August 18, 2005

Managing the news for Hillary's sake

By Noel Sheppard
One hot and humid weekend this past July, America's leading Democrats —— including some of the early favorites for that party's 2008 presidential nomination such as Senator Hillary Clinton (D—NY), Senator Evan Bayh (D—IN), Governor Tom Vilsack (D—IA), and Governor Mark Warner (D—VA) —— gathered in Columbus, Ohio at a conference hosted by the centrist Democratic Leadership Council.  Predictably, the press had a hard time controlling its glee when Senator Clinton was announced as the point—person to lead the DLC's new political offensive —— code name 'American Dream Initiative' —— to define the party's agenda for 2006 and 2008. As Ron Brownstein of the Los Angeles Times put it: The appointment solidified the identification of Clinton, once considered a champion of the party's left, with the centrist movement that helped propel her husband to the White House in 1992. It also continued her effort, which...(Read Full Article)