Lesson Learned

I think this will be one of the biggest political stories to come out of the 2008 election:

Probably the most significant revelation in the WP's new poll is just how much this presidential campaign has hurt Clinton's image. Obama now holds a 10-point lead over Clinton among Democrats, and not only do people widely see him as more electable, 54 percent claim to have an unfavorable view of the former first lady. While 52 percent of Americans considered Clinton "honest and trustworthy" in May 2006, that number has now fallen to 39 percent. The drop is slightly steeper among Democrats, 63 percent of whom now consider her honest, which marks an 18 point decrease from 2006.

Presumably Hillary will want a career after the election is over. Yet the way she has run her campaign, and the way she (and Bill) are now perceived by the country has taken a huge hit. I used to be a big Clinton fan. Yet now I just wish they'd go away, at least for awhile. They both need to, like, go into rehab or something and disappear from the public eye for awhile. Then they can re-emerge and create a new, gentler image. Unfortunately I don't think that is all that likely. Hopefully other Democratic politicians will learn that Rovian politics is not popular among liberals.