Hillary Clinton and the Curse of Martha Coakley
You can’t fake the common touch.
Over at Instapundit, Glenn Reynolds asks: Is Hillary Clinton turning into Martha Coakley? It would be great for Republicans if she is.
The column being cited is by Kimberly Atkins of the Boston Herald:
Hillary Clinton better take notice before being Coakleyed
WASHINGTON — The Wisconsin primary — Hillary Clinton’s sixth loss in a row — was a warning shot across her bow: She’s at risk of becoming the national version of Martha Coakley.
Clinton is veering dangerously close to the fate Coakley famously suffered in the 2010 Massachusetts U.S. Senate race, when she took winning for granted and got the surprise of her life from populist Republican Scott Brown. Instead of trying to court the enthusiasm that has fueled Bernie Sanders’ current surge at the polls and in fundraising, Clinton is trying to kill it. And as the crucial April 19 New York contest looms, she can’t afford more mistakes.
“She has allowed a 74-year-old socialist from Vermont to beat her in lot of contests she should be winning. That’s a problem,” said Democratic strategist Scott Ferson. “If she loses New York, she’d be like Martha Coakley … on her way to being Jimmy Carter in 1980.” Readers will recall that the sitting president fought off a primary challenge by a late-surging Bay State U.S. Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, but emerged so battered that Ronald Reagan beat him soundly in the end. Clinton, too, will emerge victorious in July. But viciously attacking Sanders now could cost her voters she’ll need in November…
It doesn’t help that Clinton already was lagging in likeability — and that Coakley-like, she has spent most of this race aloof from voters, acting like the nomination is already hers.
That’s actually a very apt comparison. For those of you who didn’t follow the fall and fall of Martha Coakley, we covered it extensively here.
First, Coakley lost to Scott Brown.
- Coakley Supporters Fabricate Birther Accusation Against Brown
- Coakley Ignorant of Religious Exemption in Senate Health Care Bill
- Coakley Takes Slap Shot At Fenway Fans
Then she lost to Charlie Baker.
- How bad a candidate is Martha Coakley? This bad
- How bad a candidate is Martha Coakley? Boston Globe endorses Republican for Gov
A recent incident shows Hillary has as much of the common touch as Coakley.
Politico reports:
Clinton struggles to get through subway entrance
Hillary Clinton is just your average person — she can’t get those flimsy New York subway cards to work.
The former secretary of state was campaigning in New York City on Thursday when she rode the subway, but things did not go as smoothly as she probably hoped: It took her five tries to get the card to register.
Clinton, however, was undeterred, and she eventually made it through the entrance.
A New York senator from 2001 to 2009, Clinton mentioned that the shift from tokens to cards to board the subway occurred during her first term in office, according to a reporter riding with her on Thursday.
As Professor Jacobson said in 2014:
May a thousand Martha Coakleys bloom in the Democratic Party.
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Comments
Hillary has the common touch of a sledgehammer, except that a sledgehammer creates less pain when talking.
Hillary is much more adept at being a chameleon than Coakley. But their fates may end up the same.
“Mrs. Clinton, your base is revolting.”
“Tell me about it. One of them wanted to hug me today. Can you imagine?”
She hasn’t driven in decades. I doubt she’s shopped for groceries or paid her own bills during the same period