Feat of clay

I never idolized either of the remaining two Democratic contenders for president. I have said to friends and may as well say to any who read the drivel I put up here that I would be happy to have either of them in the White House next January rather that John McBush. I'd be ecstatic to have Pelosi in there by, say, July if the stupid congress suddenly woke from its slumber and forthwith impeached the stupidest lying president and most evil destructive vice president in US history.

I have up until now accounted for my slight preference for Obama by pointing to his moral courage and independence in voting against the Iraq invasion from the get-go while Hillary joined the stampede and sang the Bush/Cheney fight song. Whether you reckon Obama has greater principles and sticks to them or you assume he is just shrewd and could see better how the country would feel about the war five years down the road and positioned himself accordingly ... it does not matter. We have had a most harmful lack of both shrewdness and moral courage in our presidents of late.

But other than that, I confess, I had not made much study of either candidate and am only now getting through Dreams from my Father [which if nothing else shows the presence of a great intelligence, power of expression and knack for empathy].

But now, in one of those forgettable actions that pile on one another like dead leaves and losing lottery tickets until the pile of them is called a campaign, Clinton finally tips the balance with some campaigning I do notice:
I guess she wanted to make damn sure I understood that she is a politician as usual doing politics as usual, trying for an advantage by claiming she supports a handout her opponent does not. OK, she doesn't call it a hand out but by prolonging our ability to waste gas and further unbalancing the federal budget she addresses the rising price of gas in the most harmful way. Wake up lady! McCain can play that game better than you can: he studied under Bush. And guess what? When that game is over, as it now nearly is, we are all broke. I want a candidate who is not afraid of asking voters to grow up. I guess I should be grateful for attacks on candidates by other candidates based on some claim of difference...such attacks tell me more about what the attacking candidate thinks of ME, my level of understanding and my acceptance of responsibility for repairing the world than about the target of the attack.

Do we get the politics we deserve? Neither candidate is my idol but one is showing feet of clay.