As I was flying across the country yesterday, I was treated to Tim Russert and Hillary Clinton having a not-so-amiable chat. Ten minutes into it, I made a little note to myself–“Mudd Slide?” Ted Kennedy incinerated his 1980 bid for the presidency when he sat down with Roger Mudd for an extended interview and sounded like, well, Ted Kennedy. Beyond his characteristic incoherence, Kennedy couldn’t articulate an explanation for why he wanted to be president. The interview, later dubbed “The Mudd Slide,” mortally wounded Kennedy’s candidacy because it confirmed the electorate’s pre-existing fears about him. There always seemed to be little rationale for a Ted Kennedy presidency beyond his surname (and a rejuvenated party scene at the White House). Ted didn’t seem nearly as talented as his predecessors who had brought that illustrious surname into the political arena. Hillary Clinton came bouncing out of New Hampshire purportedly having found her voice after a long and at times desperate 35 year search. But on Meet the Press, the new Hillary voice sounded a lot like the old Hillary voice–harsh, unfriendly, confrontational. A benumbed Meet the Press audience must have stared agape, wondering what happened to that kind woman who grew weepy over her immense concern for America’s children. The interview was a grim slog. Richelieu aptly described the interview as “a long display of nasty stares, parsing, mad cackles, and shameless re-inventions of history.” The latter refers to Hillary’s ludicrous claim that her rhetoric on the campaign trail frightened the Iraqi government into passing de-Baathification legislation and thus all credit for the recent progress should go to the fearless senator rather than ineffectual bystanders like David Petraeus and 160,000 members of the American military. This so-crazy-it-just-might-work attempt to shamelessly take credit for something she actually worked against provides a needed and timely reminder: No matter how grating their style may be, when it comes to the Clintons their substance is always much worse. For those who care to curl up with five minutes of the New Old Hillary, here’s some footage that the kids at HotAir compiled:
