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CNN's Borger said Clinton will "mimic[]" McCain by ... campaigning

January 11, 2008 3:26 pm ET
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SUMMARY: Gloria Borger stated that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is going to question Sen. Barack Obama's experience and accomplishments on the campaign trail "without being negative and nasty, while at the same time, she kind of mimics John McCain and goes out and chats with every voter she can." Borger did not explain how "go[ing] out and chat[ting] with every voter" amounts to "mimic[king] John McCain."

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On the January 10 edition of CNN's The Situation Room, during a discussion on former White House senior adviser Karl Rove's January 10 op-ed in The Wall Street Journal, senior political analyst Gloria Borger stated that Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton (D-NY) is going to question Sen. Barack Obama's (D-IL) experience and accomplishments on the campaign trail "without being negative and nasty, while at the same time, she kind of mimics John McCain and goes out and chats with every voter she can." Borger did not explain how "go[ing] out and chat[ting] with every voter" amounts to "mimic[king] John McCain."

From the discussion on the January 10 edition of CNN's The Situation Room, featuring Borger, host Wolf Blitzer, commentator Jack Cafferty, and chief national correspondent John King:

BLITZER: Jack, listen to what Karl Rove wrote in the op-ed page of The Wall Street Journal today, the president's former tops political adviser: "Former president Bill Clinton hit a nerve by drawing attention to Mr. Obama's conflicting statements on Iraq. There's more -- and more powerful -- material available. Mr. Obama has failed to rise to leadership on a single major issue in the Senate." What do you make of that?

CAFFERTY: Beware the wolf in Rove's clothing. You know, all of the Republican research leading up to this campaign suggested that the easiest candidate for the Republicans to defeat in November is Hillary Clinton. So if you're Karl Rove, what do you do? You try to tear down the guy who has the best chance of her not being the nominee, and that's Barack Obama. Just a conspiracy theory I have.

BORGER: Well, I think Karl Rove sounds a lot like Bill Clinton in this. I mean, this is exactly what the Clinton campaign is looking for. Bill Clinton has spoken about this, as Rove wrote, and I think as this campaign continues, you're going to see Hillary Clinton take a little page from the Walter Mondale question to Gary Hart, "Where's the beef?" She's going to try and do it without being negative and nasty, while at the same time, she kind of mimics John McCain and goes out and chats with every voter she can. But she's going to start asking Barack Obama what his ideas are for fixing the problems in this country, and I think the Obama campaign is going to start putting some meat on those bones.

BLITZER: John?

KING: Wolf, I think it would be an exaggeration to say Obama has had no impact. He was influential in that new lobbying law that was passed -- the restrictions on lawmakers, including on how lawmakers can't fly around on those private jets. Now they have to reimburse the government the full cost of the jet, not just a first-class ticket. So he has had some influence, but he is a first-term senator who has spent much of his first term running for president, and as you know full well, the Senate is a creature of seniority. To have significant influence, you have to be around awhile. So, that will of course be used against him. Senator Clinton is using it against him now. The Republicans would use it against him if he was the nominee, and there is a downside to that. There's also an upside to that, as Jack just noted, look when Bob Dole ran for president, look when John Kerry ran for president. When senators run for president, you can get tens of thousands of votes on these little motions in the middle of the night, even a senator doesn't know what he's voting on. In a presidential campaign, that can be used against you.

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    • Author by dbeden4153 (January 11, 2008 3:30 pm ET)
         
      Look, these people just don't have enough to do. I say we should start a campaign called "help keep the pundits busy." We'll send them board games and word puzzles so they can actually tax their brain, then they can talk about what they learned instead of making stuff up.
      Report Abuse
      • Author by pete592 (January 11, 2008 3:39 pm ET)
           
        Nice work if you can get it though, appearing on TV and pretending to know everything.
        Report Abuse
        • Author by dbeden4153 (January 11, 2008 3:52 pm ET)
             
          I know, it's my opinion that anyone with a mouth and a head full of crazy ideas could do the job just as well.

