I first wrote back in June that Missouri Senator Claire MacAskill’s effort to distance herself from the President by skipping out on the DNC was “not a bad strategy.”
In July, I reported that Nancy Pelosi had essentially endorsed it as the “official strategy” of Congressional Democrats.
Now, it appears to be that anyone seeking to hold prominent political office in the future would do well to just steer clear of North Carolina next week.
Hillary Clinton is paying particularly close attention to this advice, and is going to err on the side of caution.
Not only will she be out of state. Not only will she be out of the country. She’s going to out of the hemisphere visiting the Cook Islands, off the coast of New Zealand. For the record, the Cook Islands are not historically known as an international power player.
Clinton’s decision to forego the DNC is making headlines. (h/t The Daily Caller)
Clinton’s departure prevents Obama from using her popularity to boost his outreach to swing-voting unmarried and married women.Instead, Obama has awarded a speaking slot to her husband, former President Bill Clinton. That could be risky, because relations between the two presidents have been frosty, and the former president may subtly undercut the current president.Clinton’s high-profile exit from the country and from party politics forcefully underlines her effort to distance herself from Obama’s waning political fortunes.But it also protects her fortunes, just in case she decides to run in 2016.She reportedly declined an informal offer from Obama’s top aide, Valerie Jarrett, to take over the vice presidential slot.
Since attending the DNC this year has been recognized within the Democratic party at the highest levels as essentially political suicide, it should come as no surprise that Hillary’s husband has been tapped to be a keynote speaker.
Obviously, the days of pursuing elected office are well behind former President Clinton. He can afford it.
Although typically reserved for the party’s rising star (recall Barack Obama’s keynote address at the DNC in 2004), it seems that no one who harbors aspirations of appealing to a broad electorate in the future is willing to associate themselves too closely with the President.
Can you blame them?
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