Clinton Resilience Could Benefit Hillary

Throughout Difficult Times, The Clintons Have Overcome Adversity And Bounced Back

(AP)  History shows the folly of counting out a Clinton.

If Hillary Rodham Clinton's campaign is looking more and more like the Titanic, she may yet prove to be the unsinkable Molly Brown.

Ask Mike McCurry about the Clintons' resilience. McCurry worked for Bob Kerrey, one of Bill Clinton's chief rivals in the 1992 presidential campaign. He remembers the day details broke about Clinton's efforts to avoid the Vietnam draft, just weeks after allegations had surfaced of an affair with Gennifer Flowers.

"He's toast," McCurry told co-workers on the Kerrey campaign. "He's never going to survive this." McCurry went on to become Clinton's chief White House spokesman.

Hillary Clinton was a huge factor in her husband's 1992 victory and in any number of other recoveries during his agony-and-ecstasy political career. Now, she's the one attempting to rebound from 11 straight primary and caucus losses to Barack Obama.

Obama is well aware of the Clintons' supersized survival instincts. Aides say privately that's one reason the Illinois senator has continued to go after her so directly rather than adopting a traditional front-runner's strategy of ignoring his rival.

"I'd hold the obituary" for Clinton, says David Gergen, who served as an adviser to four presidents, including Bill Clinton. "She, like he, has enormous inner reserves upon which to draw. That's why, no matter what else happens, you can't discount the possibility that she's going to bounce back."

She's already done it once this year, pulling off an upset in New Hampshire after taking a shellacking in the leadoff Iowa caucuses.

"We're going to keep pushing as hard as we can," she promised after placing third in Iowa. She's been saying much the same thing as she fights for victories in Texas and Ohio next week to revive her candidacy.

Trite as that may sound, it’s part of the secret to the Clintons' success.

"They never say die," said Mary Matalin, who served as deputy campaign manager of the unsuccessful Bush re-election campaign in 1992. "In all the years I've been watching them, it never occurs to them to throw in the towel. There's no 'What's my graceful exit strategy?' They don't have that gene."

Democratic strategist Jennifer Palmieri, an eight-year veteran of the Clinton White House, sees the same mettle.

"They take a very long view of things, and they expect to win," said Palmieri. "It's something that not enough people perhaps on the Democratic side do - expect to win."

The notion of a former first lady running for a Senate seat from a state in which she had no political connections was written off at first, but now Clinton is in her second term holding the New York Senate seat once occupied by Robert F. Kennedy.

The Clintons' boom-and-bust cycle began long before they arrived on the national scene.

It started with a bust: In 1974, Bill Clinton made an unsuccessful run for Congress at age 28. Two years later, he bounced back and was elected Arkansas attorney general. And two years after that, at 32, he became the nation's youngest governor.

Then, defeat again: In 1980, done in by what he admitted was the arrogance of youth, Clinton lost his bid for re-election to a second term as governor. Two years later, redemption. He pulled off a comeback and never lost another race.

Along the way, the Clintons proved themselves to be tough street fighters.

In 1990, when Gov. Clinton faced a strong re-election challenge, it was first lady Hillary who crashed a news conference held by the opponent and undercut him with documents showing he had praised Clinton's performance as governor.

"That is a group that can take a punch and they can lay a punch," said Palmieri. "They are smart and they're fearless, but they're not reckless."

The Clinton roller coaster ride was far from over.

The 1992 presidential campaign amounted to a running revival show for the Clintons, and the presidency unfolded like a sequel.

It was almost always a team effort, and Hillary Clinton had a starring role in one early and prominent defeat, the ill-fated health-care reform effort.

In 1994, after Paula Jones filed a sexual harassment suit against Bill, it was Hillary who first interviewed lawyer Robert Bennett about helping fend off what Clinton insiders were calling the latest "bimbo eruption." There were other problems, as well. The Whitewater mess had followed the Clintons north from Arkansas, and Independent Counsel Kenneth Starr was investigating.

The midterm elections that year, in which Republicans seized control of the House and Senate, served as resounding repudiation to the president.

By mid-1995, the Clinton presidency was in free fall. Internal polls found that two-thirds of Americans ruled out voting to re-elect him. Aides cringed when Clinton felt compelled to insist at a news conference, "The president is relevant."

Through it all, Hillary Clinton was "a steadying force," Gergen said. "One of the reasons this marriage has worked for both of them is that he could always look to her for help in getting through things."

Bill Clinton was chastened but forged ahead, adapting to the changed political dynamic. In his 1996 State of the Union address, the president who had come to office promising to do so much instead declared, "The era of big government is over."