          Just look at Glenn Beck.
          Report Abuse
          • Author by atheist (January 11, 2008 4:23 pm ET)
               
            The best NH primary coverage was the Daily Show's post-primary review of all of the primary coverage. :-) It was HILARIOUS !
            Report Abuse
            • Author by dbeden4153 (January 11, 2008 4:25 pm ET)
                 
              I agree, I just can't wait until it's "The" Daily Show again. There's only so much talk about labor relations that I can stand at a time.
              Report Abuse
    • Author by mefirst (January 11, 2008 3:34 pm ET)
         
      it is a rather odd statement. is this something mccain discovered? this hasn't always gone on? should mccain get a patent?
      Report Abuse
      • Author by pete592 (January 11, 2008 3:46 pm ET)
           
        He is an innovator. Remember, he also pioneered armored rug shopping, a groundbreaking method of mass-marketing war.
        Report Abuse
      • Author by dexteritas0071418 (January 11, 2008 3:47 pm ET)
           
        I think if they're going to mention McCain in this context, they should mention Obama too, since he had a very grassroots campaign as well. McCain, although always the grassroots, love-me-some-townhall-meetings campaigner, did a lot of his face-to-face campaigning because that's all he could afford!
        Report Abuse
        • Author by mefirst (January 11, 2008 7:22 pm ET)
             
          there is nothing new about face to face campaigning. it's traditionally what has been done in iowa and new hampshire, because the candidates spend so long there. it's nothing unusual for a candidate to address a group in someone's living room. to me this is a shot at hillary. she's "mimicing" the real deal mccain.
          Report Abuse
    • Author by JLyons (January 11, 2008 3:47 pm ET)
         
      Yeah just what Hillary Clinton needs to do , mimic that bitter old man John McCain. Give me a break, will the media stop the insanity with the handholding of this guy
      Report Abuse
      • Author by Clevenative (January 11, 2008 4:52 pm ET)
           
        It's a little more than handholding. I have a few more accurate compound words in mind that end in ...kissing and ....sucking.
        Report Abuse
    • Author by jeter2 (January 11, 2008 3:55 pm ET)
         
      I think all candidates should get out & chat with as many folks as they can, & most seem to try. It's hardly a new concept so I'm not sure why McCain is being credited as it's *inventor*.

      Maybe cause he's the oldest? ;-)
      Report Abuse
      • Author by therick (January 11, 2008 4:09 pm ET)
           
        I wonder if he invented that campaign method around the same time that he invented the wheel?
        Report Abuse
      • Author by dbeden4153 (January 11, 2008 4:24 pm ET)
           
        Why? because they speak before they think, and the 24 hour news cycle's attention span is about as long as my Boxer's.*

        *For those of you who don't know, Boxers as a breed will pay attention to the next shiny thing that moves. Trying to get them to go outside in the fall is incredibly difficult.
        Report Abuse
        • Author by Clevenative (January 11, 2008 4:33 pm ET)
             
          Darn, and I was just going to say that the 24 hour news cycle's attention span is about as short as my briefs.

          You beat me to it - with a slightly different analogy. -:)
          Report Abuse
    • Author by atheist (January 11, 2008 4:24 pm ET)
         
      You're all making me laugh out loud with these comments !
      Report Abuse
      • Author by Clevenative (January 11, 2008 4:35 pm ET)
           
        I think everyone's in a good mood because we can finally post correctly again. -:)
        Report Abuse
    • Author by temphandle anise57conifer (January 11, 2008 6:21 pm ET)
         
      CNN is doing as much as Fox to destroy what's left of serious news in this country, with the nonstop speculation , opinion from " reporters" , and Blitzer should change the title of his little show, from the Situation Room to the Speculation Room . Gloria Borger's nasty cheap shots show where she's coming from , non of which is based on fact or any great political " analyst " .

      McCain gest coddled , with all the blatant cheer leading , NEVER saying anything critical , only laying phony praise like " the straight shooter " or the " Maverick" . When in FACT, John McCain is one of the biggest LIARS in the campaign , because on one hand he brags about bringing freedom and democracy to Iraq , and then says if we have to we will occupy Iraq for 100 years . The Truth is he obviously doesn't care about what Iraqis think or want, because the want the occupation to END . McCain knows DAMN well , the occupation of Iraq was decided before the invasion , he's just too dishonest and cowardly to admit it .
      Report Abuse

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