Hillary’s ‘If I’m Going Down, I’m Taking Everybody Else With Me’ Attack On Obama

The ‘if I’m going down, I’m taking everybody else with me’ statement is a comment I saw on Politico that I think aptly describes the thinking of the Clinton campaign. Today’s exchange about Obama’s character exemplifies this mentality.

CNN writes:

Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama denied allegations from rival Hillary Clinton’s campaign Sunday that his political action committee Hopefund was used to bribe public officials in early voting states.

…

Earlier in the day, Clinton’s communications director Howard Wolfson called Obama’s PAC a ’slush fund.’ Obama fired back, adding that some of Hopefund’s contributions even went to supporters of Clinton’s campaign.

Obama said:

“I think that folks from some of the other campaigns are reading the polls and starting to get stressed and issuing a whole range of outlandish accusations. Everything that we have done is in exact accordance with the law and unless they can show that it hasn’t been. I suggest that they focus on trying to get their supporters to caucus in Iowa.”

Obama also said this about the PAC: “I had not been planning to run for president… So by the time we announced that I was running, there was still money left over, which we used to contribute to candidates all across the country to help build a Democratic majority. That was the purpose of it… That is the purpose of all these leadership funds. That is the reason Clinton’s leadership fund was set up — the same reason why multiple candidates have these leadership funds. We just simply didn’t have the ability to get all that money out. And I would point out that we have made contributions to many people who are endorsing Sen. Clinton instead of me. Again, I think what people need to focus on is that all these accusations that are starting to come out seem to correspond to shifts in political fortune.”

The New York Times writes:

At a news conference here just now, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton expanded her attacks on Senator Barack Obama by suggesting that he has a character issue because of his assertions that his health insurance plan covers all Americans (which she disputes) and because his old political action committee spread around money in early presidential nominating states.

Asked if Mr. Obama had a character problem, Mrs. Clinton first said it was up for voters to determine, but then added:

“It’s beginning to look a lot like that – it really is, where we can’t get a straight answer on health care, where somebody runs on ethics and not taking money from certain people is found to have at least skirted if not violated F.E.C. rules and to use lobbyists and Pac money to do so. You’re going to have ask the Obama campaign, but I have said for months that I would much rather be attacking Republicans and attacking problems of our country because ultimately that’s what I want to do as president.

“But I have been for months on the receiving end of rather consistent attacks – well now the fun part starts,” Mrs. Clinton said, punctuating the word “fun.” “We’re into the last month, and we’re going to start drawing the contrasts, because I want every Iowans to have accurate information when they make their decisions.”

Clinton accusing Barack Obama of having a character issue? Oooo. No she di’in’t!

Obama responded:

This presidential campaign isn’t about attacking people for fun, it’s about solving people’s problems, like ending this war and creating a universal health care system. Washington insiders might think throwing mud is fun, but the American people are looking for leadership that can unite this country around a common purpose, and that’s what I’ll continue to offer in this campaign.

I call this an ‘attack’ by Clinton intentionally. These allegations are not questions about any of Barack Obama’s policy positions. They are accusations that he is doing something illegal.  However, Politico has already talked to several lawyers who said that Obama has not done anything illegal. For Clinton to create a narrative that Obama is unethical and criminal is pretty low.