Voters in 1996 rewarded him with re-election, and he set out to exceed the low expectations set for second-term presidents.

Those efforts were overshadowed by his involvement with White House intern Monica Lewinsky. The ensuing investigation and impeachment melodrama tested the Clintons' resilience and their marriage as never before, but they persevered and Hillary Clinton emerged stronger than ever.

She gave a hint of that last week when she told the audience at a Democratic debate, "I think everybody here knows I've lived through some crises and some challenging moments in my life." And that may explain her ability to press forward when the odds appear so daunting.

When it comes to the Clintons, says Palmieri, "The one thing you can almost always say about whatever situation you're in is that you've seen worse. So they don't get rattled. They have a much better perspective about how to deal with difficult days."

[alicerea1]

This is not to frieghten anyone. But we do need to investigate our candidates. Just yesterday Obama was questioned about his Church being affiliated with a radical leader of the Nation of Islam , Louis Farrakhan. Louis Farrakhan is supporting Obama in a ralley conducted last Sunday.

This is not to be a smear for Obama but we should investigate his ties with radical groups.

I would want the American people to investigate the Clinton''s and the McCains also.

Please don''t rush to judgemement on any candidate until they are thoroughly investigated.

[alicerea1]

Senator Clinton is the only one we should be considering to nominate for President. Obama has the talking righ but that''s it. We need someone that knows the ropes. It is important to have a long resume of accomplishments to attain this position.

I have had my own business for years. There is no way I would hire anyone without experience if my business was in poor shape to even attempt to run it.

What is everyone thinking!

Support someone with your brain not your heart.

[alicerea1]

Please God help us support Hillary.

[alicerea1]

To All Americans:

This is a job application for the most important job in the WORLD.

Many of you might not recall this but President Clinton is brilliant. He balanced our budget. America had a zero balance from his economic programs.
Hillary was the "First Lady". She was also active in many political issues that she continues to fight for.


The Clinton''s are being bashed by the media VERY unfairly. Hillary was our "First Lady" for our country and is not a little respected but "loved" by the American people and by the international community.

Wake up American and know that at the time when our country is almost bankrupt and countries are not endorsing our current administration. If we would use our brain and support the Clintons we will be admired once again by all.

John Glenn is a hero. Madelyn Albright is world reknown and General Wesley Clark is top notch in the Military.

This type of backing should be admired and respected by ALL Americans.

We need a sure shot to work for our country. We don''t need a long shot or someone that has never handled White House ins and outs.

We all want change...but face it....we need change with experience.

Go Hillary!!!!!!!!!!!

[alicerea1]

You go girl!

[pammyd3]

I''ll try to publish this once more. It seems that all the media is being controlled by Oprahs big $$$. I constantly have to "flip" channels because of the ever so biased news reports. Alls you see of Obama is his big "chesire cat grin" and lets vote for change speech. Gime a break... how profound!!Are the men in this country that intimidated to have a women as president? Sure looks that way. They would rather have someone who is a total puppet and can be controlled then someone who has a clear plan for change. I suppose these are the same people who HATE women police officers, women in the military, or any woman with authority. Hillary Clinton truely represents what this country needs and that is someone who is passionate about what she believes in. Barack Obama doesn''t even respect her.. you can see that by his smug looks as she speaks and the disrespect he shows as he pretends to write his little notes down all the while not even making eye contact with her. You Obama supporters are truely blinded by the media. They are supporting who is paying their bils and their 6 figure salaries. As a student many years ago I supported a black woman running for president named Shirlsy Chisholm who also had great compassion and who also didn''t get the POSITIVE media coverage she rightly deserved as a candidate.Its long over due for change alright, but I support someone with a PROVEN track record, not basing my support on gender, race OR charisma.

[popstom1]

You do not get it Ken Star spent 70 MILLION trying hard.
to get anything on the Clinton,s in the end they lost 10.000 dollers and bill got bj. so Ifeelgood if you give me 70MILLION I can convict you of murder and I do not know you Hillary Clinton done a lot for this country Obama will take a life time to catch up

[ifeelgood3]

In response to "popstom1" question for me:

If you do a Google search on "Whitewater," you will get numerous hits. For an encyclopedic presentation of the scandals, start at this web site:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whitewater_(controversy)Afterwards, you can peruse the many investigative reports on the different scandals; e.g. Watergate, Filegate, Travelgate, cover-up after Vince Foster''s death, et al. Have fun. Decide for yourself.

