September 2, 2012

Politico identifies "5 landmines" for the Democratic convention.

#1 is: Bill Clinton. 

I'd say Obama should not trust Bill Clinton. Hillary has too much to gain from an Obama loss.

The other 4 are:

2. "Rebuilding 'You didn’t build that.'" (Especially with Elizabeth Warren as a prime-time speaker. She's "a political novice who will be making her debut on the national stage," and whose personal goal is winning in Massachusetts, and thus in being much more liberal than the average American.)

3. "Actual class warfare." (The Occupy protesters, who might have once seemed to be boosting the Democratic Party, are taking it to the streets of Charlotte. What if there's something 1968-ish?! And then there's just the danger of various convention-goers saying something non-mainstream.)

4. "Not a sell-out audience." (And with extra tickets being given away, there's an unusual danger of hecklers and protesters.)

5. "Can Charlotte cut it?" It's pretty small and ill-equipped for a city hosting an event this size.

85 comments:

rehajm said...

There's a reason you don't invite Taylor Swift to your wedding...

The Crack Emcee said...

Bullshit - it's Clint Eastwood.

He was the only real thing encountered over the entire three days of the last convention.

Trying to neutralize his influence risks destroying themselves, while going toe-to-toe on pandering and empty platitudes is just par for the course.

I swear, it's like you guys have never engaged in politics a day in your lives,...

Farmer said...

The real danger is either A. Talking about Obamacare and alienating all the swing voters who hate it or B. Not talking about Obamacare and leaving everybody wondering what he's been doing for the past 4 years.

What else is he going to point to as a success? The bailouts? Killing terrorists (and a lot of civilians) by remote control? Assassinating bin Laden? See how bragging about that goes over with the Occupy crowd.

The Crack Emcee said...

Oh wait - you have - but you ENJOY being manipulated.

I forgot,...

Kansas City said...

Bill Clinton is a political pro. He did a great job speaking in 2008, and I would be shocked if he does not give another A performance. Sure, he would love to torpedo Obama if he could, but he has to do it without leaving fingerprints and the DNC is not the place where he can do that.

Warren as an unlikeable rookie is another story. She could flop. But she will be raised up by the liberal media if she does okay and hidden if she does bad.

Eric said...

The occupoopers never boosted the Democrats, which is why they disappeared in the media after a few rounds of focus group polling.

Eric said...

Sure, he would love to torpedo Obama if he could, but he has to do it without leaving fingerprints and the DNC is not the place where he can do that.

Just walking up to the podium invites comparison with Obama. I'm no great Clinton fan, but Obama doesn't fare well at all in the comparison.

Anonymous said...

What I heard from Chicago HQ is that Warren created messed up the re-election plans. They could not get her out of the schedule. VJ loves her. SO, POTUS loves her, too. David A. and P. and Jim M. wish that Warren was not in the schedule. They have done their best to make sure POTUS does not visit MA to campaign.

Sydney said...

Does reported agenda of emphasizing the "war on women" and Elizabeth Warren's economic philosophy strike anyone else as tone deaf? Or do I just live in a bubble?

Wince said...

Abortionpalooza is another landmine.

Eric said...

Does reported agenda of emphasizing the "war on women" and Elizabeth Warren's economic philosophy strike anyone else as tone deaf?

Marxism from a woman who makes almost a million bucks a year seems tone deaf to me, but I can't claim to understand Democrats.

theribbonguy said...

Pass the popcorn!

theribbonguy said...

Pass the popcorn!

Chip Ahoy said...

6. Politico. A media entity that does as much damage as good. A propaganda arm that makes as much news as it reports. Its direct association with the White House and its willingness to propound DNC talking points is actually damaging to itself and to the parties it seeks to assist.

Wince said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
stan said...

Bill Clinton is a one man war on women. After BO gets done featuring and celebrating a rapist/sexual assault/sexual harasser at the convention, I would expect that a video of Jaunita Broaddrick's interview will go viral in minutes.

