As I watched Hillary Clinton give her acceptance speech tonight with Chelsea and Bill tonight I was amazed. I am not surprised that she won Indiana. She is smart, capable, and half of one of the most powerful political machines known to man. However, all I kept thinking was should she even be allowed to run?
America is not a monarchy. Putting the same family in the White House for a third term--the same husband, the same wife, and the same kid--makes me feel like dumping tea in the Boston Harbor or something...
In 1951, Congress said that the country’s love affair with a president cannot last forever, regardless of how passionate it is. The Twenty-Second Amendment operates to protect the integrity of the presidency and prevents any one person from controlling the office beyond two terms. It was passed in response to the three terms that FDR served as president.
Significantly, it wasn’t passed because Congress thought that FDR was a bad guy or questioned the legitimacy of his election to a third term. Unlike with President Bush, FDR was elected outright for all of his terms. The majority of people wanted him. Moreover, he was good for the country. He led us out of the Great Depression. He was as progressive on racial issues as one could have expected at the time. And, the country even loved his wife.
It is true that as a passionate Obama supporter, I’d find any argument that would get him elected. However, this isn’t about that. It just seems to me like the Clintons are trying to do indirectly what they can’t do directly.
I don’t blame Hillary for running. She's arguably qualified, clearly wants the office and there’s no rule preventing her from doing so. However, we need a rule.
Bill and Hillary were in the White House for eight consecutive years. During those years they were the face of America, the First Family, and the inhabitants of our most hallowed house. Putting them back there feels wrong. Some might say my sentiment is anti-feminist, but I say putting them back there is un-American.
Let's pray the remaining primaries give Obama a victory so that he secures the nomination. And let's pray he wins in November. Then, we can see about amending the Constitution. What can I say, Obama's change message is infectious!
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