As the terrorist threat becomes ever more apparent—Paris, for instance—political experience in a Presidential candidate would seem to be at a premium, according to political…pundits. I agree: given the US’ role in the world, even after President Barack Obama’s seven-year retreat, a retreat actively supported by the Democratic Party, political experience is highly important. Especially with the damage done by that retreat, political experience is highly important. So is an ability to learn policy issues and rationally to form policy and adjust it as empirical data flow in.
Democratic Presidential candidate Hillary Clinton is often touted as unbeatable in the Democratic primary campaign—she is—and she’s just as often touted (a few too early polls notwithstanding) as virtually unbeatable in the general election. Her political experience is the support for that unbeatability.
Let’s see, then, what are some highlights of her political experience?
- HillaryCare
- Bimbo Eruptions
- For the Iraq War before she was against it (sound familiar?)
- Successfully passed three Senate bills: created a historic site, named a post office, named a stretch of highway
- For Keystone XL before she was against it
- Foreign government “contributions” to her (and her husband’s and daughter’s) Clinton Foundation while sitting in the Secretary of State’s chair
- Communications security and classified material handling while sitting in the Secretary of State’s chair
- Libya
- Benghazi
Clinton has remained steadfast in all of these, save for her flip-flopping on Iraq and Keystone. Especially, she has remained steadfast on Obamacare (née HillaryCare), security matters, Libya, and Benghazi.
She should run on her political experience. The Republican Presidential candidate should run on her political experience.