Let me finish tonight with trouble - real trouble.
It's the trouble I sense out there in the country for President Obama and the Democrats if they don't address the gender imbalance in their politics.
Hillary Clinton ran a brave, hugely important campaign for president in 2008. She carried all the big Democratic states - New York, Connecticut, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Indiana, and California. Her only miss was Illinois, Obama's home state.
Obama won the nomination because he focused on the smaller states, many of them where Republicans win in November and rolled up the delegates. He won on strategy and, I strongly believe, because he had staked out his opposition to the Iraq war early and definitively.
All that said, Senator Clinton ran a courageous campaign, especially - and I watched it first-hand - in New Hampshire when she'd been given up for lost. She spoke for hours up there at large gatherings showing her mettle. And millions of Democrats, including many women my age, were deeply supportive of her and the historic breakthrough she was making.
All that happened - and it is "not" in the past. It is in the present - that support for her, that passionate belief that it was all about time.
Is everybody listening? Are you listening at the White House? Mr. President, are "you" listening?
I'm bringing this up for what the president would call "a whole host" of reasons:
One, Rep. Bachmann is going to make a real bang in this coming election season. You don't know that; you don't know politics. Romney is like one of those fine hotels in a third world country. The rebels ride past those hotels in their jeeps when the revolution comes - and its coming in the Republican Party. Time's got it right. Bet on the pitchforks to take it from the country clubbers.
Two, when Democratic women, again especially of my age, see what's happening on the other side. They are going to wonder - and not quietly - why it's not happening on theirs.
Three, Secretary of State Clinton is going to be leaving her job by the end of the next year. Who, I have to ask, is going to replace her in what's going to look like the all-male line-up in the top administration positions. State, the Pentagon, AG, Treasury - all men, not good.
Fourth, I hear it - I am hearing it, including from trusted colleagues - Better Watch Out, this denial of women their equal place, especially in Democratic politics - I'm talking about the top - isn't going to end nice.
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Chris, your Let Me Finish tonight was absolute crap. The president has put many women in powerful positions in his administration, including adding two women to the supreme court need I remind you. I am part of a blog that is dedicated to charting and covering the Obama presidency and as soon as I blogged about what you said, many people immediately replied and off the tops of their heads began listing all the women the president has hired to top positions in his administration and in government in general. Frankly Chris, perhaps you should engage in more investigation before the "journalism." Below are some of the names that ONE person came up with in 3 minutes. Below that is a link to the comments section of the blog located on theobamadiary.com Kindly get it straight next time. We (democrats) don't need to be copying the Repugs who want to attack women and their rights. The democratic party has gone above and beyond anything the repugs could do to push women's initiatives:
OK, just off the top of my head:
Clinton
Napolitano
Sebelius
Solis
Rice
Romer
Duckworth
Sotomayor
Kagan
Valerie Jarrett
Melody Barnes
Nancy DeParle (Health Care reform)
Carol Browner (Energy and Climate Policy)
Lisa Jackson (EPA)
Regina Benjamin (Surgeon General)
Karen Gordon Mills (SBA)
Nancy Sutley (Council on Environmental Quality)
Mary Schapiro (SEC)
Margaret Hamburg (FDA)
Monica Sutphen (Deputy COS)
Taken from:
#comments
Ditto
Lisa you beat me to it.
So now we just making up sh*t to complain to Obama about!
I'm getting sick of Matthews. Blasts guests who don't agree with him...telling Maher this past Friday that Bachmann is his hero. Matthews has gone through the challengers for the gopbaggers: first to be afraid of was Palin, then it was Trump, then Christie, then Perry and now Bachmann. Matthews, do your job blast the gopbagger candidates or move your ass to some other network. The Bachmann hero statement made me vomit - show the country what a fraud she is like Cenk Uygar, Lawrence O'Donnell, Rachael Maddow and Ed Schultz do nightly. I just don't like your approach any more.
Chris...
I love ya man, but you got this one all wrong.
I lean towardthe progressive liberal democrat side of thinking... and yes, Michele Bachman is a woman. Just because she is a woman.... elephants would have to fly out of Nancy Pelosi's ass before I would ever vote for Congresswoman Bachman. Obama has many women in high positions. Napalitano, Sebelius, our UN Rep., plus he has appointed 2 women to the SCOTUS.
