Man, you'd think Billy Clyde would have got the message by now.
After following the Clintons for close to 25 years, I still gotta be kicked in the shin now and then and be reminded that the Bill and Hillary partnership -- strange relationship that it is -- personifies resiliency. Obamamania had an magical few days. The Clintons have been battering down the hatch and emerging winners for damn near 40 years. Like most people, there are times when I have loved the Clintons and times when they have repulsed me. But give them their due -- call it admiration, respect, fear, deference ... whatever -- they also play their best late in the fourth quarter when they are behind on the scoreboard and the clock ain't on their side.
Simply amazing.
One of my college roommates subscribed to the Wall Street Journal, a newspaper not widely available in my hometown growing up. I used to take a break most afternoons to read the back page of the front section, where the WSJ chronicled the on-going battle between a small state governor (Bill Clinton) and a natural gas producer and distributor (Jerry Jones) who was the governor's chief nemesis. A battle between the economic and political forces played on a small, Beverly Hillbillies sort of stage. A real life soap opera in the Ozarks. Billy Clyde found it fascinating.
Less than a decade later, these two larger-than-life characters would emerge on the national scene. One took charge of America the nation; the other one got America's Team. No need to rehash the ups and downs, the controversies, the tomfoolery and self-destructiveness, the come-from-behind victories and improbable safe landings at the peak of the mountain. You've been a witness to these Arkansans' presidential wins, Super Bowl championships, self-inflicted wounds and remarkable healing powers.
Though it seems an impossible standard, Hillary Clinton seems to possess even greater resiliency than her husband. People watching election returns on the teevee last night just knew -- just knew! -- that those numbers would soon change as the votes were tallied and the uber-inspirationist who's come out of nowhere, the guy from our generation who we can relate to, would take the lead and become the frontrunner to lead our nation. I mean, the pollsters and the crowds and the pundits all said it would turn out that way!
This morning many of us awake feeling like Charlie Brown attempting a field goal. We know that Lucy always pulls the ball away at the last moment, but for some reason what should be lasting lessons are forgotten in the heat of the moment. The definition of insanity is counting the Clintons out over and over and expecting it to finally stick. They just. don't. lose.
The Clintons are polished, overeducated Forest Gumps. Billy Clyde won't be voting for Hillary Clinton for president under any circumstances. But the chance of her winning that office seems pretty good. Because the Clintons just. don't. lose.
After following the Clintons for close to 25 years, I still gotta be kicked in the shin now and then and be reminded that the Bill and Hillary partnership -- strange relationship that it is -- personifies resiliency. Obamamania had an magical few days. The Clintons have been battering down the hatch and emerging winners for damn near 40 years. Like most people, there are times when I have loved the Clintons and times when they have repulsed me. But give them their due -- call it admiration, respect, fear, deference ... whatever -- they also play their best late in the fourth quarter when they are behind on the scoreboard and the clock ain't on their side.
Simply amazing.
One of my college roommates subscribed to the Wall Street Journal, a newspaper not widely available in my hometown growing up. I used to take a break most afternoons to read the back page of the front section, where the WSJ chronicled the on-going battle between a small state governor (Bill Clinton) and a natural gas producer and distributor (Jerry Jones) who was the governor's chief nemesis. A battle between the economic and political forces played on a small, Beverly Hillbillies sort of stage. A real life soap opera in the Ozarks. Billy Clyde found it fascinating.
Less than a decade later, these two larger-than-life characters would emerge on the national scene. One took charge of America the nation; the other one got America's Team. No need to rehash the ups and downs, the controversies, the tomfoolery and self-destructiveness, the come-from-behind victories and improbable safe landings at the peak of the mountain. You've been a witness to these Arkansans' presidential wins, Super Bowl championships, self-inflicted wounds and remarkable healing powers.
Though it seems an impossible standard, Hillary Clinton seems to possess even greater resiliency than her husband. People watching election returns on the teevee last night just knew -- just knew! -- that those numbers would soon change as the votes were tallied and the uber-inspirationist who's come out of nowhere, the guy from our generation who we can relate to, would take the lead and become the frontrunner to lead our nation. I mean, the pollsters and the crowds and the pundits all said it would turn out that way!
This morning many of us awake feeling like Charlie Brown attempting a field goal. We know that Lucy always pulls the ball away at the last moment, but for some reason what should be lasting lessons are forgotten in the heat of the moment. The definition of insanity is counting the Clintons out over and over and expecting it to finally stick. They just. don't. lose.
The Clintons are polished, overeducated Forest Gumps. Billy Clyde won't be voting for Hillary Clinton for president under any circumstances. But the chance of her winning that office seems pretty good. Because the Clintons just. don't. lose.
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