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TRIANGULATION 2.0. Chris Smith aptly sums up the problem with Hillary:
Millions of hardworking immigrants, thousands of small businesses, and the country�s economic prospects are going to be affected by the outcome of the nasty debate taking place in Congress. Which is what makes the substance of what Clinton has been saying, and the circumstances of today�s press conference, all the more puzzling. She fires off one truly excellent line, about how the Sensenbrenner bill would criminalize Jesus, ensuring headlines the next day and deftly summarizing her staunch opposition to the most reactionary proposal. She�s in favor of �a path to earned citizenship.� But then she goes back to playing the role she�s had for most of this debate: cautious bystander. �I support several of the bills,� she says. �I�m trying to create a compromise for a bipartisan bill . . . We need comprehensive reform . . . A harsh position doesn�t end the problems.�She's a national leader who refuses to lead (unlike The American Prospect, which you should subscribe to, yada yada yada), and it's not clear to me why progressives need any of those. Smith's article outlines how Clinton is triangulating towards a foreign policy, and the tensions that are erupting as she attempts it. It's good stuff, and well worth a read.
--Ezra Klein
