Is Clyburn Jumping Off the Obama Wagon, and Hitching Onto the Clinton Bus ? No Surprise Here..

Alright Jim, you and that other lady make a wish and pull ....

Time to toot my own horn again. I remember saying this about 6 months ago with regards to who Jim was going to endorse for President next year. I know the guy as well as he knows himself by now. One might say I'm in his head - scary thought for both of us. From now on, don't bother asking him what his motives are, just ask me. At least then you'll get an honest answer.

At an NAACP fundraiser in Charleston this week, Clyburn sat next , held hands with and gushed over Hillary Clinton, to the point that even the Community Times - the local black newspaper - was even asking had he just given his blessing to a Presidential candidate. Said the Whipmaster, "I know of no one that I hold more admiration and respect then I hold for Hillary Rodman Clinton. " Yes, it should be 'than I hold for Hillary Rodham Clinton', but I'll assume the Community Times is ignorant, and not Clyburn - that is how it was printed though... Strong words, don't you think?

Sure, Old Jim was really stroking Barack Obama along for a while there, but Jim makes every decision based on two things: Polls, and what Jim can get out of it. In this case, Hillary has got Obama dead to rights.

Obama did make a little headway when he got in the race. Everyone except Sam Brownback and Dennis Kucinich usually do. But he stalled out. I don't follow the Oprah Winfrey presidential candidate club, and thank God, most people don't either. But in reality, that has nothing to do with Clyburn's tepid support. Hillary nationally is now 23 points ahead of Obama - the nomination is hers to lose, and she won't lose it. Jim would love to endorse Obama, but he isn't going to - just check the recent history, and you'll know why..

To earn the nickname the "Carolina Kingmaker" you do actually need to endorse people that win every once in while, or at least have them win in areas they might normally win. Clyburn has not done that, and he needs to be extra careful he doesn't blow 2008 like he did 2004. Don't remember? Who did Clyburn endorse first? Dick Gephardt - the whitest man in America. Then he played it safe and went with John Kerry - and Kerry lost. So much for handing South Carolina on a silver platter. The DC media may anoint his endorsements like they are from Heaven itself, but the voters appear to think for themselves.

Now, that answers the first question, but what does Jim get out of this? To quote Coolio (another Old School Rap reference) Power and the Money, Money and the Power..... I've told this before, but I'll lay out Jim's plan for 2008. He endorses the sure fire winner in SC, then he can take credit for delivering SC and being "The Kingmaker". If Clinton wins in November, Clyburn goes back and cashes in - and he will ask to be the new Secretary of Transportation in the Clinton Administration, where he will use all of his power to get money for his bridge, the Inland Port, The Clyburn School of Transportation at SC State, and any other favors his buddies in Orangeburg need or want. Makes sense. If Clinton loses, Jim retires in 2010.

Now some of you might think that this would be pretty cool for us here. Bring back some of the bacon, right? Well, we send 535 people to DC with the same idea, and look what happens - pork, runaway spending, budget deficits, impending Social Security and Medicare bankruptcy...... Personally, I'd rather have Jim stuck in his office taking practice votes on useless apprporiations bills like he does now.

There. I've laid it all out for you. If you want to know waht else jim is thinking , just ask me. ;)

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