Wince said...

theribbonguy said...
Pass the popcorn!

Because you didn't pop that corn on your own.

Balfegor said...

I'd say Obama should not trust Bill Clinton. Hillary has too much to gain from an Obama loss.

There's something a little sweet about how the assumption nowadays is that although Clinton is a cad and a philanderer, deep down, he really does want his wife to be a success. I don't know that it's not true (it's certainly how I instinctively view things), but I don't think it's the natural inference to draw from his past behaviour.

The Crack Emcee said...

Come on, you all know the Democrats have to counter the highly effective speechifying Ann Romney delivered:

"We're the mothers. We're the wives. We're the grandmothers. We're the big sisters. We're the little sisters and we are the daughters. You know it's true, don't you?"

Easily a candidate for the Dept. of Education, right there,..

theribbonguy said...

Base on their line-up, it appears it's going to be a combo of...

"they're coming after your lady parts"
and
"they want to take you back to the oldin' days when homeless babies littered the streets"

Hell, I might even watch for the pure entertainment value.

theribbonguy said...

base=based

Balfegor said...

RE: The Farmer:

Assassinating bin Laden? See how bragging about that goes over with the Occupy crowd.

That's his one success. Sure, the Occupy mob might not like it, but honestly, does any care a fig what they think? The Democrats found them useful for a few months and propped them up, but otherwise, they're totally irrelevant.

lemondog said...

...pretty small and ill-equipped....

And that perfectly describes whooooo....?!

cubanbob said...

Does reported agenda of emphasizing the "war on women" and Elizabeth Warren's economic philosophy strike anyone else as tone deaf?

Silly me. Here I was thinking that the democrat economy was the real war on woman and minorities.

Clinton will give a good speech. Not because of Hillary, she has no political future beside another senate run or because Bill wants to look good, see I was the last successful two term democrat. The guy is a political pro and and isn't going to sandbag his party, especially since Obama is doing a wonderful job of it on his own. The other speakers, you have got to be kidding. One Marxist bitchfest after another culminating with Joe's buffoonery and Obama whining about the republicans and why he deserves a second chance. Hardcore democrats and people who enjoy watching train wrecks will be the only viewers.

The Drill SGT said...

no way they fill the stadium if they passed out free tics to folks who wont show

The Drill SGT said...

Cracks correct in that they will continue to give Clint and his message visibility while thinking they are neutralizing him.

With the NYT Valerie story reinforcing the empty chair meme,

can't you see Bill giving some great quote to some cutie while the old bag is half a world away?

mariner said...

theribbonguy said...

Pass the popcorn!

theribbonguy said...

Pass the popcorn!

Hey!

Leave some for the rest of us, OK?

Peter V. Bella said...

Bill Clinton is the president of the past, just like the Democratic Party. They are still living in the 1960s and the policies that set in motion this disastrous economy and bankrupt government. You may as well watch black and white TV and channel Lyndon Baines Johnson.

SomeoneHasToSayIt said...

Bill Clinton?

That pathetic, aging AstroTurf-ed El Camino hounddog?

Please.

Besides, the guy's an un-convicted multiple felon, and so is his wife.

Does anyone seriously doubt that?

Who cares if he can speechify. He's a bad man.

mariner said...

5. "Can Charlotte cut it?" It's pretty small and ill-equipped for a city hosting an event this size.
Aren't you being a little optimistic about attendance?

kentuckyliz said...

With all the delegates who said they aren't going--especially the politicians--I think Obama will be talking to a lot of empty chairs.

Clint Eastwood is a fucking genius.

James said...

I hope Gwen Moore gets a prime-time slot and that she reprises this performance: Hit the Road, Scott

Michael Haz said...

Sandra "Moan of Arc" Fluke is a potential landmine.

