2012 U.S. Presidential Election Speculation

[Jordan]

I'm kind of surprised. I would think Secretary of State would be one of the most desirable roles in politics. You get to travel all over the place and avoid all the mudslinging that comes with domestic politics.

[Dong Zhou]

Apparently she announced this while pushing for intervention in Libya. Nobody I know seemed to pick this up (I thought it was a recent announcement), maybe she will have/will change her mind but a recent article suggested she hadn't.

WUuuuuuuuuTTTT???
Hilary cant retire, god shes still good looking for her age, and you always need a strong woman, other than the First Lady to run things.

I imagine if the Democrats need a powerful woman, they can find someone in their own ranks. Or at least I hope they could as otherwise it would quite disturbing.

I'm kind of surprised. I would think Secretary of State would be one of the most desirable roles in politics. You get to travel all over the place and avoid all the mudslinging that comes with domestic politics.

Ditto here, being Foreign Minister is considered one of the great political jobs and not only for it's importance.

Apparently she is/was exhausted and wants a break after having to deal with Iran/Libya/wikileaks/Syria/an aggressive China and so on.

If she has plans for the 2016 elections, which she denies, then she may be jumping before things boil over in Iran and let her successor cop the fall-out.

Edit: Nice to see Romney get into the spirit of "the media is against me" so early.

[Zhuanyong]

I've heard a lot from analysts regarding Hilary and posturing herself for a potential 2016 presidential bid. Until 2015 comes around and she is not in, I don't really believe that she will not make an attempt. Even if she's not really considering it right now, she may still change her mind and vice-versa.

She may just be tired of being in the political spotlight. I noticed a lot in her gestures during the raid of OBL complex last year. She may have a understanding that she can't personally stomach making those kinds of decisions.

[Lord Yang Jiahua]

Thats not very nice Zhuanyong...
Its not objectification, but its one step from being it.

[Dong Zhou]

Thats not very nice Zhuanyong...
Its not objectification, but its one step from being it.

What? I see nothing objectifying or otherwise from Zhuanyong's post, actually with your comment on her looks you would be the closest to have done so. Though I know that wasn't what you intended.

The worst I can see from Zhuanyong there is speculation and it was the kind of discussion that invites speculation.

[WeiWenDi]

What do people think of Hilary Clinton's retirement? Is this the end of her government career or will she try to return later? How has she done in her job and who will Obama likely replace her with?

About time, I say. Don't let the door hit you on the way out, Mrs Clinton.

Last time I voted for Obama in the primaries precisely because I didn't want another Clinton in the White House; I felt (as I still believe, rightly) that she was yet another neoconservative-in-Dem's-clothing, particularly given her unrepentant support for the war in Iraq, her odious campaigning for the Libya intervention and her 'despicable' response to Russia and China after their veto on an intervention in Syria. Now she's gone I might - might! - consider voting for Obama again. Hopefully he'll replace her with someone a wee bit more sensible. Perhaps someone who doesn't have a knee-jerk hawkish reaction to every foreign crisis won't find the post so fatiguing.

I've heard a lot from analysts regarding Hilary and posturing herself for a potential 2016 presidential bid. Until 2015 comes around and she is not in, I don't really believe that she will not make an attempt. Even if she's not really considering it right now, she may still change her mind and vice-versa.

She may just be tired of being in the political spotlight. I noticed a lot in her gestures during the raid of OBL complex last year. She may have a understanding that she can't personally stomach making those kinds of decisions.

Thats not very nice Zhuanyong...
Its not objectification, but its one step from being it.

What? I see nothing objectifying or otherwise from Zhuanyong's post, actually with your comment on her looks you would be the closest to have done so. Though I know that wasn't what you intended.

The worst I can see from Zhuanyong there is speculation and it was the kind of discussion that invites speculation.

I'm with Dong Zhou on this one. What exactly did Zhuanyong say that was so offensive? (Though I don't agree with him that Clinton is squeamish about making decisions which kill people, she's certainly disproven that...)

[Jordan]

Maybe Obama's foreign policy decisions haven't been perfect. We are still engaged in draining wars (that are, however, seemingly winding down). But I think they have been overall a lot better than Bush's. I feel like our international image has improved significantly during the Obama administration, and the US has tried harder to work with other countries. I'm not a fan of hawkish stances myself, but I do think Clinton has some worthy accomplishments to her name. I admire the way the the US has handled Myanmar and to some extent China. We have been critical about China on issues that are worthy of their attention, such as their censorship of the Internet. But despite some military posturing we've also tried to build a better relationship with them. Some of Obama's foreign policy decisions have been disappointing to me as well I suppose, but an improvement is an improvement. Clinton for her part has traveled around to a plethora of places promoting human rights and repairing the US' image.

[Zhuanyong]

Thats not very nice Zhuanyong...
Its not objectification, but its one step from being it.

I'm not following your statement, myself, unless you were assuming that I was making a sexist statement. Something I can definitely spin in my mind to assume from reading it a certain way, with a certain thought process in mind.

The worst I can see from Zhuanyong there is speculation and it was the kind of discussion that invites speculation.

This is basically what my statement was for the most part. A statement made off of my observation to how she reacted, these are image not video based one's at that, during the raid on OBL. I concur with DZ that the topic brought up was basically asking for speculation among other things.

Throw out a question, you get an answer -- either knowledgable or assumed.

(Though I don't agree with him that Clinton is squeamish about making decisions which kill people, she's certainly disproven that...)

You would know better than I. I don't follow politics or the decisions made by pols enough to know what she is actually capable of.

[Lord Yang Jiahua]

So praising someone is objectification it seems.

No the way Zhuanyong said

She may have a understanding that she can't personally stomach making those kinds of decisions.

without knowing that about her and making a very uneducated guess without any facts and speculating because of her body language, i mean, cmon like u wouldnt be a little tense watching them go in and kill OBL and it almost being a total screw up from the start. Also the way this is written at least to what i see is that you imply shes a weak woman who couldnt make big decisions if she wanted to, this is why a series like Commander-In-Chief was made, because most persons believe the U.S cannot have a woman president without her being weak in some outstanding way.

[Zhuanyong]

I figured such. You're reading too much into my statement. I've learned to read between lines, which is why I knew what you were thinking. Especially in saying I made a 'very uneducated' guess and then reading the last two sentences of your post. The question asked, lent itself to speculation as well as about any other conclusion. That means guesses, educated or not, are welcomed.

If I meant, she is a weak woman who can't handle a man's job, I would have said such. Her reaction did not appear as one of tension but, one of cringing - hence the statement. Points to the part of my previous post directed at Dong Zhou.