03 May 2008

Bernstein on Hillary Clinton's Ties to Radicalism

Just dropping by to post a link. Carl Bernstein, who has been largely supportive and admiring of Hillary Clinton, published an article, critiquing her ad hominem, "guilt-by-association" tactics of zoning in on Barack Obama's associations with Bill Ayers of 1960s leftist fringe group The Weathermen.

After wondering if her strategy constitutes "21st century McCarthyism" Bernstein notes that, "[w]hatever name it is called, Hillary Clinton, perhaps better than any contemporary political figure of our time, knows the insidious nature of this kind of guilt by association, for she (like Bill Clinton) has been a victim of it herself over a political lifetime." Indeed. Remember all of those suspicions about her affiliations with the Black Panthers and Communists? Let's not forget that, until recently, Clinton prohibited public access to her thesis on radical community-organizer Saul Alinksy (the recent allegations that Michelle Obama's thesis remains under lock and key is unfounded; Princeton released Obama's thesis in February). All of this material made rich fodder for the "VRWC" that targeted Clinton and her husband in the 1990s, and she spoke out vehemently about such tactics then. Pity she's chosen to revisit her experiences with the "guilt by association" smear by applying it to a fellow Democrat.

There's more to be said, but I've other things on my plate right now.

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