My Best Life

Hillary Can't Hide From Wal-Mart Past

I was wondering when this would come up in the campaign: Hillary Clinton's membership on Wal-Mart's board of directors. However, I think there is a logical explanation and her campaign needs to confront it head-on instead of hiding from it.

First of all, Wal-Mart wasn't always the evil empire that it is now. Sam Walton used to buy American and use American workers to clean the floors. Sure, they didn't promote women to management positions back then, but that was pretty much par for the course, as you can see by the composition of Wal-Mart's board of directors in this NY Times article. It's pretty much the usual suspects: White guys in dark suits. Reminds me a little of the Republican presidential candidates. And the democratic presidential candidates.

Hillary should come out and say she didn't know any better at the time. And she should do it now.

Bill Richardson's New Ad

Bill Richardson's campaign is using a new humorous ad, reminiscent of the satirical humor once used by one of my political heroes, Paul Wellstone. Richardson's first ad in Iowa was great. I was half asleep when I heard the line "Because stubbornness is not a foreign policy.." and I sat straight up in bed trying to see who the commerial featured. Kudos to the Richardson campaign and whoever is doing its ads. I would welcome a comment from those people.

Here is the Richardson ad and my favorite Wellstone ad, called "Looking." I apologize for the quality of the Wellstone ad, I'm sure the original was on a videotape. But it's still a classic.

Naughty Nancy

Aside from not knowing how to wear a headscarf, Nancy Pelosi absolutely did the right thing by going to Syria to start a dialogue with Syrian president Assad. Diplomacy is so foreign to the Bush administration. All they can do is hurl insults at those who have decided that it is now up to the people to take our country's reputation back.

I love it that she has the balls to stare her critics down by performing her job on behalf of the American people and not looking back. No House speaker has to ask permission to advance the cause of the American people on their behalf.

No one should be under the illusion that Syria is our complete ally in the war "against terror." (By the way, shouldn't that be "war against terrorism?") But it is striking that the leader of the free world has created such a leadership vacuum that a steady parade of American leaders have made the trip over to do a reality check.