance I would go to the mat for you. However we are a wounded and deeply divided nation. We are a nation at war. We are a nation at odds with each-other. It’s ugly. I thought you could get people past it. I really did.
When I told myself it was gender that got people going, I refrained from asking and wanting you to step aside. Simply on principle, I wanted to see you run and win because they said it couldn’t be done. Because it was my belief, this was all about being a girl.
It’s not, and I was wrong.
I firmly believe while the gender issue has given you a handicap I hope we all one day overcome, it is NOT the reason people have a gut reaction to you or your campaign or your legacy.
Enter the Senator from Illinois, and what I think could be your true legacy. If you were to step aside now, shockingly early and shockingly un-Hilllary-like, you could galvanize an entire nation behind your party. If you were to throw your weight, and your tremendous political clout behind Senator Obama you could still change the world and make your mark in a way no one would expect and everyone would admire.
I don’t want to see you throw in the towel because the fight is too hard or the mountain too tall. I am asking you to throw it in because history is on the line. It is not the history either of us expected, however it is an equally important, momentous, earthshaking change in this country we sorely need.
Do something no one would ever expect. Do something extraordinary. Do something that changes politics as usual and changes history.
I could have never predicted having to chose between what my husband called “the lesser of two goods, not the lesser of two evils” when it came time to cast my vote.
It was agonizing.
But in the end, with no major policy difference and valid reasons on BOTH sides, I had to go with the candidate who I thought could best bring our nation back together. Who could cross party lines and gender lines and racial lines.
I wanted it to be you, but it’s not. For some reason you still get people very riled up, and not in the good way.
There is no way around it-it sucks. But after 7 years of nothing but fighting and head shaking and feeling like we’re living in two Americas, I can’t do it again. Not even if my team is in office.
I really hate asking you to do this, but I want you to please step down and let this nation heal.
We’ve been too angry for too long and your history and your name brings a suitcase of anger to the White House front door.
With the full weight of the Clinton name, behind the scenes, your true legacy could be written. With the full weight of the Clinton know-how you could help orchestrate the next chapter in American history where an African-American leads our nation.
It is this time in history your nation needs you.
As nation’s go, ours has never been one to do things the way we predict. Who could have seen when we finally get our first, legitimate, female front runner we’d see our first, legitimate front runner of color?
Our nation and it’s people need you to do what is best for this country. We need you to be true to what you say on the stump and bring us back together.
If you firmly believe that there is still time for you to change the hearts and minds of those rude and stubborn Americans who are voting with their gut when they see “Hillary” on the ballot-then please, prove me wrong. I’ll be at the Democratic National Convention come August and I’ll hold up my Hillary sign loud and proud and fall in line.
But I think you’ve tried. You tried with everything you had to overcome that Clinton-emotional reaction. Here we are, moving into Texas and Ohio and Pennsylvania-and it’s not you winning over hearts and minds, it’s the Senator from Illinois.
Let’s end the division in this country now. Right now. Let’s start with the Democratic Party early and provide a united front against the GOP months ahead of schedule.
Let’s take back this country for the people, with you playing a much different role than you envisioned.
Make history. Make us one. Step down now.
Sincerely,
Erin Kotecki Vest
voter, mother, woman, feminist, writer, dreamer, and Hillary fan
*edited on Valentine’s Day* want to yell at me in person over this letter? Sign up to webchat with me on ooVoo Friday, Feb. 15th from 930am PST to 1130am PST. Hell, I’ll even throw in more time just to take your call
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Dear Erin:
Your letter to Hillary Clinton just made me so sad.
Dear heart, surely — surely — you do not truly believe that Barack Obama will unite this country?
Erin, there are really significant reasons why the country is divided – really significant reasons. And nothing Barack Obama says or does will make them go away.
And the sad truth is that he cannot deliver on that promise. Let me explain why:
As I’m sure you know, abortion is one of the most biggest issues dividing our country right now.
Obama had a chance to take a stand – or even just attempt to exert some of the persuasive prowess he says he possesses – with respect the issue when he was in the state legislature in Illinois.
Instead, he bailed, voting present just like every other politico.
No “change” in the way legislative business was conducted. No uniting around a compromise. No bringing together of political parties. Not even an attempt.
Now, I don’t blame him. The question of legalized abortion is a very fundamental and deeply held belief that has divided in this country for years.
But since he clearly can’t deliver consensus on that issue, how can he do what he’s promising – what you hope for with all your heart – which is to bring the country together?
Another explosive issue that tends to divide Republicans from Democrats is gay marriage.
Obama’s for it, and I think most Democrats would think rightly so. But a lot of Republicans are against it – oftentimes for deeply held religious reasons – and there’s nothing that Barack Obama can do to change that.
“Family values” Republicans want drug users and drug dealers in jail. Period. Obama wants to legalize marijuana and to ensure that there is no disparity in sentencing guidelines with respect to crack.
