Why should she? It never bothered George W. Bush.

Once again, if the Clinton policy is going to be built around the idea of cheap gas forever, the effects will be profound. Somebody should pay attention to where she is going with this.

Like Bush, or any other Republican.

What's next? More Tax Cuts for the Ultra-Rich?

"Obama’s campaign grows out of the longstanding reform tradition. His implicit argument is that politics doesn’t have to be this way. Dishonesty and brutality aren’t inevitable; they’re what gets in the way. Obama’s friend and supporter Cass Sunstein described the Obama ideal in The New Republic: “Obama believes that real change usually requires consensus, learning and accommodation.”

That’s regarded as naïve drivel in parts of Camp Clinton.

Campaign issues come and go, but this is a thread running through the race. One believes in the raw assertion of power, the other the power of communication.

and then you say:

Clinton’s calculation seems to be that if ridiculous, nonsensical pandering is what it takes to gain power, so be it

Are you kidding me? How what Obama's friend saying any less nonsensical pandering?? I have been fairly jaded with Clinton's decisions lately, hell, I have switched to Obama in the last few weeks. But are you fucking kidding me? Did Cassie lift that Obama drivel straight from his website, or did his friend just call him? Come on. How is it reporting if someones friend is writing the piece?

Politics is politics. Clinton's gas tax plan just isn't good, it sucks. It's not some sort of HUGE disparity between how Obama and Clinton are running campaigns. One is pandering to low class people with a bad plan, the other is pandering to high class people without substance. Whatevs.

I'm sure someone will present the economic plans - or lack thereof - of all the campaigns there

I agree with #15, I don't see your point. Consensus, learning and accommodation are all part of nonsensical pandering?

HC is playing up to the closed minded "working white people" who don't care about the big picture or anyone else or the overall economy or the gov'ment any more.
Believe it or not there are a lot of people out there like that. Sick of this country screwing them over. They want theirs and screw the other guy.

In Indiana $8 an hour is great pay. So a little gas relief to them is huge and will help out on the bills a month or two.

They hear the gas compnaies will pay this tax so that's good enuf' for them

They just want something for them and if the rest of the country suffers - oh well.

That's what HC's got to work so she is.

I think the pandering will work in some ways even when people hear the big impacts it will have on this or that budget.
All those big numbers and budgets don't phase the poor and closed minded who hate the government. To them the Goverment will always find a way but joe blow making 5.50 doing oil changes wants that $30.

Yes, having your friend write a piece for you in The National saying that your campaign is "Consensus, learning and accommodation" is bullshit pandering. And nonsensical in the sense that people are just eating it up. It's just buzz words. Bush could claim that his administration has 'consensus' (remember 80% of congress voted yes on Iraq) 'learning' (He sent more troops in after he learned he didnt have enough)and 'accomadation' (cutting capitol gains tax did help the upper middle class, not just the top 1%!)

It's all spin. It's all pander.

I am sure Obama has "plans", but saying that Clinton panders and Obama is some sort of mythological creature that doesn't is getting really annoying.

I would feel this way except for the fact that I'm pretty certain Clinton's policy will not ultimately be built around this; it's bullshit pandering that she easily could and likely will forget when it's no longer useful.

The problem is that I'm not sure exactly what Clinton's policy will be built around, because I don't know what principles she will hang on to even when it becomes politically inconvenient. What's important enough to not cave in on when you're put under pressure? How about, say, a war in the Middle East?

It is what she really believes in that is entirely too murky.

I still don't understand how it's pandering. Spin, maybe. Pandering is telling people what they want to hear/promising things that you probably can't deliver or that are just bad policies. How is Obama's supposed method of getting things done pandering?

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/al-giordano

Oh, wait, no, that was someone else.