Back to Michelle Bachman.... she is as crazy as a hoot owl. Having her as President would move this country backwards 5 decades. By Nov.4, 2012, her major contributors will be revealed (Koch, et. al) and Rachel Maddow, Keith Olbermann, Jon Stewart, and you will have a field day all over her head. A small number of women who are strongly influenced by their right wing husbands and fathers and FIX News might vote for her. The majority of woman? Hell will freeze first. Give us some credit Chris! Obama, Biden, or Hillary as President... all fine with me... anatomy aside... really. It's about the agenda, not the chromosomal difference.
eileen141
I'm with you Chris. My mother 84 hard core life long Dem, in union all of her working life. She was so all about Hillary even though Hillary voted for the 2002 Iraq war resolution. That generation so wants to witness a woman take the top seats. They want it real bad. Obama needs some more women.
Samamtha Powers, Hillary Mann Leveret...We need some women in there in top spots As Chris points out the ratio is not looking good
Kathleen....you are not very bright or are very lazy. Read above you. I was beat by Lisa so I just agreed with her. You can vote for Republicans if you want. Welcome to the 50's.
Chris is talking about in the top four or five positions in the cabinet. But that might take you awhile to figure out
Come on Chris drop Weinergate
Some other story ideas if you continue to be stuck on Weiner
http://www.juancole.com/
Repeal the PATRIOT Act is the Lesson of Bush White House Spying
Posted on 06/17/2011 by Juan
Very unfortunately, President Obama just signed a four-year extension of the so-called PATRIOT Act, with three central provisions that permit warrantless spying by government agencies on US residents. This extension was rushed through the Congress with parliamentary maneuvers and opponents of it who wanted a public debate were shut down by Reid and Boehner.
If the Bush White House blithely picked up the phone and asked the Central Intelligence Agency to gather information on my private life for the purpose of destroying me politically– a set of actions that was illegal every which way from Sunday– then imagine how powerful government officials are using the legal authorization they receive from the PATRIOT Act to spy on and marginalize perceived opponents.
The act is clearly unconstitutional and guts key Bill of Right protections. Among its disturbing aspects is the access it gives government agencies to individuals’ library records, business records and other personal effects without requiring probable cause of a crime being committed. And while the wiretap provisions target non-US citizens, they extend to any conversations the latter have with US citizens. The framers of the constitution in any case believed that the liberties they proclaimed extended to “all men,” not just citizens.
Chris,
You've got it wrong. Obama has placed many woman in top positions in his administration, and two in the SCOTUS. Just because Michelle Bachmann is a woman does not mean a liberal progressive like myself and millions of other voters would vote for her. She's out in right field, and besides, by the time Nov.4 2012 rolls around.... all of her contributors will be revealed, and she will stand out as the puppet she really is... a mouthpiece for corps. and extremely rich people. The GOP is old news... really. FOX News will try to make her look like the next Sarah Palin... but the Dem. Party has so much video of her acting like herself....( a hoot owl) there is no way she will be the next President. This country is not going to go backwards 5 decades like the Conservatives would like to happen. People will not stand for it. Karl Rove would love to pull something of substance together for the GOP, but he is coming up empty this time around.
Eileen C. Santipadri
Something very similar between the Netroots Nation conference and the MSM. Do not touch the Israeli Palestinian conflict. Off Limits
http://mondoweiss.net/2011/06/what-do-you-do-when-netroots-is-just-not-that-into-you.html
I have been politely pounding on Netroots almost since their first conference I think that one was in Vegas to open up discussion about the Israeli Palestinian conflict and how the US is seen around the world for its lop sided and criminal stances on this issue. How this issue as well as US support for dictators and our military bases undermine US national security on a daily basis.
Have contacted Netroots staff, made solid suggestions for panels etc. Have talked to a few heavy hitters at the conference about this wall of silence that is no different than in the MSM about this issue. I think we keep bringing attention to this serious and unfortunate weakness. How an open discussion of these issues will not weaken Netroots but strengthen. We can do this in a civil and respectful way. I have brought this up on the Diane Rehm show, with Colonel Ann Wright, Medea Benjaman and with Cenk Uygar and a few others at the conference.
Many in the Netroots nation are upset with the fact that not one person was held accountable for false pre war intelligence. No accountability for an unnecessary and brutal war in Iraq.
One thing that is no different between the Netroots nation conference and the MSM...Israeli Palestinian conflict off limits
4 Dead In Ohio
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As always, many baby boomers like Mr. Matthews only seem to remember what they choose rather than what reality seems to place in front of them but that's no surprise to the generations behind them. Hilary Clinton did run a great campaign, no doubt but she had a real tough time capturing women from the ages of 18 through forty nine or fifty and many men within those age brackets as well because her self absorbed attitude toward being the elusive front runner with a total disregard for the generational shift happening in the country and world for that matter and the very fact that the generations behind yours have so much more of a bitter sweet view of the Clintons and that in my opinion is no small affair. That is the entire post Vietnam War American mainstream speaking. As for the role of women in general, I guess we're going to forget that Nancy Pelosi was 3rd in command of this Nation for a while and there are what, three women on the supreme court now and there is absolutely no female caucus in congress. Give me a break Chris shall I go on...