They strongly oppose raising taxes – yet Obama’s already proposed lifting the $97,500 cap on Social Security.
Erin, these Republicans are not going to change their mind on this. They are really serious and fundamental beliefs for them. Candidly, it’s insulting and disprespectful for Obama to think that they would.
It breaks my heart that you are so pained by the disunity in our country and need this so badly.
But, Erin, there is no Santa Claus.
You may find other, more legitimate differences between the Obama and Clinton campaigns that will help you to choose between the two candidates.
But please – please – do not choose one candidate over the other based on the mistaken belief that it will lead national unity because, no matter how much you want to believe it will happen, it won’t happen.
Dear Erin,
Your letter touched me deeply and I felt the same reasons deeply. And I do plan to vote for Obama if he is allowed to be our choice.
But, the overwhelming urge to heal the divisions that rive our country cannot be fulfilled yet. We cannot be whole if the price is our soul. We cannot embrace philosophies that hold in contempt that which makes us human and makes us compassionate and caring.
The other side doesn’t want reconciliation, they want Victory, by any means. They really are bad guys, not just misguided citizens who can be educated to see the light.
If Barack or Hillary embraces them, it will be like clasping a snake to your bosum or letting the wolf come in the door.
The civil war is real and as much as we wish it, we cannot stand down from the battlements as our very freedoms are at stake.
Sorry, Hillary must continue in it. But she must proceed fairly.
At this point, I have to question whether Hillary is motivated by good intentions. She tries hard, but she forces herself and her ideas, resulting in disdain and divisiveness. There’s a place for her in government, just not as a Presidential candidate. If she could identify a forum where she could capitalize on her strengths and minimize her weaknesses, she’d be a lot more successful (and honored for it). But her recent behavior is showing me a side of her that I never appreciate seeing in any politician, and I hope she hasn’t tarnished herself so badly that it undermines her appeal **permanently** I do hope she bows out, the sooner the better.
Oh, shut the hell up, you wussies. She’s only 2 points behind and it’s only halftime.
And for the love of Almighty Ceiling Cat quit sucking Obama off for being a “Uniter” (sound familiar?). It’s disgustingly transparent.
The sad thing is she won’t step down because for the Clintons it’s not about what’s good for the nation, or even the party–it’s about winning at all costs.
Ah! Never have I seen such well-thought out comments on such a divisive subject. Well, this is a quiet example of what Obama can do..bring intelligent and intellectual discourse as a means of reaching a solution, unlike Hillary’s magic bag of solutions she has gatherd in her whatever number of years in the White House and Senate. Not every problem in the future have a solution in the past or present. The world is too complicated and complex for one to believe so. If thats the case, Iraq war would have been over in a year and you wouldn’t have accummalated credit card debt!!
Am from India and truly find Obama enlightening. In our own country, we have had dynasty politics (Nehru–Indira Gandhi–Rajiv Gandhi–now, its Rahul Gandhi). Trust me they wont let power go off their hands as they get too used to it. And make every other person competing look ineligible to even compete. Exactly what Hillary is trying to do with Obama. If she is talking experience on the other hand, she will get trounced by McCain who has two full generations of experience than her!!
Hillary Clinton is absolutely divisive. To say that she is not is to put your head in the sand. I have been a registered Democrat all of my adult life; I am 42 and have waited all my life for a woman to have a viable shot at the White House, but Hillary does not represent me. In fact, it’s become abundantly clear that she will only represent her own ambitions and will cross every ethical boundary to do so. She is already calling half of the country “insignificant” because they didn’t support her bid strongly enough. Barack Obama is our only hope in November, and ladies if you haven’t done so already, it’s time to get behind him.
Both I and my housemate (both white women late 30s) agree 100% with your call for Senator Clinto to step down.
For some reason you still get people very riled up, and not in the good way.
This applies to us too. We are so riled up by Senator Clinton’s approach to this campaign and our lived experiences of the Clinton years (NAFTA? the “Personal Responsibility” act whose acronym I can’t quite remember? total failure on promised universal healthcare? ugh UGH) …
Anyway, we are so riled up that we will NOT VOTE in the general election if she is the Democratic nominee. My housemate is a registered Democrat, I am not registered further left than Democrats. Actually my housemate is also threatening to vote for McCain. She disagrees with him across the board, but she is that disgusted with Clinton.
Please oh PLEASE Senator Clinton, please step down. Please. Please please please.
You have the correct request of Hillary, but for the wrong reasons. Hillary is nothing but power hungary. She has done nothing as Senator except earmark money that didn’t need to be spent. What has she ever done as Senator that gives her the experince to lead the country? I’m tired of hearing of her experience. She has no relavant experience except for playing the political game. She couldn’t control her husband and yet she is going to contol the country. Come on, get real. Admiring her, or supporting her because she is a woman is just wrong. Just like her husband, if her mouth is moving, she is lying!
