Polls indicate that if Hillary Clinton were a candidate, she would -- at this moment -- demolish any Republican opponent, even Romney. How much stock should we put in these findings?
Not much. Hillary's enthusiasts are forgetting one key fact: She has been getting good press from the mainstream media, while the right-wing propagandists have more or less left her alone for years. They have concentrated most of their fire elsewhere.
Were Hillary a candidate, they would spread bizarre, hysterical conspiracy tales about her with all the zeal they now expend in their war on Obama. Worse, much of the progressive left would aid and abet the Murdochian misinformation effort. After a month of heavy bombardment, her numbers would go way down, though perhaps not to Obama's dismal current level.
Never forget: Propaganda works. Too many people think what they are told to think. In late 2007, Hillary Clinton was leading Obama, even among black voters. In very short order, a propaganda barrage changed how the public perceived her.
Semi-unrelated fact: In recent months, quite a few pundits have noted that, if Ronald Reagan were running for president today, many teabaggers would damn him as a traitor to conservatism; he might even be forced to wear the "socialist" label. After all, he raised taxes on the rich to combat a recession. Nowadays, Ronald Reagan could never be elected: He would be labeled too far to the left -- too extreme.
I recall taking a high school civics course circa 1976. That year, Reagan mounted a challenge to Gerry Ford. My teacher -- a self-described conservative who made no attempt to hide his political leanings -- loudly declared to the class that Ronald Reagan would never be president of the United States. Why? "Because he's too far to the right -- too extreme."
His exact words. I recall them well.
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