Do You Take This Man?
what started out as a political courtship could end up a messy throwdown
2007-08-01
By Monroe Anderson

Watching the two-step between Democratic presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton is like watching the evolution of a marriage. Initially, everybody's solicitous, loving, polite. Then, as the realities of a long-term relationship start to sink in, the decorum diminishes, the frustrations become a bit more vocal. For these two, the honeymoon is over.

During the YouTube Democratic candidate debate on CNN last week, Sen. Obama made it plain: If elected president, he would meet with the bad-boy leaders who head nations such as Iran, North Korea and Cuba. These eyeball-to-eyeball encounters could take place in the first year of his administration with no strings attached.

The following day, Sen. Clinton made it, if only in her own mind, even plainer: Obama doesn't know what he is talking about.

Barack's "let's all get together" position peeped his lack of foreign experience, Hillary cracked. "I thought that was irresponsible and frankly naïve."

This from a woman who, a mere four months ago, referred to him as her "esteemed colleague and fellow Democrat" who, like her, wanted "what was best for America."

Now, apparently, what's best for the nation is old school American diplomacy, which calls for the Commander-in-Chief to give the silent treatment to world leaders that don't tow the line. While the president is refusing to acknowledge them, U.S. diplomats are busy doing spade work so that should the leader of the free world get around to a face-to-face meeting, it's a done deal. America wins or at least saves face.

Bush has practiced this approach religiously. It has resulted in missions unaccomplished. While the president poses as the strong, silent type, North Korea tested its nuclear weapons and Iran has been steadily working on developing weapons of mass destruction. Not to mention that this brand of political muscle reeks of hypocrisy: We're still boycotting communist Cuba while we run a trade deficit with communist China.

Escalating the squabble, Obama countered Clinton's crack, calling her position "Bush-Cheney lite." Like divorce attorneys, both candidates' chief political strategists then took to the news talk shows to debate the merits and nuances of one candidate over the other.

And the dance goes on with the lady from New York and the G from Illinois politely dissing each other every chance they get while feigning public civility because they have no choice.  Clinton is number one in the polls with a double-digit lead. She needs the black vote and therefore has to be careful not to offend African-Americans by sinking her fangs in too deeply. Though Obama is number one in fund-raising, he is still a distant second in the polls. He needs the female vote and must be careful not to offend women. Blacks make up 10 percent of the electorate and vote close to 90 percent Democratic. Women make up about 54 percent of the electorate but skew slightly only in the Democratic party's column.

The senator from New York – in no small part because of her husband – is popular with African Americans. Many of us are divided between voting for her or one of our own, fearing that America is not yet ready for a black man as president. The senator from Illinois – who is enjoying rock star status – has been drawing an increasing number of women at his public rallies, with a small but significant percentage of women reluctant to put one of their own in the oval office.

So Hillary is drawing from Barack's base while he is pulling more and more from hers. Which is why they will continue to strike surgically, and civilly, at each other – fearing a fatal blow could end up being political suicide with neither candidate ending up with the White House china.

Click here for Campaign '08 coverage 

(Monroe Anderson is a frequent contributor to Ebonyjet.com)