Yesterday I voted for Obama, and I cried all the way home.
I believe that at this time, Hillary Clinton is the most qualified person to lead our country. But I also believe that given the current climate where right-wing ideologues and opportunists (Limbaugh, Coulter, et al) stymie progress by grinding good people into the dirt, President Hillary Clinton would spend her term fending off calls for impeachment over ridiculous, trivial matters. Heck, if they’ll even go after a war hero like McCain, they’re beyond sick and evil. But unfortunately, they are also loud, unwavering and tenacious. She would not be able to accomplish anything because though small in number, Congress panders to them.
I also believe that since the extreme Right hates John McCain, they will stay home in an election that pits him against Obama. But a McCain vs Clinton contest would bring them out in droves to vote against her, adversely effecting propositions in many states. Better that they should just stay home.
We have much work ahead to undo the disastrous Bush legacy. The only hope we have of forwarding a liberal agenda lies with Obama who is not carrying all the baggage Clinton is carrying.
I have taught Women’s Studies for over 25 years. The opportunity to elect the first woman president is beyond historic to me…it’s personal. I know one little vote in a primary doesn’t count for much, but it meant the world to me. And circumstances didn’t allow me to vote for Hillary, for the good of our country. And I offer Senator Clinton an apology for that.
Should she bow out? On the one hand, it’s a ridiculous thought. Imagine if John Kerry and John Edwards were battling it out this closely…no one would even think to suggest that one of them bow out. But on the other hand..yes. Please bow out, get back to work in the Senate, and lead us from there where you are less vulnerable to the Right Wing Conspiracy against you.
I will be much more forgiving of our foremothers who faced touch choices during the battle for suffrage, like whether or not to support the 15 Amendment! It’s easy to see how things should have been done with 20-20 hindsight.
It has been really interesting to see how many dems turned on her when Obama stepped in and it’s odd that they are using the same arguments the republicans used before. None of which were valid.
She is not Bill and it’s sexist to say so. She has indeed had a thirty five year career starting when she organized her first community service with other students who provided daycare for free to immigrant workers.
I also find it interesting that when it’s time for dems to step up and stop bowing to the republicans they go with the new guy instead of the ONLY woman we have had who is qualified to get this country out of this mess.
Me? I see Obama running a “divisive” game on her when in fact if he had waited to run, every single one of us would have been squarely behind her. He is only 47 and has a lot to learn in this game…sooo why not go as her vp, then we could potentially have sixteen years of dems!! Why on earth HE ran against her right now thus splitting the party and then say SHE is divisive?? It’s beyond me.
This woman has been done a terrible diservice when other dems by into the same rhetoric the republicans threw at her.
I won’t vote Obama now because far, far too many people are falling for an old republican trick here and IF he loses?? Then he’s lost us all the White House. Together on the same ticket nobody could have beat them. AT ALL.
And it’s interesting to note that his “sudden” rise coincided with being right before super Tuesday. Every single major media news network head has contributed hundreds of thousands to his campaign. Ever wonder HOW it was that he was suddenly the “angel” and she the “devil” for no reason out of the blue???
Ron Paul is suing saying that four or five media moguls served up their choices in this election and all the sheeple had their opinion manipulated. It sure looks that way.
He’s not ready in the middle of this mess….but, if people don’t stop letting the media who are literally selling you who is good and who is not based on what the rich fat cats think we should have then they win! And sooner rather than later we get more republicans in the White House…why are republicans sitting his caucuses??? And they ARE but, they won’t vote for him in the general…hmmmmm?
I will sit this one out if they get away with this manipulation of the media and our choice is not really a choice at all. I will write her name on the ballot in protest of their crap even if she loses the nomination.
Please do not step down. America is in for a bad wake up call if this election keeps going in this direction! The youth of this country can learn alot from many of us who have lived through many things in our lives that they have not experienced yet. Don’t listen to this “junk” Hillary!! Press On!! We are right behind you. (Last time I looked – we never had a first lady say – this was the first time they were proud of America! Real patriotic. That is the ignorance of race and youth- not exprience. Thought this was not about race- unify the country then- why because someone’s husband is doing well in the primaries, for the moment, do they feel we are a great country. Never heard Hillary ever say this, or Jackie Kennedy, or any one else!!!
Look at the comments above. What will this country turn out in the future! What a disappointment from our youth. We took voting seriously and would never talk so unrespectfully to our elders as these B.O. followers do!! Your parents would be embarrassed for you! And so is your country. This is not about unifying – this is division!!!!! And purely racial! If Hillary pulls this out somehow, will all of you B.O. supporters be as unified as the rest of us will be to our party– I think not! What a shame!
Ruth wrote: She is not Bill and it’s sexist to say so.
Okay, but I think it’s important to be clear and open about what’s actually going on. From what I see, Hillary Clinton is claiming a long experience base that for *sure* includes (not limited to, but for sure includes) what she did on the basis of her husband being in office.
No, she is not Bill — but given her experience-claims, I feel she needs to be held accountable for those claims in a consistent way. IMO it is wrong for her to claim that experience when it serves her and disown it when it doesn’t (eg, her recent comments about NAFTA and how she wasn’t in the Senate when it was passed).
I also think it’s important, when talking about sexism, to look at the full picture of how sexism operates and how it intersects with other systems of domination.
In Hillary Clinton’s case, she is a white heterosexual woman whose proximity to real institutionalized power was based in part on her white male husband’s centrality in it. This is an intersection of sexism (eg, why was it him and not her to begin with?) with her white privilege and heterosexual privilege.
She is standing not only in a vacuum as some sort of unraced universalized “woman.” Instead, she is a white hetero woman whose own experience-claims are partly based a specific intersection of sexism (where she is oppressed), racism and heterosexism (where she is privileged). This is a reality that to me is clearly visible in her trajectory and her claims — her actual location in these various systems of domination has concretely shaped her access to power and recognition.
Unfortunately, despite all the hard hard work of feminists of color who have for a long long time been articulating accurate feminist analyses that don’t take things in a vacuum … unfortunately the abstracting/universalizing/disconnecting perspective is still in operation in various places and has come into play for some supporters of Hillary Clinton. But I feel like a conversation about these things can’t just be about sexism alone but about the other areas too and how they intersect with patriarchy — if not, it is just plain inaccurate to reality, IMO.
I find it truly sad that you have chosen Mr. OBAMA’S ANOREXIC RESUME over HILLARY CLINTON’S SUBSTANTIAL CALL FOR REAL CHANGE. But I find it TRAGIC that you insist you care at all about Women’s rights. You will recall that Hillary Clinton bravely confronted Chinese Officials in 1995 and raising her lone brave true caring Feminist Voice shouted: WOMEN’S RIGHTS ARE HUMAN RIGHTS. Sen. Obama is a mere SHOWHORSE. I want a WORKHORSE with substance who understands that Women and Children’s issues are the key to the future. She’s proven herself. And you repay her by voting for a guy who has to borrow words to mesmerize his Cult followers of the feel-good Paris Hilton type of substance’….McCain will devour this poor little man in no time. Have you read T.S. Elliot’s THE HOLLOW MAN! Well, you got Him. And his self-importance and rock-star charisma is accompanied by arrogance and deep ignorance about issues that really affect families. He’s in it for the bucks and has a donated Rezko hous to prove it! Oprah, Rezko and suspended-sentence Teddy [of the Mary Jo drowning fame of ‘69[ will regret the next 4 years of repugnant presidency under Warlord McCain. Good Luck and may you stop being so NAIVELY MISGUIDED AS TO WHAT A REAL FEMINIST SHOULD BE VOTING FOR. You’ll know in 20 years ….
I completely agree. Step down, for you, me and everyone who believes in change and the possibility of bringing all of us together.
It’s strange to live in Canada and have to worry about US politics. Yet America’s policies affect the rest of the world. Americans seem to worry mostly about themselves, and sadly, also seem to be bound in a vicious cycle of being led by their media. It’s strange to ask anyone to step down, because it seems to be a basic human right in america to have the freedom to run, and the freedom to choose? I wished that the choices people finally make will be based on what they really know, instead of what is fed to them through their very flashy and emotionally manipulative media.
I am a 68 yr old white male feminist, who was also very much involved with the civil rights movement of the 60s and 70s. I have a scar above my right eye and a bullet hole in my left arm gained during this period, merely because I was supporting what was right. I was no “hero”, my involement was pre-ordained because I was “raised” by heroic parents who fought long before I did. What I did was merely a follow-up to their struggle for fairness and equality.
However, today I am totally dismayed and frankly “heartbroken” to see Black Americans voting along racial lines. I swore to doubters prior to the primaries that it would never happen, I argued that Black Americans were better and fairer than that!
As to the feminist aspect: I also have been a feminist since a child, starting with my mother(who was an accomplished pilot) not being able to join the WW11 “Women’s Ferry Corp” because she had a child (me). Men also were parents of course, but that was irrevelent. The fact she was denied, while knowing that she was as good as any, haunted her the rest of her life, but did not damper her activism at all. Merely made her more determined.
I married a feminist, a woman who well could have been my mother’s daughter in every aspect. She founded the first Women’s Political Caucus in our area of the South and brought me into the women’s movement of the 70s with the advent of the ERA. I have been involved since.
