Hillary Clinton: To Know Her Is Not to Adore Her
It is now crystal clear to any objective observer; Hillary Clinton is a horrible candidate. As Americans get to know Hillary, they like her less. In the latest Associated Press-GFK poll, Hillary scores an abysmal 39% approval rating, compared to an unfavorable rating of 49%.
In the three months since Hillary launched her campaign, her numbers have dropped dramatically. Back in April, Clinton had a more respectable approval rating of 46%; in July of 2014 it was 48%. As voters have seen Clinton on the campaign trail, they have not been impressed.
Her positive ratings have even fallen 11% among Democrats such as Donald Walters of Louisville who noted "Ever since she announced…I just haven't liked the way she's handled things. She doesn't answer questions directly." Obviously, Hillary knows she is horrible answering unscripted press questions; no wonder she spent months avoiding the media.
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When she does answer questions, she often contradicts herself. For example, after expressing support almost four dozen times for the Trans-Pacific Partnership, Clinton came out in opposition to the deal at the last minute. She is a typical politician trying to gauge political winds, not having any bedrock principles as her foundation.
For the past few months, she has also been dogged by a never ending stream of scandals. Of course, there is the ongoing investigation into her handling of the Benghazi terrorist attack, her decision to use a private computer server and shield thousands of emails from investigators and her foundation's fundraising activities. The "Clinton Cash" scandal is aptly characterized as the blatant selling of her position as Secretary of State to the highest bidder.
Hillary is not like her roguish husband whose despicable behavior is overlooked because he is considered a likable person. Hillary possesses none of Bill's winning personality, but all of his corrupt tendencies.
Without her marriage to Bill Clinton, Hillary would be working for cheap as a bitter activist or liberal lawyer. She certainly would not be the leading candidate for President of the United States.
While enduring her philandering husband earned Hillary a Senate seat and a diplomatic post, it cannot deliver the presidency. She has to win that on her own, which is the problem for Hillary. As a solo candidate, Hillary fails miserably. In 2008, she lost the Democratic nomination to an unknown Senator from Illinois with a "funny" name. Even with a scant political record and questions about his background, Barack Obama beat Hillary because he was a better campaigner and speaker. He won the debates and connected with voters on a personal level. Democrats believed that Obama cared about them; showing the type of empathy Bill Clinton has always displayed.
In contrast, Hillary is perceived as a detached, elitist politician who travels with a massive entourage and does not answer press questions. In fact, her campaign recently roped off the press as Hillary walked in a New Hampshire parade.
Not surprisingly, Hillary is losing the support of young liberal votes to 73-year old socialist U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders (D-VT). At campaign rallies, Sanders is drawing larger and more enthusiastic crowds. It is so bad that some Democrats are trying to convince Vice President Joe Biden or U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren (D-MA) to enter the race.
Other than her last name and big donors, the only advantage Hillary has is her gender. Some Americans will vote for her only because they want to see the first woman President in our history. However, this is a very poor reason to elect a President. It was similar to the reasoning some Americans used to elect Barack Obama in 2008 and we have seen how well that worked out.
