Clinton Regrets Assassination Remark

(AP)  Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton apologized after citing the June 1968 assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in defending her decision to keep running for the Democratic presidential nomination despite increasingly long odds.

"I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation - and in particular the Kennedy family - was in any way offensive. I certainly had no intention of that whatsoever," the former first lady said Friday.

The episode occurred as Clinton campaigned in advance of the June 3 South Dakota primary.

Responding to a question from the Sioux Falls Argus Leader editorial board about calls for her to drop out of the race, she said: "My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. You know I just, I don't understand it," she said, dismissing the idea of abandoning the race.

Clinton said she did not understand why, given this history, some Democrats were calling for her to quit.

Her remark about an assassination during a primary campaign drew a quick response from aides to Democratic presidential front-runner Barack Obama.

"Senator Clinton's statement before the Argus Leader editorial board was unfortunate and has no place in this campaign," said Obama spokesman Bill Burton.

Clinton spokesman Mo Elleithee said the senator was only referring to her husband and Kennedy "as historical examples of the nominating process going well into the summer and any reading into it beyond that would be inaccurate and outrageous."

She has said much the same thing before. In a March interview with Time magazine, she said: "Primary contests used to last a lot longer. We all remember the great tragedy of Bobby Kennedy being assassinated in June in L.A. My husband didn't wrap up the nomination in 1992 until June, also in California. Having a primary contest go through June is nothing particularly unusual."

Within a couple hours of the South Dakota remarks drawing attention, Clinton decided to make a personal apology.

"I was discussing the Democratic primary history and in the course of that discussion mentioned the campaigns of both my husband and Senator (Robert) Kennedy waged in California in June in 1992 and 1968 and I was referencing those to make the point that we have had nomination primary contests that go into June. That's a historic fact," she said.

"The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy," she added, referring to Sen. Edward M. Kennedy's recent diagnosis of a brain tumor. "I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation and in particular the Kennedy family was in any way offensive. I certainly had no intention of that whatsoever.

"My view is that we have to look to the past to our leaders who have inspired us, give us a lot to live up to, and I'm honored to hold Senator Kennedy's seat in the United States Senate from the state of New York and have the highest regard for the Kennedy family," she said.

In the same editorial board meeting, Clinton said "it is unprecedented in history" for political activists to urge a candidate to withdraw when his or her chances of winning the nomination appear remote. In fact, such events have happened several times.

Three months ago, Republican hopeful Mike Huckabee angered Sen. John McCain by lingering in the race after McCain's nomination seemed all but assured. "Of course I would like for him to withdraw today," McCain said at the time. A McCain campaign memo, which was leaked to the media, said the campaign was being forced to spend money in upcoming primary states merely to avoid being embarrassed by the underfunded Huckabee.

Clinton also said her campaign has had no discussions with Obama's aides about her possibly becoming his vice presidential pick.

"It is flatly untrue and it is not anything I'm entertaining. It is nothing I have planned and it is nothing I am prepared to engage in. I am still vigorously campaigning."

The Obama campaign also dismissed reports that there were talks going on between the two campaigns about putting Clinton on the ticket.

Obama has an almost 200-delegate lead over Clinton and is just 56 delegates short of the number needed to clinch the nomination, making Clinton's goal of catching him more difficult by the day. The primaries end June 3.

Clinton spent the day campaigning in South Dakota, which holds one of two June 3 primaries. At stake are 15 delegates.

Recent reports suggested she may be discussing ways to end her campaign by being offered the vice presidential slot underneath Obama, but she rejected that and said she suspected the talk was coming from Obama aides.

"I would look to the camp of my opponent for the source of these stories," she said. "People have been trying to push me out of this ever since Iowa."

Two of those recent reports, however, were attributed by CNN and The New York Times to supporters of Clinton.

Meanwhile, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, a staunch Clinton supporter, said Friday that she believes that if Obama becomes the nominee he should select Clinton as his running mate.

"I think as this race has emerged each one of them has garnered a different constituency and different states, and therefore when you put the two of them together it forms, I believe, the strongest ticket," she told The Associated Press in a phone interview.

"Women feel very strongly about Hillary and African-Americans feel very strongly about Barack, and the election results show that, and the young versus old, the higher educated versus the working person. ... All these things are sort of separated out into one or the other so there is a logic in combining the two constituencies."

Former Fannie Mae CEO Jim Johnson is overseeing the early vetting of possible vice presidential running mates for Obama, Democratic officials say. He did the same job for Democratic nominees John Kerry in 2004 and Walter Mondale in 1984.

