2/25 Richard Cohen

Clinton can’t win, she’s not a gifted politician and she should step down.

 2/25 Eugene Robinson

Obama’s success has done much to positively alter black stereotypes.

 2/25 E.J. Dionne Jr.

McCain’s sex life is not the issue. The real issue is that he touts campaign finance reform, yet he is surrounded by lobbyist influences.

 2/25 Wrap:

Pundits seem pretty eager to scribble the writing on the wall. This Cohen blather is similar to Novak’s screed from yesterday (somehow I doubt that these guys give the Dems advice out of the kindness and goodness). Last I checked, Clinton and Obama are running pretty close in Ohio and Texas. Though—like most people—I think Obama will take this thing, I find Hillary’s pre-ousting perplexing. Check this Cohen quote: “Should she go negative? Should she be upbeat and positive? Here’s my answer: Stop campaigning.”

All this time, I thought these dudes loved the horserace. Once we caught some serious O-mentum, the narrative of Hillary’s demise became a fixation. Oh, and we have another instance of the entitled Hillary trope: “Back in 1999, she entered the New York Senate race in the manner of Marie Antoinette entering France—to be ultimately crowned queen.”

Dowd also depicts Hillary as a petulant queen. Ya know, she’s quite different from those other hard-working senators. Instead of crafting important legislation, Hillary sits on a gold leaf bed, lazily regarding her surrounding finery, while fanning herself into oblivion. Not that the dikey ice queen needs to be cooled. Such vacuous Dowdian sentiments seem to inform Clinton coverage.

 Look, I’m not one to shill for Hill. I find her domestic policy to be pretty solid, and her foreign policy votes to be somewhat worrisome. I just don’t get the consistent animosity from the Op-Ed pages. Since I began this project (ironically on Valentine’s day, which says quite a bit about my social life at this point), there hasn’t been a single positive column regarding the woman’s policy positions. Granted she’s been losing. But still, are we really going to let media outlets reduce presidential races to substance less personality contests? Well, yes we are, we do, and we have for quite some time. Right now, I’m picturing a beaming Hillary Clinton hoisting “Clinton defeats Washington press corps!” frontpage.

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