I gave speeches, campaigned, did all I could to get the ERA passed in an area of the country that was probably just as hostile to the ERA as it was to the Civl Rights Act. I again was only doing what was “right and Fair”. Again nothing heroic or noble, merely honoring my “up-bringing”.
I am nobody important, just a dismayed old man who has tried his best to support both racial minorities and women in their quest for equality. I have done so against, and in spite of, my own race and gender because my race and gender were the ones “holding both groups back”.
Today I see (with some noteable exceptions, like my wife and other very fair-minded women and blacks) both Blacks and “so called, self ordained feminists”, most of whom are too young to have been involved in either movement personally, demeaning and abandoning Hillary Clinton based on some so called “wonderous movement of change in the air”. I find it shocking, inexplicable, vacuous, and a true insult to all who have “paved the way” for any progess that has has been made for either women or Black Americans.
Hillary Clinton, in my opinion, has never done anything to deserve the horrendous treatment she has received from the press, the right, misogynists, certain blacks, and now “so called feminists”! She has tried (as her record proves) to do what is right for this country and ALL of its citizens. She has of course made mistakes but none to warrant the irrational “pounding” she has and is taking. Even with her mistakes, her record is proof that she has at least tried. When we really try, any of us will sometimes fail. Had we at least helped her fight for healthcare approx. 14 years ago, we might not have it as an issue today. She has never stopped trying, she is strong in the face of all odds, she is determined, and she is right about this country needing a leader, not an inspiration.
For me, perservering through the ad-hominem “beatings” she has taken and is taking (her clothes, she failed in her healthcare effort, she divides, her laugh, her emotions, her lack of fervor, her makeup, her wrinkles, ad finitum) is adequate proof that she is strong enough, determined enough, and certainly brilliant enough to “rescue” this “beaten up” country, if it is at all possible for anyone to do so following Bush!
In my opinion, women (especially those who call themselves feminists) should be doing everything possible to come to her aid, as opposed to calling for her to “roll-over and surrender”. That is what far too many women have historically been doing all of my 68 years.
It is amazing that today, so many women, such as some of those on this blog, still feel the need for some charismatic man, regardless of how empty his (shared and borrowed) rhetoric may be, to lead them out of the “wilderness”.
We men, all of us, have done nothing but screw things up for ages, while holding women and minorities at bay with empty promises!
It is high time we tried an era of Women’s governance. I cannot help but believe it will not only be much different, but also much better for all of us and the world.
I apologize for the length of this post and any statements that may seem offensive. I appreciate the opportunity to be able to share an old man’s views and frustrations.
A few foot notes, if I may, to try to explain my frustration:
1. 1961, Ithink the year Obama was born, is the year I got this scar over my eye at a Montgomery bus station. I was shot approx. 9 mo. later in ‘62 in a white citizens council “drive by” shooting.
2. The Civil Rights movment of that time was inspiring, brave and necessary. However, it was also very sexist: For confirmation do a search for Diane Nash, a young black woman, with beautiful green eyes, that I had a 2 yr crush on. She could have persuaded me to fight a windmill, not that hard considering my life-long “Don Quixote” complex, however she could have inspired me to “tilt” at them perphaps 2 at a time!
Diane, Ella Baker, and other young women were the “backbone”. Ella even accused MLK of being “afraid” to ride a bus. They also very much resented the sexism and movement dominance of the male, religious leaders (SCLC)
Please if you will, to verify that I am not just blowing smoke:
Do a search of Diane, Ella, Anne Moody, Gloria Richardson, Paula Gidding’s writings and see how they were used and “pushed back”.
In truth, then and now, regardless of their efforts and contributions women were still pushed to the back of the bus.
It is time for women to totally step forward! Not all women are white, black, brown, yellow or otherwise, However, women of any color are ALL WOMEN. It is time to stop subjugating yourselves to the “process”, and start subjugating the “process” to you.
Michael
I got all excited for a moment. I thought you were asking Senator Clinton to resign from office. That I’d like to see. NY needs a stronger Democrat who actually writes and reads legislation.
You wrote the letter I wanted to write.
Go on girl. I applaud you for this. May I copy this and post on Hillary’s website please?
I’ll sign your name and my name.
While I do not agree with some of the thoughts of the post, I do agree with the general sentiment. I am an independent voter and have been sick of the two party system for some time. Most of the time what I have seen is the same old politics from both sides and it disgusts me. I won’t vote for Hillary because she us part of that establishment. It’s not because she’s woman, it’s because she’s unethical and dishonest.
Obama has shown to be capable of massive ammounts of fundraising and alot of grass roots support. He’s shown that he is the heir apparent, while Hillary’s now on the ropes. Is it because she’s a woman? No, it’s because she’s more of the same tired establishment we’ve had to deal with time and time again.
And lastly, I for one want my son to be able to remember a president with a last name other than Clinton or Bush.
