Hillary Clinton’s Greatest Failure — And It’s Not About The 2016 Election
By: Wilfried Voss
Tags: Hillary Clinton, President, Donald Trump, Politics, Elections

Don’t get me wrong; I am one of many who was devastated by Hillary Clinton’s loss of the Electoral Vote in the presidential election of 2016. I remember the early morning hours of November 9th very well. My wife had asked me to wake her immediately after it was announced that Hillary would be the first female President of the United States. It was a depressing awakening for her but also for me (after a sleepless night) as it was for the majority of American voters.

These days we know that American Democracy barely survived the relentless attacks, committed not by Conservative politics but by ruthless politicians devoted to and afraid of their Authoritarian leader. In the end, it was the courts who saved America with a little help from the COVID-19 pandemic (I firmly believe that Trump would have won the bid for reelection had he not failed so miserably when it came to battling the virus).

But now we’re getting to the point: The American legal system was the only dominant barrier on the path to dictatorship, and besides the press, the “fake” media, there was not much help and support. I wasn’t impressed by Nancy Pelosi’s or Chuck Schumer’s hapless attempts at battling Trump; they merely prevented further harm by keeping him busy. President Obama remained silent for far too long, because his sense of honor and ethics prevented him from openly criticizing his successor. Still, he finally raised his voice to help his friend Joe Biden being elected. Otherwise, there was a deafening silence from former Presidents and their officials, including the former Democratic candidate for the Presidency, Hillary Clinton.

I am referring specifically to Hillary, because, after that devastating night in 2016, I had hoped that she would overcome the defeat, overcome the disappointment and be our Princess Leia to lead us in a fight against an evil Empire. The way I see it, you fall six times, you get up seven. This is our country, and it’s worth fighting for, especially when you vowed to serve the American people when elected as their President. Apparently, that vow is only valid when you are, in fact, elected.

It may well be my mental flaw that I expected more from her than she delivered. I expected her to vow that “every breath you take, every move you make, every bond you break, every step you take, I’ll be watching you.” I expected her to write opinions in the Washington Post, the New York Times, being a frequent guest on CNN, MSNBC, and other TV channels. To my knowledge that didn’t happen. And while I didn’t watch every step she took, whatever she did, it was not enough. After all, we all, including Hillary, predicted accurately that this country would be on the eve of destruction after four years of Trumpism (and an “I told you so” campaign would have been well-deserved).

The thought comes to mind that she was afraid that Trump would prevail and keep his promise to “lock her up,” considering that for the past four years, he was the most powerful person in the world. There are, however, numerous examples in history where citizens risked their freedom to fight for their country. The most recent example is Alexei Navalny, who returned to Russia with the knowledge that he would be arrested as soon as he left that airplane. So, I guess Hillary is no Navalny.

She’s also no Stacey Abrams, who fought relentlessly not only for her party in her state but for a more perfect union with racial justice. There are certainly more examples, but Hillary is not one of them.

My Point:

I expected a ferocious fighting spirit, not just ambitions that evaporate after losing an election. Hillary Clinton is not fighting for us anymore while the attacks on American democracy continue. Happy retirement!