Novak: Michelle Obama keeping Hillary down
posted at 7:57 am on May 14, 2008 by Ed Morrissey
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Democrats dream of healing their party with a ticket that includes both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama, especially after seeing the front-runner lose every single county in West Virginia last night. One influential Democrat disagrees, according to Robert Novak, who told Bill O’Reilly last night that she will do whatever she can to keep Hillary off of the ticket. Since her last name is Obama, one imagines that she can do quite a lot, too:
The longer Hillary stays in the race, the less likely the dream ticket becomes, and ironically the more the Democrats need it or something like it. West Virginia shows that Obama will need high-profile help to win suburban and rural votes even from Democrats, let alone independents and change-minded Republicans. The Clintons can deliver the high-profile and high-wattage boost he needs, but they won’t supply it without having a serious stake in the results. Unfortunately, her insistence on remaining in the race drives the wedge further between the Obamas and the Clintons, especially with Hillary’s aggressive attacking style.
Small wonder, then, that Michelle wants Hillary out — but that doesn’t appear to be a new dynamic, according to Novak. He notes that Michelle began criticizing Hillary last summer while declining to attack any of Obama’s other competitors. Hillary was the presumed front-runner at the time, too, but Obama needed to make the case as the alternate choice for those who didn’t want the Clinton Restoration. If Novak has this right, and he’s expert at these subtleties, Michelle may dislike Hillary enough to insist that she doesn’t want to endure a four- or eight-year partnership with the former First Lady.
Would Barack Obama allow his wife to veto a running-mate choice? Perhaps; he can’t be too happy with the Clintons himself, and his wife obviously serves as a trusted adviser and sounding board, as do most spouses. Hillary really doesn’t add anything to the ticket ideologically or geographically, but perhaps he can find some other way to entice the Clintons to enthusiastically support his candidacy. Would Obama appoint a disbarred attorney to the Supreme Court?
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This is total crap. Michelle was criticizing Hillary for two reasons.
1- HRC was the presumed front runner at the time and
2- Being a woman gave her some degree of cover
I am certain both Barrack and Michelle are upset about some of the things the Clintons have said and done durring the campaign, but I am just as certain they will look past all of it if putting Hillary on the ticket is the surest path to the White House.
12thman on May 14, 2008 at 8:17 AM
Obama’s a limp noodle, he won’t stand up to terrorists or dictators. Is it any surprise that his wife walks all over him?
Conservative Gunman on May 14, 2008 at 8:18 AM
Comment generator
tommylotto on May 14, 2008 at 8:21 AM
Michelle and Hillary, two peas in a pod…both shrill, unhappy people, with a mean streak.
right2bright on May 14, 2008 at 8:21 AM
Don’t worry Michelle, the old hag is just messing with your husband to get him to pay off her debt. Oh, but she looks like she really cares about the people cheering for her! Not a chance. She’s a grifter, and this is a shakedown.
One way or another, Michelle, your husband is going to have to pay her, maybe he can launder it through the DNC, maybe a cozy investment deal, but she will be paid. Yes, it’s sleazy. Yes, it’s unethical. Welcome to the democrat party.
jeff_from_mpls on May 14, 2008 at 8:21 AM
Queen Bee Syndrome.
fossten on May 14, 2008 at 8:25 AM
I recall an interview Michelle Obama did in which she talked about how Barack didn’t want to get married; he didn’t really believe in it, felt it was unnecessary, etc. Michelle told him they were getting married, or nothing. They got married.
I have no doubt Michelle despises Hillary Clinton, for a lot of reasons, some of which I suspect have to do with Michelle’s own sense of inferiority. But Michelle (like Hillary herself, ironically) has big ambitions, and if putting Hillary on the ticket looks like the way to get the Obamas into the White House, I have no doubt that Michelle will be persuaded to go along with it, not matter how much she hates Hillary.
AZCoyote on May 14, 2008 at 8:25 AM
but I am just as certain they will look past all of it if putting Hillary on the ticket is the surest path to the White House.
Not if they can find someone else who they think might bring as much to the table.
There is also 2012 to think about were Obama to win the election. Hillary would have “VP” to add to her resume and would definitely take a shot at the big seat all over again, running a campaign against the incumbent Obama and repeating this process.
Obama would be a fool to add Hillary after all the effort he has made to portray her as the old-school political hack.
Bishop on May 14, 2008 at 8:29 AM
I don’t think Michelle has any sense of inferiority. Quite the contrary! Indeed, Michelle Obama may very well think that she can run for President after Barry does his two terms and Hillary is an obstacle to that fantasy.
Buy Danish on May 14, 2008 at 8:31 AM
Total garbage. If Michelle was the only obstacle to the “dream ticket”, it would have materialized long time ago. This isn’t a Hollywood movie where one villain controls everything. There’d be plenty of people who could change Michelle’s mind or indeed render it irrelevant.
freevillage on May 14, 2008 at 8:34 AM
Michelle doesn’t like Hillary? Well there’s a big whoopee do. Fact is most people don’t like Hillary. Look at the voters, they are saying everything and have been for years. Drive down memory lane and talk to Tipper Gore in case you have forgot.
