A lot of people are upset at the prospect of two Hillary Clinton mini-series.  Republicans are naturally annoyed at the blatant attempt by CNN and NBC to provide priceless advertising for the Hillary Presidential brand.  However, upon further review, I am not all that sure that this is a good development for Hillary.  For one thing, she doesn’t actually need any more name recognition.  She is certainly the most recognized female politician in America and possibly the world.  Hillary is a very polarizing figure and those people who already despise her will not change their mind because of a TV show.  But the real problem is that in order for the mini-series to draw any viewers, it must have some zing.  In the case of Hillary there are no real accomplishments, so the zing is going to come from the controversies.

Following is the article on Hillary at Biography.com: 

http://www.biography.com/people/hillary-clinton-9251306

Keep in mind that this is as favorable to Hillary as possible.  Yet it also included the Whitewater scandal and the Monica Lewinsky affair.  The bottom line is that the truth about Hillary is pretty boring stuff with no real accomplishments.  Only the scandals are interesting.  None of the items in this resume will make for a very interesting plot.  What are they going to do?  Have Hillary agonize over whether to stay with Bill after the Lewinsky affair?  Her Senate race in New York was a cake walk.  First, Daniel Moynihan resigned, so it was an open Democratic seat in a Democratic state.  Second, the Democratic nomination was handed to her on a platter.  Third, Rudy Giuliani had to drop out, so she ended up competing against Rick Lazio.  Remember Rick Lazio…I didn’t think so.  This is hardly the makings of a come from behind God Bless America story.  She lost the 2008 campaign to a candidate with the thinnest resume in the History of Presidential politics.

Currently the main stream media is spinning the myth of Hillary Clinton the political superstar.  It may be impossible to come up with the script for a mini-series that can live up to the hype.  If they ignore the controversies they will have a problem and if they cover the controversies, Hillary will have a problem.

Think about this.  Huma Abedin stood next to the Weiner as the good wife standing by her man.  She even said she was following Hillary’s example.  The problem is that even liberal women are sick of the good wife standing there smiling next to her scumbag husband.  That sends all the wrong signals.  That may help the husband, but it hardly makes the woman look good.  I will be surprised if the mini-series even happen.  If they do happen, I don’t expect them to do much for Hillary and they have the potential to puncture the myth of Hillary the great. 

In the meantime Reince Preibus has brilliants boxed CNN, NBA and the Hillary Express into a corner.  He has threatened to boycott both networks during the 2016 election if they proceed with these mini-series on Hillary.  If the series are cancelled, he wins.  If they are still produced and they are overly favorable to Hillary, he wins.  That means if the mini-series are produced they will have to include the controversies.  If that happens, he also wins.

The other point is that Hillary is peaking too soon.  The next election is in 2016.  It means nothing to be the favorite in 2013 for an election to be held three years later.  In 2005, most political pundits thought that Hillary was a shoe-in for the 2008 Democratic nomination.  How did that work out?  No one was predicting Barack Obama as next President.  In 2005 no one thought John McCain would be the Republican nominee.  As late as the fall of 2007, it looked like McCain was done as a candidate.  The only thing certain about predictions for an election more than three years away is that all predictions are predictably wrong.

TDM