Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

WOW.

Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default.

Even later on in the season, it seemed at times like Senator Clinton never really adjusted her strategy to account for proportional allocation.

When she was down by a big amount in a state unfavorable to her demographics (e.g. Virginia), it seemed like she would just give up and focus her attention on eking out a narrow victory in the bigger state that followed (Ohio). While she would win the bigger state, she would lose delegates overall because the margin in the smaller state was so huge.

robsul82: Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

WOW.

This.

"Mark Penn" or "Walter Mitty" - you decide!

robsul82: Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

Jesus. I knew that and this is the first election I've paid even remote attention to. That's unbelievably pathetic. How did he keep his job?

Gunther: robsul82: Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

Jesus. I knew that and this is the first election I've paid even remote attention to. That's unbelievably pathetic. How did he keep his job?

Seriously. What a failure in leadership to not see your CHIEF STRATEGIST do that and not immediately say "you're fired."

According to Wikipedia (I'm too lazy to find a real source), Mark Penn's firm was being paid $13 Million for managing Sen. Clinton's campaign.

Oops.

I love it. WE WIN ALL THE DELEGATES FROM CALIFORNIA AND WE WIN!!!!!ROFLCOPTER!! JOHN EDWARDS AND THE NEGRO ARE DOOMED!

darkhorse23: Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default.

exactly

Well, come on, guys. It's still not too late for Hillary to suggest the Serpento Project, which will cure polio, diabetes, and allow humans to smell with their tongues.

Five?

She turns my stomach every time I see her. I think there's a mistake in there somewhere, too.

I strongly suspected some of these issues after Iowa. My mom (61 yrs old) went to her caucus just like always and expected to see what she always sees, a nice group of all the same older people who would then obviously pick either Hillary or John Edwards. Obama was barely known to her and she had completely dismissed him as a non-contender. When she arrived, however, she was met by a wall of thundering, boisterous college kids that were loudly and enthusiastically trying to get every last person to come over to vote Obama. She was pretty much in shock by the time she got home and called me. The kids managed to pretty much overwhelm the entire caucus and gave Obama a big win in that precinct. They even managed to convince a lot of the "regulars" to come over to them with their shouting and sheer energy.

Lesson: Clinton completely misunderstood the caucus states and failed to put the organization in place to compete. If she would have had a few buses of elderly white women to every precinct location, she might have had a good chance. The caucuses have a very unusual way of working in that they are only on one night and last a short time. That severely limits the participation of the regular work-a-day lunch box crowd that has a very difficult time attending. If she would have realized that, she could have leaned on retirees the way Obama used college kids. His strategy was great, college kids are young and easily manipulated. Sing the song they want to hear ("hope", "change"), get them all fired up, and they will be yours. Then get them to flood the caucuses as they don't have anything better to do on a weekday night; make it like a party and they'll show up.

1) Because women hate her.
2) Because she's a female.
3) Because her name is Clinton.
4) Because she's too wishy-washy.
5) Because she's a very good senator.

If Obama is nominated, the GOP is going to push him around like the little kid on the play ground.

If McCain gets elected, things like $4 gas, are gonna seem like the good old days.

We don't need a president that has "senior moments", and admits to knowing very little about the economy.

Clinton picked people for her team primarily for their loyalty to her, instead of their mastery of the game.

Funny, I hear Democrats making the same complaint about Bush.

the race isn't over yet. i still fear that through some strange twist of fate she WILL get the nomination.

Dammit. I hate it when the Democratic candidate I support starts getting really confident. Makes my palms all sweaty.

She should have done a Google Image Search for "Barack family photo 1986" ...half brother Abongo will be more fun than Billy Carter

Hmmm.... Interesting that there is no mention of her being a complete biatch. How could they have missed that one.

I'm rather proud of my mom for supporting Obama, she is right in Clinton's supposed strongest niche (older, white, women) and can't stand that biatch. Just get my mom started and she will just go on and on about how little she likes or respects Hillary.

BillCo: Hmmm.... Interesting that there is no mention of her being a complete biatch. How could they have missed that one.

I thought it, you said it. Though honestly she comes across more fake and insincere to me.

They could have started and ended the list with

1. She's Hillary Clinton

Sun God: 1) Because women everyone hates her.
2) Because she's a femalecoont.
3) Because her name is Clinton coont.
4) Because she's too wishy-washya coont.
5) Because she's a very good senator coont.


FTFY

darkhorse23

Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default

Ding ding ding! Mistake #1.

Her lack of integrity should have been listed.

If she shook my hand, I'd count my fingers to make sure all 5 were there.

Yeah, you'd think the "Clinton Machine" would have been able to put together a more effective campaign then they did...

She's broke and she can't adjust to the rapidly changing landscape of a national campaign. Doesn't really speak well of her executive ability.

If she hadn't been lending herself money she'd have had to drop out a while ago.

Obama, on the other hand, has run a fairly tight ship. I think he's handles the "scandals" quite well and still looks and sounds "presidential"

In my opinion, Clinton's biggest mistake has been arrogance.

ansiz: I thought it, you said it. Though honestly she comes across more fake and insincere to me.

This.