But Michelle should be warned herself. Unless she makes some very major changes she’ll be the next Hillary. As time goes by and snippets leak out I think we’ll find that she buys the Reverend Wright hook line and sinker.
Just think a “black separatist” as first lady! Only in America.
patrick neid on May 14, 2008 at 8:36 AM
uhm… that’s exactly what I said. They’ll put her on if she is the surest way to get in the WH. Why should they put her on if she isn’t, regardless of how Michelle feels about her?
If Obama wins the WH and has a solid first term he will be unbeatable. If not, HRC will have 0 shot at the nomination in 2012.
12thman on May 14, 2008 at 8:38 AM
Novak was just on Fox and Friends at about 8:20 AM this morning. There was talk that Hillary was still sitting on something that would make Obama unelectable but they didn’t know how to release it.
It was a short segment and probably nothing. Why hold back until now?
Canadian Infidel on May 14, 2008 at 8:41 AM
uhm… that’s exactly what I said. They’ll put her on if she is the surest way to get in the WH. Why should they put her on if she isn’t, regardless of how Michelle feels about her?
Touche, bad extrapolation on my part. The Obama campaign will find someone who they will portray as the equal to Hillary for what she would have brought to the table.
If Obama wins the WH and has a solid first term he will be unbeatable. If not, HRC will have 0 shot at the nomination in 2012.
Your turn for the verbal faux pas. VP Hillary would have a shot if Obama were to be a feckless POTUS and would probably take a stab at it anyway, she IS a Clinton.
Bishop on May 14, 2008 at 8:45 AM
QFT
Bishop 1 – 12thman 1
12thman on May 14, 2008 at 8:49 AM
Don’t you cross Mama Michelle! If Mama says you don’t pay attention to that Shillary lady, you don’t pay attention to that lady! Or Mama may put the Hoodoo Voodoo JuJu on you! Then you know never to cross Mama when she tell you not to!
pilamaye on May 14, 2008 at 8:50 AM
Some chick on O’Reilly (TV) last night suggested Obama get’s Michelle out in front more than he has to get the womens vote or some such. As a McCain supporter I highly recommend this.
Dash on May 14, 2008 at 8:55 AM
Michelle probably does have the right instincts here, if only because there is no way in the world the Clintons would defer to Obama as far as either their media profile or in making political policy if an Obama-Hillary ticket were to get elected. It’s one thing for Hillary to tout her alleged co-presidency with Bill; quite another for Michelle to have to contemplate the idea of Hillary being a far more aggressive co-president to Barak Obama for the next four years while she has to host teas and do other traditional First Lady events.
An angry woman who has spent two decades listening to Jeremiah Wright is not going to tolerate the idea of having to defer to her husband, the vice president and the VP’s husband when it comes to either saying what she thinks or in telling Barak what to do. She may be forced into a shotgun wedding by party leaders, but as the (apparently) most non-compomising liberal of the four, she’s going to seethe through the general election and then right through four years in the White House if Obama and Clinton were to get elected.
jon1979 on May 14, 2008 at 9:00 AM
Honestly, how much time do you think Laura Bush spends with Dick Cheney? This is probably a bad example, since I think everybody in the Bush White House gets along really well, but its not like Michelle would even see Hillary that often…
Michelle needs to look in the mirror, because if she hates Hill, she might as well hate herself, they’re 2 peas of the same pod.
jimmy the notable on May 14, 2008 at 9:02 AM
Is change-minded a euphemism for those Republicans so anxious to find the middle of the road they walk around with yellow lines on their backs?
Just askin’…
Shivas Irons on May 14, 2008 at 9:04 AM
As soon as polls come out showing what a drag on his campaign she is going to be – go the Hugh Hewitt’s blog and start listening to her speeches, or for more fun, listen to Hitchen’s and Steyn defenestrate her words – Mr. Obama will make a speech downgrading her status to just “Pastor”.
Shivas Irons on May 14, 2008 at 9:08 AM
Oh boy,that would be a juicy story,HilRod and Michelle
having a nasty cat fight,if not now,I could imagine
a 911 phone call at 3AM!
And don’t forget,Hillary has told everyone she wanted
to be POTUSA at 3 years old,heck that’s probably an
understatement,Hillary was probably campaigning from
the womb,just sayin! (Snark)
canopfor on May 14, 2008 at 9:13 AM
And if my pet unicorn dances on the head of a pin we will all win a million dollars in the lottery.
fogw on May 14, 2008 at 9:14 AM
And if my pet unicorn dances….
fogw on May 14,2008 at 8:38AM.
fogw: A dancing unicorn,by any chance is it a pink unicorn!
Ha,Ha.
canopfor on May 14, 2008 at 9:18 AM
I guess I missed the part where selection of a running mate was all about pleasing the spouse of the candidate. Obama and McCain both need to grow up and understand that the running mate is supposed to strengthen the ticket and help the party/nation. These little temper tantrums and displays of petty jealousy are unbecoming of Presidential candiates. But typical for losers like McCain and Obama.
highhopes on May 14, 2008 at 9:19 AM
“Defenestrate” I do not thin that word means what you think it means.
Buford Gooch on May 14, 2008 at 9:20 AM
Hillary most likely blames Michelle for helping wet blanket her inevitability so perhaps one of Hillary’s motivations to become Commander in Chief is to at least ask or have Barack as VP so she can lord it over Michelle (and Barack) for up to eight years.
Would that not be Clintonesque?
Speakup on May 14, 2008 at 9:25 AM
If Hillary has it, the Republicans have it. That would be the dilemma. Does she “leak” it or wait until the Republicans leak it. If the Repubs sit on it till November, it will be too late for her to hop in. If it is really bad, that opens the door for Gore.
right2bright on May 14, 2008 at 9:25 AM
Throw out the window.
Just words, and partner, they are my tools.
Cheers to you and Quick Draw McGraw… ;-)
Shivas Irons on May 14, 2008 at 9:34 AM
Where did you see this?!! Did she say it jokingly? If not, this is the perfect ad against him. He says he’s a uniter but if he deems marriage unnecessary and did’nt believe in it, how can he stand up there and talk about “family unity” and “streghthening the family”??!!
kcd on May 14, 2008 at 9:47 AM
Michelle wants to be the “most powerful” woman in the world. If Hillary is VP, she clearly won’t be.
p0s3r on May 14, 2008 at 9:50 AM
Hussein, the hen-pecked marxist, does not fear terrorists and dictators. He’s lived with one and went to church listening to one for decades. Hussein is battle tested!
saved on May 14, 2008 at 9:56 AM
…Somebody’s getting whipped…
WACHISH!
Sir Andrew on May 14, 2008 at 9:57 AM
Anyone have a sense of deja vu?
drjohn on May 14, 2008 at 10:00 AM
Great point.
Can you reference this?
drjohn on May 14, 2008 at 10:05 AM
I remember back in IL, when BO first ran for the senate, that Michelle was outed as a domineering over-lord wife. very bossy.
this new stuff is true to form.
if BOs campaign was smart, Michelle would be out of the picture, but hey, they’re all demorats.
jimmer on May 14, 2008 at 10:06 AM
Michelle and the Looking Glass:
Change We Can See Through
maverick muse on May 14, 2008 at 10:09 AM
Throw out the window.
I’m guessing it’s gonna get real crowded “under the bus”… so out the window seemed more likely… ;-)
Shivas Irons on May 14, 2008 at 10:12 AM
Novak said to send it to him – he’d release it. But he also said it was probably nothing or it would have been released by now. He may be right.
abcurtis on May 14, 2008 at 10:27 AM
Let these two Ivy league lawyerettes settle it the blue-collar, white cracker NASCAR way: thong-bikini jello wrestling – three rounds, no holds barred.
whitetop on May 14, 2008 at 10:31 AM
She has too many negatives, too much baggage, and Bill would require a hall monitor……
Would be nice, but everyone has to be tired of Hillary.
Starlink on May 14, 2008 at 10:46 AM
If true, this is a terrible strategic error on the part of the Obamas and violates one of Vito Corleone’s core leadership lessons, “never let anyone know what your thinking. ”
If Hillary believes this message, she has no real motive to get out of the race and may go ahead with the nuclear option.
Stupid mistake but welcomed.
moxie_neanderthal on May 14, 2008 at 10:50 AM
OMG! My eyes!!! My EEEEEYEZZZ!
kcd on May 14, 2008 at 10:58 AM
Enter Silky, stage left.
Dr.Cwac.Cwac on May 14, 2008 at 11:07 AM
Why on earth would Obama ever consider Senator Clinton as a running mate? After all, there are an unusual number of Clinton associates who have met with untimely deaths over the years. Obama will pick someone else.
chsw
chsw on May 14, 2008 at 11:13 AM
Click on my name to see Obama’s best hope; I’m not fishing for traffic- I wrote this a few days ago, and it seems pertinent.
Doug on May 14, 2008 at 12:09 PM
That’s true. Hill and Bill would be Powers #2 and #3. Michelle would be a distant 4th and she doesn’t seem the kind of woman with whom that would sit very well.
I also think there would be more infighting within that Administration than any other in the history of our country.
INC on May 14, 2008 at 12:43 PM
If Obama puts Lady Macbeth at the bottom of the ticket he better start hiring food tasters.
its vintage duh on May 14, 2008 at 1:00 PM
Barack controlled by his wife.
Sheesh.. Who wears the pants in that family?
That Michelle Obama is freaky.(even more freaky than hillary)
Chakra Hammer on May 14, 2008 at 3:04 PM
This is the one thing I’ve heard about her that I liked.
baldilocks on May 14, 2008 at 5:54 PM
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