I just want to say that Mr. Hardball, you are hot!
6 months ago, I stopped watching your show. They sounded the same no matter the subjects were or your heart was not in it. But I can't wait to watch your show, now. What changed? I don't know.
By the way, on Mr. Weiner, I think his peer did him in more than anything else. So now, he has to mend with them before anything else.
Chris and Hardball team (if any of you read these comments) I am begging you to do a story on the US Boat To Gaza the "Audacity of Hope" before there is violence. (of course praying that there is not) Not only is this a good story you could cover it pre-emptively from the Israeli point of view and the American passengers point of view. You could interview retired Colonel Ann Wright, former CIA analyst Ray McGovern, Alice Walker and a holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein (86) who will all be on the "Audacity of Hope" Hedy is my vote. Spent time with her at the Move over Aipac conference she is simply inspirational. I literally spent 3 hours with her. Talking, getting others to interview her, bringing her water muffins. Her mind is as sharp as a tack. I told her that her example of compassion, empathy for the Palestinian people (many are suffering) after what she has been through (even though we all know Palestinians had nothing to do with WWII). Her ability to separate and stand up against the illegal and brutal actions of Israel and continue to love Israel based on the internationally recognized 67 border. As I said to her "Hedy you are like a little Jewish Dali Lama"
Back to my begging. Interview these folks, put the spotlight on them which would reduce the chance for violence. They are unarmed. They are going to Gaza with a large international flotilla. Tell the story before there is any violence. Please Please please
http://ustogaza.org/
People on the Boat. Please interview Col Ann Wright, Ray McGovern, Hedy Epstein
@ Kathleen
What you strive for is not going to happen. I have been trying for long on this and other blogs including CNN for quite a while to bring media attention to deep and cancerous flaws in our policies towards Israel-Palestine issue and M.East in general.
Its a no go. It has been made absolutely certain by 'authorities' that the American public does not have any inkling of vital facets of this issue. An issue which is the mother of all issues for America's strategic , national security , geo-political and economic goals, both in the short & long term.
AIPAC has already intensified efforts to thwart any , even remote , possibility of our supporting the Palestinian Statehood resolution in the UN by end of the year. And signs are that our political leadership would go along with commands from Tel Aviv as always. Despite our stated committment to a two state solution of the conflict , the only means to achieve a lasting peace.
At the same time the Lobby has increased pressure to push us towards a military confrontation with Iran. Despite both Israeli intelligence including ex-Chief of Mossad & our own intelligence/defence analysts repeatedly saying that Iran poses no threat to either country.
This would of course push the Palestinian statehood or any other issue for that matter into background for the International community. And that is precisely what Tel Aviv wants.
This country of ours is being led by its proverbial nose down a path which leads to nowhere but financial, political and military disaster while we are still reeling under Iraq, Afghan and now Libyan debacles.
God save us.
On your Monday July 20 show, you said that Rick Perry obviously did not mean what he was saying, because of the way that he moved his arms when he spoke, and that he should not be President.
Chris by that reasoning, since you forget guests names, misuse and mispronounce words, you should not be on TV.
I watched you on Real Time, hoping for some interesting imput from you. Your contribution was to sit with your arms crossed and inform everyone on how to pronounce Dick Cheneys name. A real disappointing performance.
Rick Perry is just as you described Romney. He will say anything to win. He was a college truly a "cheerleader." It's just all about the game and the pom poms.
Women in politics...again!!! How should the dems come up with an "exciting" female candidate in 2012? Or are you talking about 2016? Are you advocating for the nutcases like Michelle Bachman on the democratic side too? Are you really sure that you still can differentiate between a celebrity and politician? It seems to me that everybody who does not have the celebrity quality is just boring for you. What about the issues? It's about issues, isn't it?
You have contributed lately a lot to promoting Sarah Palin and Michelle Bachman. Based on the experience from my country of origin I can tell you this: the politicans the people and the press laughed at most because of their stupidity (both male and female) ended up becoming national leaders and ultimately war criminals. I think that both Palin and Bachman have the same potential. They are not Hilary Clinton.
Sorry I read this "let me me make up dumb @!$%#" so late. It has all been said by others except for Kathleen who has the gift to make up even dumber @!$%#. The "Chris and Michelle (Bachman) Show"is just days away!