The sight and sound of a very smart, entitled young woman wailing about free contraceptives and other "women's issues" i.e. abortion at any time and for any reason will not sell well with mainstream Dems.

The working class part of the party Cat includes a large Catholic and factory worker bloc. Fluke's speech will turn them away from the Obama.

SukieTawdry said...

I have a sixth: Taking their cue from Code Pink and appealing to women as though we were walking, talking vaginas concerned solely with preventing/aborting pregnancies and otherwise oblivious to the really pressing issues of the day.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Democratic conventions landmines..

Are the democrats low-balling expectations?

I mean, its not going to be easy to upstage themselves.. Where do you go after Greek columns?

The republicans claimed Hollywood with Eastwood.. if the democrats go back to Hollywood, it will just look... inauthentic.

Now where have I heard that word before.

bagoh20 said...

#6 Incompetence. The GOP Convention went very well, was smooth and stayed on message. Most people agree about that. If the Dems have a major logistics screw up, then the relative competence to run the nation will be a comparison the independents can't miss.

Quaestor said...

Can Charlotte cut it?

If Politico wants to be taken seriously they need to hire some staff writers who do their own research. Reid Epstein's comments about Charlotte's hotel capacity may have some currency, but I doubt it. The rest of his "observations" about Charlotte are bullshit.

bagoh20 said...

#7 Monica. Will she attend?

edutcher said...

Willie is the #1 because he's a racist and is mad Zero played the race card on him before he could play the good ol' boy card on Zero and showed up Willie for the hack he really is. Morris was the master manipulator.

BTW, Hillary is going nowhere in '16, so this will be about revenge. Problem is, the DNC is paying off his old campaign, so he'd have to be subtle and subtle isn't his thing.

Lizzie Warren will remind everybody of #2 since she's Willie's lead-in.

The Occupiers fizzled in Tampa, so they want to turn this into '68. We'll see.

#4 is the biggie - when you have to give away your tickets in every neighborhood bar in town, you know there's a problem.

bagoh20 said...

I don't think there are many voters who think that past policies of either party should be repeated. Both parties have to look young and forward thinking with new blood and ideas. The GOP did that pretty well, I think. I don't know if the Dems have that kind of bench right now.

theribbonguy said...

Me: Pass the popcorn!

EDH: "Because you didn't pop that corn on your own. "

mariner:""Hey!

Leave some for the rest of us, OK?"

This unfair distribution of our nation's hallowed snack is clearly unspeakably wrong. The time is past due that we say NO MORE!!

From each to his ability, to each popcorn!!!

Fen said...

If Politico wants to be taken seriously

Its parody.

And I can't wait till someone immitates Crack. Will be hysterical. Hell, I might even do it myself.

Applicants must

1) make every thread about Cults.

2) win hearts and minds by calling everyone ignorant assholes

3) pimp your blog with every post

jungatheart said...

9. Potential weather conditions. It's 50% chance of thunderstorms through Wednesday...or so they say...

I have never looked forward to an answering convention, and as interesting as it would be to see glittery vaginas and code pinkers, I think this is going to be a tightly controlled affair. I predict decorum and the main thrust to be the necessity to prevent Romney from repealing Obamacare. It will be aimed at energizing the base and persuading the uninsured working class that they need to be in fear of not receiving adequate healthcare.

mccullough said...

The Ted Kennedy tribute will be the best part. I would put it between Fluke and Warren's speeches. The Teddy K tribute will really tie the War on Women theme together.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I think Obama will be talking to a lot of empty chairs.. Clint Eastwood is a fucking genius.

And you are very clever for connecting those dots.

But the Obama campaign says it’s got it covered, and that all 73,778 of the stadium’s seats will be spoken for.

Didn't they say they had it covered in 2009, when they try to get the 2016 Olympics for Chicago and failed.

Cedarford said...

stan said...
Bill Clinton is a one man war on women. After BO gets done featuring and celebrating a rapist/sexual assault/sexual harasser at the convention, I would expect that a video of Jaunita Broaddrick's interview will go viral in minutes.

