War of the “3AM Ads”: How Credible is Hillary Clinton in the White House at 3AM?

March 1, 2008
Category: Analyses & Opinions

Ok, Hillary Clinton is at it again. On Friday, she launched a “3AM” ad that is reminiscent of a song by Nonchalant whose lyrics are asking the question: “5 o’clock in the morning, where you gonna be? – Outside on the corner.” Hillary’s new ad seems to pose the same question to voters, asking them to consider who would be a more credible Commander in Chief when it comes to answering that fatidic phone call at 3AM in the White House as children sleep unsafely in an unsafe world.

First, let us be clear: this is a terrible ad because it portrays Hillary Clinton as being president in an unsafe world in which children cannot sleep in peace because of some gloomy, unnamed threat. Although the ad uses the words “safe and asleep” when referring to the image of children sleeping safely in the ad, the general tone and impetus of the ad clearly conveys a rather unsafe world, with a president not able to sleep and always waiting because of living in permanent apprehension of a dangerous “3AM call.” No wonder the Obama campaign launched it own ad, the very same day, to counter the Hillary “gloom” ad. In his ad, Barack Obama is contrasting his potential presidency as being safer because the children are sleeping safely in it as Obama answers HIS 3AM call as potential president of the United States of America. Because he is always sure to make the right kind of judgment, he confidently is ready to answer any type of “3AM call.”

Indeed, in speeches on Friday, Obama did point out that being president is not just about being ready to answer a “3AM” call, it is about the type of judgment the president displays when he or she answers the call. The wrong answer because of the wrong judgment could mean the difference between war and peace, safety and disaster.

The contrast is therefore very clear: the safe world of Obama, in which children sleep safely, thanks to the right kind of judgment, vs. the unsafe world of Clinton, in which gloom is the order of the day and children sleep unsafely, because of the wrong kind of judgment; the sound judgment of Obama’s world in which peace and safety prevail vs. the lack of judgment of Clinton’s world, in which bad judgments continue to fuel danger and lack of safety for America.

But the real question remains: whose 3AM is better, and more credible on the basis of the candidates’ past experiences?

Well, look no further than the Clinton White House. The Clinton years were undoubtedly among the most divisive in American history. All this because of Bill Clinton’s lack of judgment, which translated into a very reprehensible lack of morals and sexual adventures that plunged the White House into a state of turmoil and indecency. Because of this, the country spent more time on impeachment and politics than on solving the outstanding issues that the country was facing.

In the end, the Democrats could not retain the White House because of a Clinton White House that had allowed the Republicans to build an effective campaign around the issue of values in America. The economic boom under the Clintons was of no consequence as America turned away from the Democratic Party and embraced a Republican agenda that has, in the end, proven no better.

The fundamental question, therefore, can only be the following: will Hillary Clinton’s “3AM” as president be spent more looking for Bill Clinton hidden somewhere in some dark corner of the White House frolicking with some interns as opposed to actually waiting for that important 3AM call? What would happen if the phone rang and no one were there to answer it because president Hillary Clinton was busy chasing after her husband, worrying about what intern he might be frolicking with next?

This is a fundamental question. Only voters can answer it. But I believe that they must answer it with the Bill Clinton White House in mind. And I am not sure we want another White House with the types of distractions which sent the country off-course during the Clinton years.

Dr. Daniel Mengara
The author is an Associate Professor of French and Francophone Studies at Montclair State University (New Jersey). He is also the leader of Bongo Doit Partir (Bongo Must Go), a movement of expatriated Gabonese citizens opposed and seeking an end to the 40-year-old dictatorial regime of Omar Bongo in Gabon.

Comments

One Response to “War of the “3AM Ads”: How Credible is Hillary Clinton in the White House at 3AM?”

BryAnn on March 5th, 2008 11:46 am

Please call Hillary on trying to dominate by FEAR! This is the way the Bush admin. walked all over our good sense and this is POLITICS OF OLD for sure! I am sure you have seen the youtube of Bill Clinton saying “you better be voting for the candidate that is trying to get you to think and hope, (not the one trying to lead by fear).http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qe0BPwWAxnk

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