The Political Chase

Hillary Clinton Cites RFK Assassination As Reason to Remain in Race

I’ve been unable to post for health reasons, so I’ll try to catch up on some of the major issues since I last posted.

I know everyone’s already heard about this, but for the record…Topping the list in the Democratic presidential campaign is this increblible remark by Hillary Clinton to the Argus Leader editorial board citing the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy in June 1968 as one of the reason why she continues her campaign. Her intention is quite clear — stay in the race in case her opponent, Barack Obama, just happens to get assassinated.

Here’s the video. The transcript is after the jump.

Here’s the salient part of Clinton’s remarks:

“My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right?” she said. “We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California.”

Can you imagine the backlash that would have been elicited from Sen. Clinton if Sen. Obama made the same remark? And as Karen Tumulty notes, this is not the first time she’s made the similar association.

(Ed. Note: For record keeping puporses, I’m back-dating this to the date Clinton made the remarks rather than have the post reflect the actual post date.)

More. . .

Partial transcript from the Argus Leader editorial board:

Transcript from the Argus-Leader’s editorial board meeting:

HRC: People have been trying to push me out of this ever since Iowa.

Q: Why?

HRC: I don’t know. I don’t know. I find it curious. Because it is unprecedented in history. I don’t understand it. Between my opponent and his camp and some in the media there has been this urgency to end this. And historically, that makes no sense. So I find it a bit of a mystery.

Q: So you don’t buy the party unity argument?

HRC: I don’t because again I’ve been around long enough.

My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right?

We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don’t understand it. There’s lots of speculation about why it is.

Q: What is your speculation?

I don’t know. I find it curious. And I don’t want to attribute motives or strategies to people because I don’t really know, but it’s a historical curiosity to me.