=================
Right wing idiot blather. Under Bill Clinton, 21 million jobs were created in the US economy. 12 million that went to women.
Had he been allowed to run in 2000, 2004, 2008.....he would have won easily.

No more a rapist, sexual assulter, or sex harasser than Hillary is a murderer (for in deranged right wing circles , her personally blowing that guy Vince Foster's brains out.)

(Another idiot right-wing conspiracy tale)

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

I was thinking.. you know how when you buy a new chair.. you start using it but it doesn't have the currency the value as it were of a chair that's been around..

It'll take a while for people to warm up to Eastwood's chair..

Though, I'll be the first to tell you, I engage in wishful thinking all the time.. but, there is something about that chair.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

... 73,778.. seats will be spoken for.

I've read and linked to that story yesterday.. and didn't see the beautiful Eastwood connection until now.

Unknown said...

I think the GOP should have offer free drinks and buffet and the convention on TV at some nearby restaurant. The hall would be near empty.

Cedarford said...

SomeoneHasToSayIt said...
Bill Clinton?

That pathetic, aging AstroTurf-ed El Camino hounddog?

Please.

Besides, the guy's an un-convicted multiple felon, and so is his wife.

Does anyone seriously doubt that?

-----------------

Yes, the rest of us not on daily lithium pills seriously doubt that.


SomeoneHasToSayIt said...

Cedarford said...
SomeoneHasToSayIt said...
Bill Clinton?


Yes, the rest of us not on daily lithium pills seriously doubt that.


Here's three quick ones. 1.Cattle futures 2. Broderick rape. 2. Perjury.

Brian Brown said...

Cedarford said...
No more a rapist, sexual assulter, or sex harasser than Hillary is a murderer


So Kathleen Willy and Broderick were just making things up?

Carnifex said...

@AP

Just as LA's golf courses are underwater so Zero didn't want to visit, so to Ma. just doersn't have the golf course chops to merit a visit by the Tiger Woods wanna-be.

There is little chance of anything untoward happening at the DNCC. Everything will be on 10 sec. delay with a finger poised over the button. Axlecrank and Pouffe will be manning kill switches to have "technical difficulties" should something bigger occur.

And the LSM will be ready with reams of explanations on why what we just heard the speaker say, was not what they meant.

Eric said...

Under Bill Clinton, 21 million jobs were created in the US economy. 12 million that went to women.

So your point is it was okay to sacrifice the women in his immediate vicinity as long as other women got jobs?

Presidents get too much credit and too much blame for the economy, which is far more influence by congressional action to the extent the government influences it at all.

Clinton was the lucky beneficiary of the internet boom. Nothing he did policy-wise did much to aid the economy. The most you can say is he didn't make it worse (unlike the current office holder).

Had he been allowed to run in 2000, 2004, 2008.....he would have won easily.

Sure, he was popular. So what? Some pretty terrible people have been popular politicians in their day.

No more a rapist, sexual assulter, or sex harasser than Hillary is a murderer...

You're pretty quick to dismiss allegations from a whole lot of women, particularly in light of the fact Clinton isn't exactly the most truthful guy in the world. I'm on the fence about the Broaddrick rape accusation, but I don't doubt Clinton has groped and exposed himself to quite a few women over the years.

Steven said...

If the Democrats are careful, Occupy could help them by making them look more centrist than they actually want to be.

Gary Rosen said...

C-fudd maintains his 100% perfect record of whitewashing molesters. Polanski, Sandusky, pedophile clergy, now Clinton.

Gary Rosen said...

" I'm on the fence about the Broaddrick rape accusation, but I don't doubt Clinton has groped and exposed himself to quite a few women over the years."

Yep. And that's exactly why he is idolized by the misogynist C-fudd.

Gary Rosen said...

