Quick update: We don't know anything new. There will be many invented stories that have only been created because people who are paid to talk on TV have to say something, and THE DONALD draws ratings. It's still incredibly unlikely that he can win, but nobody should say that with much certainty until after the labour day long weekend.
(of course, I do have a little wager on the outcome of this...)
With that said...if a vote were held today, HRC would win by a landslide. She'd win by historical margins in the electoral college, and possibly bring Democratic majorities to the Senate and Congress.
Which begs the question, what would she do?
In 2008: We knew that Obama was promising the idea of Change.
In 2012, we knew Obama promised to not be Mitt Romney.
This year, we know that:
THE DONALD stands for "you're angry!? I am also angry!!"
Bernie stood for "Revolution! And have you seen my glasses?"
Jeb! Bush stood for "Jeb!" "No really! My name is Jeb!"
HRC seems to stand for "I'm like Obama, but not quite..." and "seriously, it's my turn now" or "maybe if I just go away for a few months, people will literally beg me to be President instead of DONALD"
When Obama briefly had a majority of democrats in the House and in Senate, he saved the auto industry, invested an unprecedented amount of money in a stimulus package, completely overhauled the way Americans get health insurance, lessened the burden of student debt, changed the course of climate change, and allowed people to be openly homosexual in the military. There were other accomplishments, I remember these being the signature ones in his first two years when he had the type of majority HRC may have.
So....I wonder what Hilary would do? Her website isn't clear on this, listing dozens of priorities. The Washington Post suggests immigration reform and hundreds of millions of dollars on infrastructure in addition to mandatory paid family leave and medical leave.
Immigration reform is what politicians refer to as a third-rail issue. When you actually try to grab a hold of it (and change it), it electrocutes you. Reforming the current American approach to immigration will require about the same amount of political capitol that Obama spent on Health Care. Reminder: He was absolutely demonized for changing health care laws when he was in the middle of it. The last act of the massive campaign capacity he built with his volunteer mass was to overwhelm congresspeople and senators with calls in support of Obamacare. HRC may face a similar uphill battle, but she isn't showing signs of building the type of community outreach capacity that Obama has in 2008.
Everything after these promises is hazy, which is a little worrisome. She'll have the potential to force meaningful change through the American Government, but seems to have so many promises that she doesn't have any. She talks about tax, wall street, trade deals, early education, minimum wage, and other liberal favourites, but none seem to be thematic or passionate calls to action.
She has an opportunity to transform the American economy, to bridge the gap between the lower class and the 1% (let's agree middle class is rarely a thing), to provide for security in retirement or to advance the health care evolution even further. She could state a grand ambition (think Kennedy promising that Americans would go to the moon), like eradicating hunger or ending climate change....but nada. She could choose aspiration, which would allow her team to spread that message and bring communities together in support of her agenda, like we did in 2008. Instead, she appears to be choosing status quo.
I didn't support Bernie, because I didn't think he was capable of pulling it off (either winning, or if he won: accomplishing anything). But damn, I wish HRC was willing to take a little bit of a gamble. I bet her ground team does too.
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