The emotion in her voice appears forced and, by extension, fake/insincere.

ZAZ: Funny, I hear Democrats making the same complaint about Bush.

Isn't that strange that a stupid thing is stupid, no matter if a Democrat or a Republican does it?

Or, I guess, that's how Democrats see the world. How about you?

FredaDeStilleto: If she shook my hand, I'd count my fingers to make sure all 5 were there.

You know, this is exactly Hillary's problem.

She's got all of the Clinton reputation for being sleazy, but none of Bill's (former?) charisma.

With Bill, you'd still check your hand, but then you'd never wash it.

/offer does not apply to Republicans. They'd burn their hands off in a vat of acid.

Barnacles!: darkhorse23: Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default.

exactly

After NC and IN, I keep thinking about that last scene in The Matrix, right after Neo kills Agent Smith. He flexes, sighs, and then glares at the remaining two Agents.

After seeing what Obama's grassroots organization did to the vaunted Clinton Machine, I imagine John McCain feels something like how those Agents did.

remus: His strategy was great, college kids are young and easily manipulated. Sing the song they want to hear ("hope", "change"), get them all fired up, and they will be yours. Then get them to flood the caucuses as they don't have anything better to do on a weekday night; make it like a party and they'll show up.

While I tend to disagree about how 'easy' it is to get college students excited (think about how many garage bands don't make it), Barack certainly is changing the game with the youth vote:

IndyMBA: The emotion in her voice appears forced and, by extension, fake/insincere.

I am blown away by how more people don't sense this.

Barnacles!: darkhorse23: Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default.

exactly

Barry probably knows the words to the Spongebob Squarepants theme.

Hillary probably thinks Fleetwood Mac is a "current" group.

Hillary will get the nomination. Obama is a Muslim and everyone knows all Muslims hate the US and want us dead.

Dread Pirate Slasher: Hillary will get the nomination. Obama is a Muslim and everyone knowsnose all Muslims hate the US and want us dead.

/Pet peeve

There were only five?

robsul82: Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

WOW.

mark penn is the political and polling definition of epic failure. remember the review of his new book, microtrends?

I was shocked-Penn was speaking admirably of "lefties," not trying to recast them as moderates, not trying to write them out of the party? ...

I read on. Penn was talking about actual lefties-people who are born left-handed. Increasingly grim, I absorbed the first hard blows of Penn's interpretative technique: "More lefties," he enthuses, "could mean more military innovation: Famous military leaders from Charlemagne to Alexander the Great to Julius Caesar to Napoleon-as well as Colin Powell and Norman Schwarzkopf-were left-handed." He uses the same thunderingly awful logic to argue that we'll see more art and music greats, more famous criminals, more great comedians, more "executive greatness," and better tennis and basketball players.

This is what statisticians-or anyone who has taken a statistics class-call a "correlation/causation error." It is not enough to cherrypick a couple famed military leaders, notice that they're lefties and assume that something intrinsic to their handedness caused their tactical genius. It is not enough to say that past cultures discouraged left-handedness and use that as a stand-in for discouraging creativity of all sorts. To say that Bill Gates is right-handed does not suggest that a greater proportion of right-handed people would mean more Bill Gateses. For a professional pollster to imply that correlation equals causation is like a firefighter trying to put out flames by tossing a toaster into the blaze-it bespeaks a complete unfamiliarity with the relevant techniques.

/that about sums up mark penn

Skleenar: Dread Pirate Slasher: Hillary will get the nomination. Obama is a Muslim and everyone knowsnose all Muslims hate the US and want us dead.

/Pet peeve

Jubeebee: After NC and IN, I keep thinking about that last scene in The Matrix, right after Neo kills Agent Smith. He flexes, sighs, and then glares at the remaining two Agents.

After seeing what Obama's grassroots organization did to the vaunted Clinton Machine, I imagine John McCain feels something like how those Agents did.

GOP strategists have been fearing an Obama nomination since Iowa. Not because of his strength as a Presidential candidate, but because his organization has long coat tails. The grassroots organization that vaulted him to the nomination has the energy and organization to put the 21 "Republican Leaning" house seats into play. And in so doing cause the RNC's monetary advantage over the DNC will be eliminated as they attempt to defend seats that they never thought they would have to put resources into.

Hubris is a biatch.

burndtdan: is like a firefighter trying to put out flames by tossing a toaster into the blaze

Crap.

That's a bad idea?

So much for me passing that test.

1. Having a vagina.

darkhorse23: Her greatest mistake was assuming that the nomination was hers by default.

This. You may be able to rent a hotel room in New York and buy your way into a senate job, but president's a whole nother level.

2. Being a psycho hose-beast.

Clinton now gets 69 delegates from Michigan to Obama's 59. However each delegate gets a half vote.

1. Being a candidate
2. Being a candidate
3. Being a candidate
4. Being a candidate
5. Being a candidate

robsul82: Mark Penn didn't know the Democratic presidential primaries weren't winner-take-all?

WOW.

i came in here to say that. if that was her campaign team, she deserved to lose.

I'll give Hillary an 'A+' for tenacity, a lesser man would have dropped-out a long time ago.