Could a Small Number of Supporters Make Hillary Look Like a Political Arsonist?

It’s no big surprise that both the traditional media and the GOP are obsessed with the idea that a significant number of disgruntled Hillary supporters might end up voting for John McCain over Barack Obama.

While I don’t share their apparent “optimism” over the possibility that this will actually occur, I suppose it’s notable at least because the McCain campaign was able to find one who was willing to put herself in a McCain ad claiming to support him.



Of course, I’m counting on the vast majority of Hillary backers to realize that voting for McCain won’t do anything to help Hillary, or the issues she has championed. In fact, if they think Ralph Nader was blasted into political oblivion after his supporters’ provided the margin for Bush to beat Gore in 2000, just wait and see what happens to Hillary if her supporters provide the winning margin for McCain!

Hillary took a calculated gamble that she could try to win the Democratic nomination by demonizing Obama, and then walk it back if necessary by throwing her support to him. If she is now unable to control the flames she stoked in her supporters, she is going to be convicted, in the court of public opinion, of burning down the Democratic Party!

[Update] As I was writing this post, I had a bit of a chill run down my spine as it hit me that McCain’s ad could be a very strong hint that the Rovian wing of the GOP are going to try to steal this election and blame it on Hillary supporters voting for McCain, while counting on the traditional media to cement their version of the story!

Read the last line again slowly.

If they could pull it off, the GOP would get the double win of keeping the White House and destroying the political future of the Clintons! They don’t even need Clinton supporters to vote for McCain. They just need the media to create the appearance that it’s happening and keeping the race close, while they rig the vote in order to win another nailbiter.

I certainly hope I’m wrong, but if I was a Clinton supporter, I’d be making absolutely certain that I’m not going to be used in this way . . . by letting the traditional media hear loud and clear that supporting Barack Obama as the Democratic nominee is, at this point, the same as supporting Hillary Clinton!