About Hillary, Those "National Security Democrats" And Their "Willingness To Use Force"
December 17, 2007 -- 3:02 PM EST // //
There are few media formulations more loathsome than the phrase "national security Democrat," and I just want to go on record sharing Atrios' annoyance with the fact that top Hillary supporter Richard Holbrooke feels compelled to define her in these terms:
“She is probably more assertive and willing to use force than her husband,” says Richard Holbrooke, the former envoy for Bill Clinton. “Hillary Clinton is a classic national-security Democrat. She is better at framing national-security issues for the current era than her husband was at a common point in his career.”As reprehensible as the phrase is, to me the more irksome thing here is Holbrooke's description here of Hillary as being "more willing to use force," than her husband, and presumably her rivals. Presumably Holbrooke intends this as a blanket compliment.
But if there's one thing that the past five years should have taught us, what's actually needed is a President who is not willing to use force when so doing is a bad idea that will ultimately weaken our national security. The key question is, Which of the Dems believes that he or she has the political breathing room, and political skills, to not use force in a situation where many in the media and political establishment are trumpeting the argument that not using force is synonymous with weakness?
In other words, which of the Dems has enough faith in his or her own abilities -- which Dem has, yes, the strength -- to believe that he or she can win an argument against the use of force in our media environment, and hence might be willing to give it a go? Unless I'm getting completely duped by Barack Obama's sales pitch, it seems obvious that he would have the confidence to undertake such a daring maneuver. Ditto Edwards. But when the likes of Holbrooke feels compelled to make the case for her in the media in terms such as these, he only succeeds in making it that much harder to believe the same of Hillary.
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