[detbuch]

Originally posted by hq: And no, I didn't vote for Bill Clinton in '96; I thought he was a sleazy piece of s---. I'm not excusing his behavior at all.

Originally posted by detbuch: And what are the Democrats saying about why they voted for Bill Clinton?

Let me answer that for you. The Democrats didn't care that he was a sleazy piece of s... They supported him en masse. They excused him, defended him, protected him from dropping out of the race. Because they cared more for their agenda than they did about personal foibles. That is how they succeed as a party. Don't give up an inch. Plow forward, sleaze or not.

They understand, however, that if they slime or expose the slime of a Republican, especially one running for President, the rest of the party will not come together to defend or excuse their candidate. They know that they can bring that candidate down if enough dirt is put on him.

Which is what you see happening now. Republicans scurrying like rats off a sinking ship. Both politicians and voters. The Democrats are banking on Republican voters to care more about personal dirt than their agenda. And to a great extent, they are probably right to bank on that.

And what is this shocking new personal dirt? Actually, as Spence would say, it's old news. Trump has not hidden that he was sexually loose in the past. And this instance was "on tape." And he used foul language. But he didn't force the issue. The lady didn't reciprocate. That was the end of it. He didn't, as Clinton was accused of doing, force himself on her. But the incident is on tape. And what is supposed to make it really, really bad is the vulgar language Trump used to tell the tale. Maybe if he prettied it up and used nice words, maybe if he would have been romantic instead of crude, it wouldn't have been a big issue. Yeah, right.

That is not to excuse Trumps behavior. His past behavior is no secret. He doesn't hide it. As vulgar as it was, it would not have been important enough to sink him if he was the Democrat candidate. The party would support, defend, and excuse him if he were a Democrat. And if the Democrat voters were a bit queasy about it, they would care more about the good stuff he would do for them than about his imperfections.

Maybe enough Republican voter will feel the same way. Or maybe Trump will drop out and Pence will take over and the Dems won't have enough time to dig up some really good dirt about him.