Streetwise Professor

On one level, the media’s deconstruction of Hillary Clinton’s story about dodging snipers in Bosnia is nothing special. Most politicians are fabulists, and the Clintons are exceptional in this regard only because they are exceptional fabulists. No, what is revealing is that after years of covering up, obscuring, ignoring, diverting attention from, excusing, or explaining away myriad Clinton fables, legacy news media organizations are bringing attention to this particular one. They are saying, after years of raving about the beauty of her (and his) raiments, that the Empress has no clothes.

And, to be (justifiably, I think) cynical about it, this isn’t because they’ve just awoken to the fact that the Clintons are serial liars. It is because Hillary has become disposable because they have a new heartthrob in Obama. Indeed, she is worse than disposable–she is an obstacle to their new idol’s progress. So she must be destroyed.

But maybe not quite yet. After all, there is still an outside chance that she may survive to face McCain. In that event, her wardrobe will again dazzle every media eye. But as soon as it appears that she cannot beat Obama, but may only diminish his chances to defeat McCain, she will face a barrage of negative stories. And not that there will be a shortage of ammunition to use against her. It’s always been there, but the media has never opened the magazine doors. When she is most vulnerable, “use it or lose it” will become the watchword, and nearly 20 years of negativity will unload on her in a few news cycles. So get ready for a media free fire zone.

Perhaps her plight will evoke my sympathy. But I seriously doubt it. What goes around comes around.