[future_watch]

Debmood why would you accuse Hillary of being bi-polar? Do you have more than one emotion? Does anyone you like ever do things to upset you? She is a living breathing person with feelings and she is honestly displaying them. She is glad to be running against a bi-racial man. When she graduated from college, the thought of a woman and bi-racial man contending for President was just a dream. Now it is reality and she is happy for the progress in the country. Don''t knock her for being genuine. A disingenuous person is one who never shows his or her feelings.

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by popstom1 at 03:25 PM : Feb 26, 2008

lol, so would I.

She has run her campaign like the classy lady she is. And he''s run his like a street punk.

I''m not giving up on Hillary until the count is down! We need her in the White House! As we''ve already seen, incompetent buffoonery does not work.

[popstom1]

I would like to see Hillary walk right up to mr.obama kick him the the nuts but being a lady she has more class then that but it is a nice day dream

[sjbj2322]

Just a few comments about comments. YES, you should respect John Glenn and for the very reason that he is a relic from the past. There used to be a think in this country called respect for one''s elders. I know it isn''t something they preach about in their hope to take over the world from us old folks but the fact of the matter is that history and experience do matter. If they didn''t most of the upstarts wouldn''t even be here and have the opportunity to be so blatantly disrespectful. You accomplish 1/10th of what John Glenn has and then I''ll tell you why I think your opinion amounts to anything. As for debates! I hope she can force as many out of him as possible because it seems that it is the only way that the public ever gets the opportunity to see what a joke Obama is. The media sure isn''t going to because they''ve put themselves on record for patronizing the kid from Illinois that claims to have an answer for this nation when the truth of the matter is that he''s still trying to find himself. So is his darling wife. Anybody that is struggling that hard to find a sense of personal identity has no business trying to mold the face of an entire nation. Some people may not like Hillary and that''s fine but at least there is not one day in this woman''s life that can''t be accounted for. There are entire gaps in Obama''s life that no one seems to know for sure what he was up to. Sorry but that bugs me no end.

[daisymom4]

A fighter, a leader, a REASON to believe in CHANGE!

[lauren0211]

All you Obamamainians......move over, Hillary is not done yet. She is just getting started. Obama, follow and get out of the way. Hillary, you are the one.
VOTE FOR HILLARY!! GOD bless America!!!!!!!!

[kman821]

Alicerea1

Please explain to me why I should be impressed that John Glenn endorses Hillary ... he is a relic from the past and his opinion doesn''t generate any interest beyond his own generation which is about all the base she has left! She is the most devisive candidate imaginable whose ego is only exceeded by Ralph Naders!

[popstom1]

Hay jedi I can always tell when I am dealing with the getto. now WHY DON''T YOU LEARN SOMETHING search
hillary Clinton then go to WIKIPEDIA and read and if it''s not too hard read all of it then you can come back and run that nasty mouth and I will know if you did your home work

[debmood]

I certainly hope that tonight''s debate is the final one. I can''t understand for the life of me why Mrs. Clinton has such terrible advisors. Seems to me that Bill would tell her to tone down all of that yelling and screaming. I don''t remember any candidate being this out of control during this election as Mrs. Clinton is. She seems to have a split personality. One day she''s very proud to be with Barack and the next minute she''s screaming for him to "meet her in Ohio!" What the heck is going on with her? Is she bipolar? Sorry, I had to ask.

[erie61]

What we need is a candidate who has tenacity. Hillary has that. We are all complaining about the things wrong in this country, but are too ignorant to see why they are wrong. I am sick of the media telling me who is best. The county where I reside since the Republican administration was put in office, has lost it''s second largest employer, the first has been cut down from six day weeks to four. There are so many foreclosed homes, that people are no longer selling them, but trying to rent them. Barack Obama did the Democratic Party a real injustice by running in this election. He split Democrats at a time when it was life and death for this country. I say "shame on you Barack Obama!"

[alicerea1]

Why is it that people aren''t waking up to what is going on with this election.

Vote for people that can help us out of the mess our country is in.

Obama is talk thats it!

President Clinton balance the budget and was loved around the WORLD. Hillary was there and was respected everywhere. No body wants to hear that for some reason.

Hillary is being supported by John Glenn and four star generals.

Barack is being supported by Oprah and a radical islamic leader.

America WAKE UP!!!!!!!!

I think

[alicerea1]

God help us to elect Hillary.
What''s wrong with America. It''s puzzling that we would rather have an unknow run our country with a name like Barack Hussein Obama.
President Clinton is an idol to the WORLD.
Obama has been affiliated with radical groups in the 60''s and is being supported by an Islamic leader in Chicago. (Chicago Tribune article: Louis Farrakhan endorses Obama at Nation of Islam Convention)
This is enough to scare anyone.
Wake up America!