6. (or 7, 8, 9 ...) the Dems rally the "base" with the most strident pro-abortion speakers like Sandra Fluke.

It's been clear for a while that Obama's strategy, since he knows he can't run on his record or the economy, is to rally his leftist base while trying to demonize Romney to scare independents from voting R. The problem is Obama has probably rallied the Rep base at least as much as his own. They (R base) were not too happy with Romney but looking at right-wing blogs now they are virtually unanimous in supporting him, the Paulites and other cranks are very fringe. Reading between the lines they haven't warmed to Romney that much but they *really* want to "fire" BO.

BO's positives don't seem too bad, just under 50% but the strong negatives are close to 40%. He ran in 2008 as a conciliator but has turned out to be more polarizing than Sarah Palin. That will be his downfall.

avwh said...

What a great unifier and compromiser Zero has turned out to be. ZERO votes for his last two budgets - so I guess you could say he unified Dems & Republicans in opposition.

Compromising or getting things done?

"We don't have a plan, but we know we don't like your plan".

And "I won".

Yeah, I can see how he deserves another term for all those "accomplishments".

Unknown said...

I live in the Charlotte metro area. I was near uptown (downtown) today and the traffic was actually lighter than a typical Sunday afternoon (this was around 2:30 PM EST). I think many locals are either not venturing within a 10 mile radius of uptown or have "gotten the heck outta of Dodge" for the Labor Day weekend to avoid the event altogether. Taken in consideration the latter and add Marnier's comment about attendance (with which I agree) and I think Charlotte will handle the event OK.
(I have to wonder, also, how the May 8th marriage amendment vote may have negatively affected attendance.)

cubanbob said...

"Had he been allowed to run in 2000, 2004, 2008.....he would have won easily."

Soviet style revisionism. Clinton was never that popular. He won in 92 in a three-way race where he won by a plurality. 93 and 94 he gets lefty stupid and manages to lose both house of Congress. You can thank Newt for the 90's economy by not letting Bill and Hill muck things up. 96 he barely wins reelection against a tired old man, Dole and a crank, Perot.

2000, the stock market crashed and the economy was going in to a recession and the supposed third Clinton term, what Al Gore was supposed to be, well the voters picked what the democrats labelled a drunk, stupid frat boy. So no that convicted perjurer and rapist would not have reelected in 2000, 2004 or 2008.


SukieTawdry said...

Had he been allowed to run in 2000, 2004, 2008.....he would have won easily.

Uh, no. People like Bill Clinton are ultimately tiresome and we were pretty tired of Bubba by the time 2000 rolled around. Besides, all that blather about surpluses out as far as the eye could see would have been seen for the baloney it was (remember, there would be no blaming the next president for "squandering" Clinton's surplus). And there's little doubt in my mind that he would have bungled the response to 9-11 just as he bungled the response to the first WTC bombing and the embassy bombings and the USS Cole. The bit lip, teary eyes and castigation of "right-wing hate radio" that served him after the KC bombing wouldn't have cut it after 9-11. In a lot of ways, Clinton was remarkably gutless. And, yes, he was a serial groper of women.

Gary Rosen said...

"Soviet style revisionism."

Bolshevik, even. Maybe Fudd is a self-loather bwahahaha.

bbkingfish said...

Didn't go further than #1.

How does Hillary gain more from an Obama loss than an Obama win? I don't see it, but I can be convinced.

Ralph L said...

I imagine Charlotte has imported prostitutes and strippers from Atlanta for this week.

The two main downtown drags for about 200 years were Tryon (N-S) and Trade (E-W) Streets. The saying went, If you can't trade on Tryon, try on Trade.

AF said...

"Hillary has too much to gain from an Obama loss."

This shows a basic ignorance of Political Science 101. If Romney wins, he will have a very good chance of being reelected because incumbents tend to win unless the economy is a disaster, and the likelihood is that the economy will do better the next four years no matter who is president. Hillary has a better shot of being elected if Obama wins.

damikesc said...