I wish people would be honest with themselves and just admit that they are not ready for awoman to lead this country.AS a black female i was never torn between Obama and Hillary,she was always and still is my choice.Obama is too green.This is for the presidency of this country.Obama is not a rock star and this is not a rock concert, but many people seem to be treating it as it is one.People speak of change, but true change would be a woman,because who has been at the helm all these years?Men of course.Women we get exactly what we deserve sometimes, because we will not support each other.We wont set aside the catty and petty ways long to enough make a statement.WE BLEW IT!No one deserves the nastiness that Hillary has endured.I have yet to see the media go after Obama.I for one will not be hopping on the Obama bandwagon,that is surely going to miss that curve and go over the edge,giving the republicans another 4 years.
Kristy points out the truth of Erin’s post! Kristy is a rabid hater of the Republican party and continues to support Clinton because she believes that Clinton would harm the conservatives more than Obama would.
Yeah, that’s a good plan; vote for a candidate because of the harm that candidate can cause. You might as well join Al-Qaeda at that point.
I notice you call yourself a writer – “nation’s” and “it’s” in the 6th and 5th to last paragraphs both should not have apostrophes.
Questions we need to ask ourselves as women-
1. What effect will it have on our country, and our daughters, if the first female President is one of the most polarizing figures in America?
2. Do you really want to spend the next four years with half the country disliking and trying undermine the President?
Frankly that’s how we’ve spent the last eight years, and while I might like Hillary, I’m tired of living in a country where half the people hate the President. Even if I;m not one of them, we still won’t get anything done.
This isn’t about women waiting a while longer, Hillary has cracked the door wide open, she’s demonstrated that America is more than ready for a female Commander In Chief.
This is about male versus female anymore, this is about who is the single best person to heal our nation, and restore our standing in the world.
And this is chance for Hillary Clinton to bow out with dignity and grace, and to be a true leader and to serve her country, by helping us create the world we all so desperately want.
I agree wholeheartedly. Hillary has a notoriously inflated ego that precludes her from reading the writing on the wall. It would be a testament to her personal growth if she were to retire from politics and live a life of quiet dignity for the few remaining years she has left. Bush will have left a destructive legacy 8 years in the making and it will take the work of all Americans coming together to rebuild from such a catastrophe. However, the brunt of the work to be done will be our so-called “leaders”. Let’s see if Hillary has what it takes to bring change and step down before further harm is done.
Hillary divides… but what woman wouldn’t? If not now, when will it be our turn. Shouldn’t the nation have to face its sexism at some point?
who the heck are you .. ???
you aren’t qualified to kiss hillary’s boots … so take your ‘humble’ request and shove it where your head already is….
I don’t even know where to begin. I didn’t read through all of the comments but I like to think that I have read through enough.
As a woman of color, I always think of women’s issues as well as “racial” issues when voting. And because I am a person of color, “race” almost always trumps gender. (I have put the word race or any form of it in quotes because by anthropological definition there is only one race — human. Any other definition is man-made.) This is something that “women of privilege” have forgotten time and time again when trying to give definition to what is “feminism.” (And frankly, older women of color are tired of tired of being told what to do. I don’t blame them.) Your issues, while they may overlap our issues, do not encompass all of our issues.
However, I spent many months debating which candidate to support. I did not instantly say that I would vote for Obama because of race. I made that decision about a week before my primary. It’s probably around this time that I saw a video of Chris Rock from the early fall discussing the candidates. He pointed out that white women have had the right to vote for almost 100 years and that if black people had had that right for the same amount of time, we would have had a candidate long before now.
Our country is severely divided currently. People want someone who can close the divide. But as long as there is division in the Democratic party (I say this because I personally do not believe that the Republican party can bring this about.), then there will continue to be an unsettling feeling in the country. If it was clear that the majority supported Senator Clinton at this point, then I would be behind her 100%. But as the votes stand right now, this is not the case. And looking at trends, it does not seem likely that she will be the victor.
And I have come to see that at this time, the US wants a man to be President — even if he is a man of color. And that fills me with hope. Because if they are willing to accept a man of color, I know that one day they will be willing to accept a woman as President.
This is laughable. Hillary is clearly the best candidate. You are suggesting to take the easy way out not fight for what you believe? This is really horrible. Really.
Shame on you,
Andrea
As a Republican who voted for Bush twice, I can tell you- you are right. I would vote for Barack Obama, but I will never vote for Hillary Clinton. She is a horrible, deceitful, manipulative, phony, elitist individual. She will drag this country further down the divisive path it is currently on.
I am one of many Republicans who think this country screwed up when we went to war. I want out of Iraq. Barack Obama offers this belief, while my party’s candidate does not. I will be forced to vote for John McCain if the Dems nominate Hillary Clinton.
Can this letter be turned into a petition? Can we mail copies upon copies to Hillary’s headquarters…we need this kind of calm. She would be SO much more effective as majority leader.
