NPR's Rudin: "Hillary Clinton is Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. She's going to keep coming back and they're not going to stop her"
Summary: During a discussion on CNN about the Democratic presidential primary race, NPR's Ken Rudin stated: "[L]et's be honest here, Hillary Clinton is Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. She's going to keep coming back, and they're not going to stop her."
On the April 27 edition of CNN's Sunday Morning, National Public Radio political editor Ken Rudin, during a discussion about the Democratic presidential primary race, stated: "[L]et's be honest here, [Sen.] Hillary Clinton is Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. She's going to keep coming back, and they're not going to stop her." In response, co-host T.J. Holmes said: "What, Ken?" Rudin replied: "Well, we'll figure that out, there's a lot of ways to imagine that." Rudin returned to the analogy later, stating of Clinton, "[T]here may be a lot of pressure on her from the party bigwigs, whoever they are, to say, look, it's time to go, but she'll say, look, I'm in it until the end. I expect her to be in until the end, as Glenn Close was."
At the conclusion of the interview, Holmes stated to Rudin, "We know you were at the correspondents' dinner last night in D.C., where the president was, and hear you all had a pretty good time. But you look good this morning for partying all night." Rudin replied: "I'm faking it." Co-host Betty Nguyen added: "Maybe that explains the Glenn Close analogy, who knows?" Holmes then stated: "Fatal Attraction, we don't get that reference on this show a lot."
In the 1987 film, Close plays a woman who begins stalking her co-worker, played by Michael Douglas, and his family following a one-night stand with him. In the film's climax, Douglas' character seemingly drowns Close's character in the tub, until she suddenly springs from the water wielding a knife. She is finally shot dead by the wife of Douglas' character.
As Media Matters for America has noted, Monica Crowley, a conservative radio host and panelist on the Public Broadcasting Service's McLaughlin Group, and Atlantic senior editor and blogger Andrew Sullivan have also compared Clinton to Close's character in Fatal Attraction.
From the April 27 edition of CNN's Sunday Morning:
HOLMES: Is there any tide turning -- we're talking about [Sen. Barack] Obama, here. Also, he hasn't been able to close the deal out because he's had so many opportunities, many would say, to close it out, to win a big one, to knock her out of this thing, and every time he gets a chance to, he can't do it. Is there any tide turning among people, and by people I guess I mean superdelegates, that hey, wait a minute, let's take a second here, he doesn't seem to be able to close the deal?
RUDIN: Well, first of all, let's be honest here, Hillary Clinton is Glenn Close in Fatal Attraction. She's going to keep coming back, and they're not going to stop her.
HOLMES: What, Ken?
[laughter]
RUDIN: Well, we'll figure that out, there's a lot of ways to imagine that.
HOLMES: Yeah, you can.
RUDIN: But, also if, I think, look, as far back as New Hampshire people were saying, well, you know, if Hillary Clinton loses New Hampshire, it's over. This is still the seventh inning, there is still nine more contests, plenty more to go. But, Pennsylvania, look, the demographics were against Barack Obama from the beginning, in Pennsylvania. It is older, the state is older, it's whiter, it's more women, it's more blue-collar workers. That's been an albatross for Barack Obama.
Now, coming up on May 6th, North Carolina, certainly more favorable terrain for Barack Obama, perhaps Indiana, as well, and then you still have the other contests. So, there may be some superdelegates who would love this to be over right away and are giving Hillary Clinton a second look, but again, he still leads, you know, he still has the lead, and he could still do very well on May 6th.
HOLMES: And last thing here on these two before I get to a question about [Sen John] McCain, if Obama pulls off North Carolina, as he is expected to win, and also Indiana, that's still not enough to knock her out of this race?
RUDIN: No, but nor should it be. I mean, you know, again, you know, there may be a lot of pressure on her from the party bigwigs, whoever they are, to say, look, it's time to go, but she'll say, look, I'm in it until the end. And I expect her to be in until the end, as Glenn Close was.
HOLMES: As Glenn, yes. And we understood -- we understood the analogy, I think.
All right. Tell us, McCain, how is he doing with his image right now?
[...]
HOLMES: All right, Ken Rudin, National Public Radio political editor, thank you for getting up with us. We know you were at the correspondents' dinner last night in D.C., where the president was, and hear you all had a pretty good time. But you look good this morning for partying all night.
RUDIN: I'm faking it.
HOLMES: All right. We'll let you go then.
RUDIN: Thanks.
NGUYEN: Well, maybe that explains the Glenn Close analogy, who knows?
[laughter]
HOLMES: Fatal Attraction, we don't get that reference on this show a lot.
NGUYEN: Very rare.
—E.H.H.
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