Is Candidate Clinton against Obama?

After the Six-Day War between Israel and Arab countries in 1967, David Ben Gurion jokingly said that Golda Meir was “the best man in the government.” Today, after the unconditional surrender of Barack Obama on the matter of the debt ceiling, one could paraphrase Gurion and ask: Is Hillary Clinton the strongest man of the U.S. government? This is the claim being expressed more and more by the 18 million Americans who voted for her in the 2008 primaries. “We told you so,” they are now thinking, so strongly that everyone can hear.

More and more Democrats, not just those who voted for Hillary, are disappointed by the failure of Barack Obama to oppose the Republicans — or even simply to stay true to certain core principles of the party of John F. Kennedy and Lyndon Johnson, men who were not afraid of conflict or even fighting hand to hand with their opponents. They knew how to make their enemies to pay the price for their opposition, and their friends the price for their treason. The price of treason would be, for example, giving up lucrative government projects in their constituencies.

All of a sudden, in recent weeks, the idea has been gaining momentum and strength: Should Hillary run in 2012 and oppose the 44th, as Teddy Kennedy did in 1980 against Jimmy Carter? “She knows how to deal with difficult men,” joked Bill Maher, a talk show host and influential political comedian.

On his blog, Matthew Dickinson, a Middlebury College professor and presidential historian, wrote a letter entitled “An Open Letter to Madam Secretary: Run, Hillary, Run!” urging her to run against Obama in the 2012 campaign. In its long text, Dickinson reminds us that Hillary had warned voters about the lack of experience of the other candidate. Dickinson addresses Hillary by saying, “You wanted to be part of history too — to help break down the ultimate racial barrier.” He follows this with the statement that “now it’s time to elect someone who can play hardball, who understands how to be ruthless, who will be a real tough negotiator in office.”

Today, 70 percent of Americans approve of Hillary, while only 40 percent have a favorable opinion of Obama. But a Hillary candidacy in 2012 would guarantee a massacre for the Democrats. When Ted Kennedy opposed Carter, Reagan was elected; when Ronald Reagan was opposed to Gerald Ford in 1976, Ford lost the presidency.

One can only hope that if elected, Obama, who has nothing to lose since he cannot seek a third term, will finally have the courage of his convictions.