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 enerally
speaking, it's not exactly broad and profound analysis to call a
politician "dumb." Just as our parents
admonished
us for engaging in name-calling when we were youngsters, it doesn't
truly accomplish anything. It brings down the level of discussion;
it reflects poorly on all participants.
Indeed, all the insinuations and attacks on George W. Bush's intelligence
have largely backfired. This proves one thing — it's better
for conservatives to be considered dumb rather than "mean-spirited."
Remember, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich was called many things
and criticized even by his ideological allies, but hardly anyone
questioned his basic intelligence. Bush, in fact, has so far turned
the "misunderestimating" of his brains into a strategic advantage.
His tax bill has already passed the House and ergonomics repeal
has gotten through both bodies. This proves that adroit politicians
can use their opponents "soft bigotry of low expectations" to their
own advantage. Al Gore is still trying to figure out how he lost
three debates to the guy.
So, it's agreed that calling politicians "dumb" is not smart. That
said, how can Hillary Clinton — the Senator Formerly Known
As the Smartest Woman In the World — be so stupid!!
The world learned (through the New York Post, which broke
the story) that New York's junior senator has rented office space
in Manhattan for $514,000. In one fell swoop, this makes her the
Senate's most expensive office renter. Even in the context of New
York rental prices this is high. Even in the context of her senior
colleague, Charles Schumer, it's outrageous. Schumer's rent is $305,000
less.
So, what do we have here? Just when there was a lull in post-presidency
Clinton soap opera — not much news on the pardon front, the
gift situation has been resolved and since he moved to Harlem, Bill
Clinton's real estate fiasco has begun to fade into memory.
Or it would have had Hillary not brought it all back. Which begs
the question, is Hillary clueless, corrupt — or just plain
dumb?
Consider this: A poll was released last week that showed Hillary's
disapproval rating at 51 percent (her approval was 39). This is
a clear indication that the pile-up of negative information coming
out about the Clintons following their getaway, excuse me, departure
from 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue had a specific impact.
Now, Hillary has nearly six years to repair her image (assuming
she doesn't look for other elected office prior to that). But, the
first step to doing an image makeover is to make sure you avoid
engaging in any behavior that reminds the public of what got you
bad press in the first place. This is Public Relations 101. Does
the FFL (former first lady) have a tin ear and a blind eye to what
the average person finds offensive with her imperious behavior?
Which makes one wonder if, had the situations been reversed, would
Bill have rented a ridiculously expensive office after Hillary had
caught weeks of grief for doing the same thing? The gut feeling
is, "No."
Which leads one to believe that though Bill is corrupt, he's not
so stupid that he will commit the exact same offense (physical indiscretions
aside) that caused a transparent loss of public opinion previously.
In other words, while Clinton screws up, he doesn't screw up in
exactly the same way consecutively. Dick Morris has written about
this obvious talent for self-preservation. He learned from his 1980
gubernatorial reelection loss, retooled, and went on to win four
more terms as governor.
But the question is — does Hillary ever learn? In a sense,
the fact we are calling her "Hillary" speaks to this. She kept her
maiden name for years after she and Bill married. She then took
her husband's name after the reelection loss. "Rodham" has appeared
and disappeared in her "official" biography at varying times. During
the senate contest, all the campaign material emphasized just "Hillary."
Right after the election, the Rodham reappeared.
She is, again, "HRC," which sounds way too much like "HRH" —
"Her Royal Highness." That particular sobriquet may start
coming to the minds of too many New Yorkers considering her new
palatial digs. Bill Clinton didn't necessarily do his wife too many
favors when he tried to explain the size of the office, by saying
it was necessary for the "volunteers."
Of course! Her majesty would need an appropriate area in which the
peons might gather.
Too late for Hillary to move up to Harlem.
Hmm…Bed-Stuy in Brooklyn is still available. At this point,
that might be the least-dumb move.
Blatant
Self-Promotion Note
Fans
of NRO are invited (urged? begged?) to tune in to CNN every Saturday
night at 8:30 EST to catch the new show, Take 5. Your humble erstwhile
ragged columnist is a regular panelist. Expect to see the same lively
conversation tone, bad puns, and odd pop culture references that
you've grown to know and tolerate right here!
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