Obama Goes Native and Hillary Goes Negative

Let's see if I can get this all sorted out. The Drudge Report ran a picture of Barack Obama in traditional Somali garb while visiting Kenya in 2006. Matt Drudge says he got the picture from a Clinton campaign official. Obama campaign manager David Plouffe quickly denounced it as "shameful, offensive fear-mongering." Obama said that when politicians travel to other countries, they ask you to try on traditional garb that you have been given as a gift. "The notion that the Clinton campaign would be trying to circulate this as a negative on the same day that Sen. Clinton was giving a speech about how we repair our relationships around the world is sad." Then Clinton campaign manager Maggie Williams shot back with a tough statement that Team Obama was manufacturing an issue. "Enough," said Williams. "If Barack Obama's campaign wants to suggest that a photo of him wearing traditional Somali clothing is divisive, they should be ashamed."

All of this is "out there' in countless new stories. I repeat it here just to bring everyone up to speed. What I want to bring to this is to attempt to apply logic (if such a thing exists in presidential campaigns) to sort through the various charges and counter-charges. So here goes.

Given that: Drudge runs a picture of Obama in native garb that he got from a Clinton campaign official.

And that: Obama points out that this is routine for political figures when visiting foreign countries.

And that: Clinton's campaign manager denounces the Obama campaign for calling such a photo "divisive".

We conclude that: The Clinton campaign circulated the photo to show that Obama does indeed have foreign policy experience, and that he knows how to "dress the dress' when visiting foreign countries.

Hmmm. That one won't fly. How about this?

Given that: Obama has a softer image than Hillary.

And that: Hillary's campaign would rather make him look softer instead of having to make her look harder.

We conclude that: The Clinton campaign circulated the photo of him in a dress to further soften his image.

Well, maybe, but how about this one?

Given that: There has been a smear campaign on the Internet that Obama is a "closet" Muslim.

And that: Getting a picture of him on the Drudge Report in Muslim garb and thence to the mainstream media helps further the smear, especially since people will tend to pay attention to the picture and ignore the context.

We conclude that: The Clinton campaign is trying to bring down Barack Obama any which way it can.

I think that the last one really nails it!

In all seriousness, the Hillary Clinton campaign is so desperate that it will apparently stop at nothing to achieve her once "inevitable" nomination. As to foreign policy experience, she had very little as First Lady, in spite of being co-president. As for the "super-delegates", the birdies are really coming home to roost for the Clintons, since they did very little to enhance the Democratic Party while in office, and the party leaders have not forgotten this.

It is really horrible to have to watch her campaign implode like this. It seems as though "Desperation is the mother of insinuation".