Hillary's not worried - the fix is in

Over in Leftyland at The Nation, someone just rang Katrina vanden Heuvel's clue phone:

Barack Obama's stirring victory in Iowa was also a good night for our democracy. The turnout broke records and young people – who were mobilized and organized – participated in unprecedented numbers. And now that Iowans have spoken – the first citizens in the nation to do so – here's the Democratic delegate count for the top three candidates (2,025 delegates are needed to secure the nomination):

Clinton – 169

Obama – 66

Edwards – 47

"Huh?" you say. "vanden Heuvel, you made a MAJOR typo."

In fact, those numbers are correct: the third-place finishing Sen. Hillary Clinton now has over twice as many delegates as Sen. Obama, and more than three times as many delegates as the second-place candidate, Sen. John Edwards. Why? Because the Democratic Party uses an antiquated and anti-democratic nominating system that includes 842 "super-delegates" – un-pledged party leaders not chosen by the voters, free to support the candidate of their choice, and who comprise more than forty percent of the delegates needed to win the nomination. Many have already announced the candidate they will support.

The super-delegates were instituted after George McGovern's disaster in 1972 to prevent wingnut enthusiasts from driving the Democrat party to ruin again. There's sure going to be a heap of whining in the Obama camp when Hill and Bill call in all their markers and distribute all the requisite bribes and threats. Obama could well win the majority of the elected delegates and lose on the first ballot due to the super-delegates.

Where's the popcorn? This could be good!

Today's Hoot: Hillary roughed up by Uncommitted

Hill Needs No Enemies:

Hillary Clinton has trouble competing in states where she has to run against other Democrats, which is, of course, most of them. But what about a state where she and Dennis Kucinich are the only two on the ballot, where none of the other candidates have even set foot to campaign, and where the governor is a slightly more attractive, Canadian replica of Hillary herself, pantsuits and all?

Yeah, she's in danger of losing here, too.

We could use some global warming around here too

Tim Blair observes that there's quite a cold spell in California:

Via Lee M., who emails: “Governator Arnold Schwarzenegger is asking all Californians who own cars with big-block power plants to fire them up and let them idle for the next 36 hours.”

And while we're talking global warming lunacy, Tim pokes a little fun at yet another crazed warmist:

Philosophy professor Martin Bunzl:

I spend most of my waking hours worrying about how to reduce my output of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.

If that’s all you’re doing, problem solved.

Indeed. The prof's whine is that he has a problem with engine addiction and wants them to be banned so he can thereby resist temptation. There's a new thought: Global Warming is the new Prohibition. I'm planning to be a rum runner.

The Clintons kick off the fun part of their campaign

Yes, Mistress?

Clinton aides hint that now things'll get nasty:

At her concession speech in Des Moines on Thursday night, Hillary Clinton was all gracious and determined and smiling. But hours later on that flight someone named Mark Penn, who happens to be her chief political strategist, ominously told a gaggle of reporters, including The Times' Peter Nicholas, that the campaign's focus needs to shift now onto, you might have guessed, someone named Barack Obama.
...
Things could get nasty with some pretty sharp media contrasts made in coming days, it would seem. "This has been very much a referendum on her,'' said Penn. "And people will take a harder look at the choice and the kind of president who will be needed in these times.''

Penn hinted that the Clinton campaign may be poised to mount a more aggressive campaign in New Hampshire than in Iowa.
...
He claimed that Obama's record is comparatively unexplored and he suggested the news media should ask itself about taking a closer look at Obama's history. "Does everyone know everything they need to know about Barack Obama?'' Penn asked. "That's a decision you're going to have to make. I think at this point his record is not very well-known.''
...
For weeks now Clinton aides have been threatening on and off the record to use some bad stuff against their chief opponent. First, two of them told conservative columnist Robert Novak that the Clintons had very damaging information on Obama, but they weren't going to use it. Then Billy Shaheen, her New Hampshire co-chair, said that though no Democrat would use Obama's admitted youthful drug use against him, boy, would the Republicans have a field day with that later this year.

I'm still waiting to hear about Obama's love child but some nice stories of him selling cocaine would be good too. Then there was the Tijuana weekend with three dancing girls and a donkey. Looks like Hillary got Sid Blumenthal back just in time.

Trouble for Her Heinous

And did you see Bubba standing behind Hillary during her "concession"? If his nose were any redder he could have guided Santa's sleigh.

Today's Hoot: Hillary and Sinbad have comparable experience

We all know that Hillary Clinton has negligible governmental experience which must be why she is constantly claiming it without specifying any tangible basis for the claim. Of course, another reason might be that when she comes up with some "evidence" it is a real knee slapper like her big important dangerous trip to Bosnia with Sinbad (the actor and comedian). Watch her get all huffy when Meredith Viera mentions it to her:





Gosh, Hillary's eyes sure flash when she's angry! Glenn Thrush in Newsday has more on Hillary's scary Bosnian adventure:

It turns out that Clinton wasn't quite flying solo into harm's way that day.

She was, in fact, leading a goodwill entourage that included baggy-pants funnyman Sinbad, singer Sheryl Crow and Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, then 15, according to an account of the March 1995 trip in her autobiography "Living History."

Stay tuned for the next episode where Hillary claims experience with Global Warming from being in the room when Bubba broke wind. Now that would be scary and dangerous!