CAN MUSLIMS BE GOOD AMERICANS?** ********* ********* ********* *****
This is very interesting and we all need to read it from start to finish…… … and send it on to every American.. Maybe this is why our American Muslims are so quiet and not speaking out about any atrocities.. …
Can a good Muslim be a good American?
This question was forwarded to a friend who worked in Saudi Arabia for 20 years.
The following is his reply:
Theologically – no. . . .
Because his allegiance is to Allah, The moon God of Arabia .
Religiously – no. . . .
Because no other religion is accepted by His Allah except Islam (Quran, 2:256) (Koran)
Scripturally – no. . .
Because his allegiance is to the five Pillars of Islam and the Quran.
Geographically – no . . .
Because his allegiance is to Mecca , to which he turns in prayer five times a day.
Socially – no. . .
Because his allegiance to Islam forbids him to make friends with Christians or Jews.
Politically – no. . .
Because he must submit to the mullahs (spiritual leaders), who teach annihilation of Israel and destruction of
America , the great Satan.
Domestically – no. . .
Because he is instructed to marry four women and beat and scourge his wife when she disobeys him (Quran 4:34)
Intellectually – no. . .
Because he cannot accept the American Constitution since it is based on Biblical principles and he believes
the Bible to be corrupt.
Philosophically – no. . . .
Because Islam, Muhammad, and the Quran does not allow freedom of religion and expression. Democracy and Islam cannot co-exist. Every Muslim government is either dictatorial or autocratic.
Spiritually – no. . . .
Because when we declare ‘one nation under God,’ the Christian’s God is loving and kind, while Allah is NEVER referred to as the Heavenly father, nor is he ever called love in The Quran’s 99 excellent names.
Therefore …
after much study and deliberation. . Perhaps we should be very suspicious of ALL MUSLIMS in this country. – - They obviously cannot be both ‘good’ Muslims and good Americans.
Call it what you wish…
it’s still the truth. You had better believe it. The more you understand this, the better it will be for our country and our future. The religious war is bigger than we know or understand. . …
And Barack Hussein Obama,
a Muslim, wants to be our President?
You have GOT to be kidding! Wake up America! Obama even says if he wins the election, he will be sworn in on
the Quran— not a Bible!
Footnote:
He was sworn in on the Quran for his current office and he refuses to pledge allegiance to the United States or put his hand his heart when the National Anthem is played!!!
The Muslims have said they will destroy us from within…..Hello! !!! Having a Muslim president would seem to fit the bill! Would you trust this man with our national secrets?????
I think she should step down not for any of the reasons in your letter but because Obama would be a better President then her. Period.
He’s the better person for the job and she’s proving it more and more each day.
PS. Paul, you’re a fool.
I completely agree with you. Hillary’s defiant stance on this race is going to tear apart the democratic party and cause both her and Obama to become the losers. Obama galvanizes people, all people, black, white, women, men. Pretty much everyone who is tired of the Political BS that has taken over this country for the past 8 years.
I will tell you my opinion on why Clinton is polarizing the people and not galvanizing them. It’s because Clinton with all her “mis-speakings” and half-truths has everyone believing she is no better than the assclowns who are running things now.
For me, whenever I hear Hillary boast about her “experience” I really can’t help but think she is really saying, “hey guys, I sold out to big business already, I’m just like Dubya!”
This is why I can never give my vote to her. These last 8 years have shown us just a glimpse of what a morally and ethically corrupt office can do, and I for one cannot in good faith or mind ever vote for someone who reminds me more of Dubya than Bill.
Exactly. With a failed war, a bad economy, and high gas prices, Bush is handing the election over to the Dems on a silver platter. But Hillary has only her best interest in mind and NOT the Democratic party.
Do we really need someone who embellishes their experience? One who embellishes trips to war torn nations? For Gods sake Sinbad was on that same flight and said the only emergency was where they were going to have dinner that night!
I liked Bill for the eight years he was Pres but he pulled some silly stuff too. Remember the meaning of the word “is” fiasco? Or the blow job in the oval office? Yes, he was a good President but he did do this stuff. He did!
So now Hillary wants a turn. Do we really need 8 years of Bill, followed by 8 years of George Bush, followed by 4 years of Hillary, followed by 4 years of Jeb? (just predictions of course). Let’s get some new blood in there for goodness sake!!!!
Obama is the person for the job. Hillary just can’t stand the idea that she lost and is trying to steal it through Super Delagates. Shame shame shame.
Come on guys!!! What are you talking about???
You really want a black stuff in the WHITE gouse??? For God sake! It is not the black house. Go, Hilary: you’ll make it!!!
Way to go Vangogh! racist all the way. Black or white, male or female should not matter. I want a statesman(and for those of u who are blinded by political correctness “man” means human) Sexist means we let a person’s gender influence our opinion before we listen and race by the color of their skin or the way in which a person communicates(expressions and heritage). While sex and race due make us different and rightly so its the inherent hate and mistrust we can do without. Hillary has a lot of baggage that most of us don’t want to deal with. Obama has proven to be quite the statesman in fact and has done well in recent challenges.
I have never seen a love affair with a politician like I have with Senator Obama. The Today Show’s Ann Curry was blushing as she recapped her interview with Obama. The look on her face, the smile and twinkle in her eyes reminds me that it’s possible for a grown woman to have a crush like a school girl, and without any means to stop it from showing.
Its no wonder the media is pushing so hard for Hillary to resign, they cannot imagine going on without him…and it looks very possible if she doesn’t quit soon. Don’t believe what you read/hear. Hillary Clinton has very good odds of winning this race, with our without the media.
Sorry ladies, your dashing “Barry” has peaked. It’s time to dust off the old photos of George Cloony and hope that he enters into politics as a canidate some day.
Funny stuff Greg. But your statement should have read:
“Hillary Clinton has very good odds of STEALING this race, with our without the media, BY CONVINCING, LYING TO, BLACKMAILING, OR GIVING HAND JOBS TO SUPER DELAGATES.”
I’m notracist, I share my own thoghts: WE DON’T NEED A BLACK STUFFIN OUR WHITE HOUSE. PERIOD!!!
NO BLACK IN THE WHITE HOUSE!!!
I am going to make it short and cute. Too dump to response to your blog….:)
Vangogh John — What a simple mind you must have. Unable to see past the color of a person’s skin.
You sir, and people like you set this nation back hundreds of years. It’s quite sad.
Sigh. I do believe you’re right. She does divide this country, and the last thing we need is another division. However, I don’t know what you would be hoping for in Hillary Clinton stepping down; Obama divides us too, and so does McCain.
It may or may not seem like it to you, but let me share with you my personal experience in the general response to the candidates – all of the major ones, republican and democratic alike.
When asked about Obama, a lot of the people I’ve met said “Hell no, I ain’t electing no black towel-head to run our beautiful country” – that particular line is from a sworn democrat, no less. Another one about Obama is “He’s too weak, he’ll never get anything done” and you should SEE these two democratic opinions go up against each other. It’s citizen warfare. The people who like him, versus these people that don’t, is even worse.
As for Mrs. Clinton, the bad opinions range from “No Women For President” to “Hillary’s a crazy bitch” and the good range from “She’s stronger than Obama” to “I think she’s an excellent role-model for all women”… and again, pitted against each other, these opinions form brutal divisions. Opinions about Hillary pitted against opinions about Obama create yet another division.
The democratic party is at war with itself as a whole.
THEN comes McCain. McCain, in his republican fire and rigor, scares some democrats while others, distraught over the democratic craziness , have decided to vote for him based on the idea that the democratic party is so tangled that its hopeless. Republicans are the only ones not divided, not upset. They seem bemused that the democratic party is in such a state of disaster, and are resting comfortably, perhaps with the knowledge now the whoever wins on the democratic side, the division present in the nation will work in their favor. I can’t blame them, I would be too.
Thank you for writing what I feel. I feel Hilary’s ambition and ego are more important to her than her patriotism. Why aren’t politicians asked to put the good of the nation before their own ambitious goals?
I am tired of having politicians who mudsling and create negative campaigns in order to scare people to vote for them. Hilary is not an honest person, she is not a tested leader and she is not going to inspire this country to come out of these dark days we are currently in. When we had the Great Depression, we didn’t need another mudslinging, slick talking politician, we needed someone who could inspire us to become a greater nation. I don’t think that Hilary’s divisive nature could ever bring a nation together and pull us out of the mire this President has left us in.
Thank you for writing this letter. I hope that more people seek it out and start to ask her gently to step down.
Anyways, we don’t need a black stuff in our “WHYTE HOUSE”
I don’t really understand you poeple: such a poor guy, from an african family and a Muslim background!!?? Bull chit! You really don’t want such a man to run our Country!!! If that was to happen, I’ll quit this country!
I think that obama should win. I know that Hillary Clinton has made alot of good disisions but Obamas are better.
try a little math with me.
senate is 49/49 with 2 independents – sanders and lieberman
233 dems to 202 reps
270 votes needed to win
233 + 49 = 282
202 + 49 = 251
plus 2 independents but probably
283 / 252
if everyone goes down party lines
and three from dc …
meaning that there is a slim 18 vote margin that if lost, means 4 more years of bush policies.
do you really think the entire democratic party would get behind sen. obama? i don’t think so.
will they all get behind sen. clinton? i’d say there are better odds with her, but i still don’t think so.
split ticket? let us pray.
it’s all going to come down to 18 votes. we really do need to get rid of this electorate.
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