[unhappydem]

This is what I can not understand If Obama has nomination all tied up then why does he have to start up on Clinton again? Whats he scared of?
Why does he have start something like she wants him dead? Is he still afraid that she is going to win? No one can say anything with out Obama jumping all over it crying fowl. Is this what its going to be like with him as president? Are we going to to loose our right to free speech too?
God help us!

For me there can only be Hillary or McCain God never Hussein!

[patriot12436]

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[patriot12436]

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[b-easy63]

It is also a historic fact that President Clinton ate puzzy out of another woman''s ***** while in the Oval office and lied about it--but discussing that fact is not appropriate or relevant to the campaign.

There were lots of examples to choose from in justifying an extending race until June--Reagan''s race, Clinton''s and yes even Bobby Kennedy''s. What was not appropriate, and does not make sense is that in referencing an extending race, HRC just happens to continually mention the tragedy of assassination of the man. His assassination had nothing to do with the race extension, but in the context she told it--it sounded like her rationale for staying in the race was that if she got lucky, Obama might get snuffed like RFK did. If she did not mean that, she should have left out the assassination part--just like if we want to talk about perjury or the impeachment of a President, we need not discuss the particulars of what her own husband did. Hillary deserves this remark to be replayed over and over as much as she enjoyed and did replay the "bitter" remarks of Obama. because whether she meant them or not---she made the gaffe--now she should be raked over the coals from them.

And if she and her supporters think that is unfair and spin--then consider her own words--it''s a hot kitchen--if she and they can''t take the same treatment they gave Obama--then get the hell out of the kitchen--they aren''t doing anything but making and burning slop anyway.

[patriot12436]

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[patriot12436]

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[txgrouch2004]

Killery just made a simple Freudian slip. It merely shows that SHE HAS BEEN THINKING ABOUT OBAMA GETTING ASSASSINATED - A LOT. So it just sorta slipped out. It''s only natural when something has been PLAYING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER IN YOUR MIND LIKE A BROKEN RECORD THAT KEEPS PLAYING THE SAME PART OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND YOU JUST CANNN''TTTT MAKE IT SSSTTTTOPPPP!!!!!

oops. Did I say KILLERy? It just slipped out. I''m SO sorry. WHERE did that come from...

[txgrouch2004]

Killery just made a simple Freudian slip. It merely shows that SHE HAS BEEN THINKING ABOUT OBAMA GETTING ASSASSINATED - A LOT. So it just sorta slipped out. It''s only natural when something has been PLAYING OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND OVER IN YOUR MIND LIKE A BROKEN RECORD THAT KEEPS PLAYING THE SAME PART OVER AND OVER AND OVER AND YOU JUST CANNN''TTTT MAKE IT SSSTTTTOPPPP!!!!!

oops. Did I say KILLERy? It just slipped out. I''m SO sorry. WHERE did that come from...

[niliadis-2009]

The manipulation and twisted actions on what Mrs. Clinton said referring to the time in history is incredibly insulting to those that respect Mrs. Clinton and the Kennedy Family..Did not Bobby Kennedy come out in support of Mrs. Clinton, stating exactly what she meant and was saying? That is where it should have stopped. But no Obama and his bullies along with the media have used the Kennedy Family in bringing, manipulating and twisting what Mrs. Clinton said. Shame on Obama the radical racist AntiAmerican supporter who the media has given the free pass and shame on the media for the insensitivity to the Kennedy Family....Boy how Obama uses every little word that the candidates say to his own self serving political gains...he even uses the American Flag pin for the same...if Obama is the nominee, there will be millions of Democrats for McCain. at least we know he is a true American...no excuses, no empty words, a war hero..who is a Republican but not a radical racisit anti-American supporter with shady anti-American friends...
http://www.authorsden.com/visit/viewnews.asp?id=23012

[niliadis-2009]

The manipulation and twisted actions on what Mrs. Clinton said referring to the time in history is incredibly insulting to those that respect Mrs. Clinton and the Kennedy Family..Did not Bobby Kennedy come out in support of Mrs. Clinton, stating exactly what she meant and was saying? That is where it should have stopped. But no Obama and his bullies along with the media have used the Kennedy Family in bringing, manipulating and twisting what Mrs. Clinton said. Shame on Obama the radical racist AntiAmerican supporter who the media has given the free pass and shame on the media for the insensitivity to the Kennedy Family....Boy how Obama uses every little word that the candidates say to his own self serving political gains...he even uses the American Flag pin for the same...if Obama is the nominee, there will be millions of Democrats for McCain. at least we know he is a true American...no excuses, no empty words, a war hero..who is a Republican but not a radical racisit anti-American supporter with shady anti-American friends...