When triangulation = bullshit

Hillary Clinton received a little dose of reality from "the base" yesterday -- a base she insists she doesn't need, because all those independent voters are just dying to show up at the polls to vote for her.

Yeah, right.

"I do not think it is a smart strategy, either, for the president to continue with his open-ended commitment, which I think does not put enough pressure on the new Iraqi government...Nor do I think it is smart strategy to set a date certain. I do not agree that that is in the best interests.

Uh, Hill? Then what DO you think should be done in Iraq? You know, hon, there are some issues that this sort of "mushy middle" just won't work with.

Meanwhile, at the same event, John Kerry admitted (finally) that he was wrong to vote for this war. Too bad, John. You knew it was wrong when you voted for it. I heard your speech that day, and I had to clean pieces of the back of my skull off the wall when after that impassioned speech, which demonistrated that you DID know the issues, you voted for this war anyway. I knew there were no weapons of mass destruction in Iraq, why didn't you?

Kerry and Clinton are, at least in the eyes of the media, the "front-runners" for the 2006 nomination. They have a very serious problem, however, and you saw it on display yesterday. Clinton is trying to out-conservative the conservatives with her hawkish stance on Iraq, her advocacy of a constitutional ban on flag-burning, her squishiness on privacy, and her obsession with violent video games. And Kerry is still out there thundering decisively his indecisive positions. If this is the best the Democrats can do, we are in serious trouble.

There is a very real hunger for authenticity out there. I saw it in the New Jersey 5th District primary, where my candidate won a third of the vote against the machine's well-funded Clintonista, with no money, no organization behind her, running off the party line after being in the race barely three months. Neither Hillary Clinton nor John Kerry can claim that kind of authenticity. The jury is still out on Mark Warner, though certain segments of the netroots (see also: Jerome Armstrong) are putting their efforts behind him. Every time you toss the prospective candidates into a hat, only Russ Feingold comes out with the kind of honesty, integrity and authenticity for which voters are hungering right now. Perhaps if he changes his name to "Robert Farmer"......