It's Three AM - and the phone rings in the White House...

In a complete reversal of an earlier position I had regarding Sen. Clinton's re-emergence after the Texas debate two weeks ago, I am now declaring her to be in a state of dismal panic. Her performance in the CSU debate was heinous - she was shrill, defensive, and belligerent and overall appeared desperate.

What happened in those few short days between events? Well, she lost a couple of primaries for one. The press lauded the momentum factor of Obama and displayed an increasingly panicked Clinton for the nation to watch, cringing. Her husband made a gaffe or two along the way while Obama kept racking up key endorsements, including the all-mighty Teamsters’ Union which had always been in the (Male) Clinton camp.

It has been difficult to watch. No more so than what we all tuned into CNN this morning in the form of a story about Clinton’s most recent TV ad running in Texas. As shot after shot of sleeping children flashes on the screen, the narrator drones ominously:

“Its three AM and your children are safe and asleep. But there’s a phone in the White House and its ringing. Something’s happening in the world. Your vote will decide who answers that call. Whether its someone who already knows the worlds leaders, knows the military, someone tested and ready to lead in a dangerous world…Etc, etc. Ad nauseum…”

In case you want to feel sick to your stomach, here is the ad:

Clinton's Ad

This is the worst sort of fearmongering and it is much more what we would expect out of a hawkish Republican campaign rather than a Democratic Party candidate. I was waiting for the child picking petals off a flower and the ensuing mushroom cloud to finish off the spot. Of course, it ends instead with a still of Hillary with the phone to her ear looking well made up, dressed and smiling for her hypothetical three AM call. It would have been more real had they shown her in bed with tousled hair, swollen unmade face, and the lump of Bill under the covers next to her. However, that was not to be…

Obama’s response actually references some of her ad’s visuals without the dire warnings attached.

Obama's Response

It reminds the viewers that Hillary actually supported the Iraq war, making the point that the ‘real threat’ of the Taliban and Al Qaeda in Afghanistan was ignored as a result. He makes the point that ‘…we have had a ‘red phone’ moment and it was the decision to invade Iraq’ and that Hillary made the wrong choice. He emphasizes that it’s not a matter of experience; it’s a matter of judgment. He’s right – she’s wrong…on this and more. He develops into a stronger candidate on a daily basis, and not just by his actions. Clinton’s negative posturing seems to be pushing more and more voters to his side. Get ready for McCain vs. Obama in November.