Warren as an unlikeable rookie is another story. She could flop. But she will be raised up by the liberal media if she does okay and hidden if she does bad.

The problem they have is that most of their speakers are in that boat. Few of their speakers are remotely compelling or charismatic.

Bill Clinton is a one man war on women. After BO gets done featuring and celebrating a rapist/sexual assault/sexual harasser at the convention, I would expect that a video of Jaunita Broaddrick's interview will go viral in minutes.

Heck, if the GOP was clever --- they would buy ad time to run after Clinton's speech with that exact video.

I mean, its not going to be easy to upstage themselves.. Where do you go after Greek columns?

Apparently, Mt Rushmore.

Had he been allowed to run in 2000, 2004, 2008.....he would have won easily.

You'd think a "Beloved" guy would've hit 50% of the vote once, wouldn't you?

kentuckyliz said...

My fantasy about Bill Clinton:

Revenge is a dish best served cold.

He gets on stage and says two things:

It's the economy, stupid.

Miss me yet?

And walks off as the crowd goes wild.

Penny said...

While Politico's totally focused on the landmines, I can't help but wonder who's watching out for all those Hotair balloons?

Penny said...

Not saying that Clinton is one OR the other.

...Provided his cellphone is set to vibrate ten minutes after he takes the podium.

bzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Penny said...

I am going to assume that some DNC handler will reinforce that his cut off is ten minutes after he takes the podium and NOT ten minutes after he gives the crowd permission to stop applauding.

That will leave him with a difficult choice...

Admiration OR Message

The Godfather said...

Snark: The best thing for the Dems would be an earthquake (a hurricane's been done) in Charlotte, which would shut the whole thing down. No speeches, just a press release at the end of the week announcing the Obama-Clinton ticket.

Serious: The Dems will schedule most of their wild, base-activating speakers for the hours when the networks aren't covering the convention. For those that they have to show to the world, they'll rely on the friendly MSM for cover. It will work. The polls will be essentially tied a week from now.

jr565 said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
jr565 said...

Another big landmine,is that all Obama can offer is more of the same. And more of the same is us in the doldrums.And he isn't even offering to change course, he's doubling down.
When your record of hope and change is 3 years of non recovery what are people expected to vote for?

Obama voters, do you still think that you are the people you were waiting for? Do you still believe in hope and change? Do you feel like you've been had?

Penny said...

Think you are on to something there, William.

Obama/Clinton = EARTHQUAKE

Penny said...

But shhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!

Best that we act "surprised" by the earth shaking under our feet, as Carole King's song blares through the halls of the convention center.

Penny said...

Ha ha

All the chairs will be empty!

Except the ONE.

Penny said...

In my next life...

I will be a Party Planner!

ha ha

Penny said...

Cripes, I HOPE it's my next life?

Hillary would NEVER agree.

Right?

Nawwwwwwww

Anonymous said...

If not a landmine, there is the bog of trying to live up to the excitement of 2008.

Can't be done. All the stars lined up in 2008 and that will never happen again in our lifetime.

I don't envy the Democrats; they have a near-impossible mission in Charlotte.

Penny said...

Hell!

Now the DJ's spinning Tammy Wynette's "Stand By Your Man"!

Everyone on the convention floor is going CRAZY!

Including the LGBT's! Albeit for a different reason, but HAY!

gk1 said...

No offense but Clinton, the saggy, baby boomer has never had coat tails and hasn't sprouted any now. It speaks of desperation for the obama crowd to resort to someone who has openly called Barack "an amateur".

AllenS said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
HT said...

Hillary won't run. She's 64 now. She won't run. This is silly to talk about.

PT said...

#5 Charlotte

"The airport, though a major US Airways hub, is dank and dreary."

Um no.

Obviously this author has never been through the Charlotte airport. I was there 8 months ago and it is a nice, modern, and clean airport. With free WiFi.