First I must begin with a caveat - Hillary Clinton will be a good and inspiring President, especially for young (and young at heart) women. She is intelligent, has an amazing memory, and her policies will be a welcome relief from the current incumbent. Any opponent of Hillary would be unwise to recognize these positive traits.

However, my problem with Hillary is that she will not unite the nation and change the direction of our nation's politics. The baggage Hillary carries will not prevent her from winning the general election, but will prevent a larger Democratic wave from appearing (especially in Red/Purple states and districts). More importantly, her baggage will ensure that many Republican voters will fail to appreciate how well she is governing by remaining focused on why they loathe Hillary. In short, a Hillary Clinton presidency will be similar to a Bush presidency, except that Democrats are supportive and Republicans are pissed.

The second problem I have with Hillary is that she is a southern moderate (with strong ties to the DLC). I am afraid that she will not appreciate the desire for change and fail to take full advantage of the political opportunities she is presented with. Her policies will be incremental, not bold. She will be concerned with her reelection in 2012 and not do what she knows is right until it is safe to take that position. I fear she will not appoint a strong progressive to the Supreme Court, but nominate moderate, pro-choice Democrats to the bench instead of Justices like Blackmun, Thurgood Marshall, or Brennan.

I believe the choice Democrats have in this election is between incremental change or a more dramatic change of the nation's politics and policies.

I have been meaning to write this diary for a while. First, I was hoping to write it after Clinton sank to second in the national polls, but after Matt's diary on Hillary today, I felt that waiting to write this diary would not be prudent.

The primary question in my mind in this election season is why Clinton is not running away with the nomination? Sure, her position on many issues is not consistent with many progressive Democrats, but her appeal should resonate with the Democratic rank-and-file, and she should be cleaning house with Democratic contributors. First, not only is she associated with the most popular Democrat today, her husband, but she is formidable in her own right. Second, she is the only female candidate running this cycle, and the first female candidate ever to have a real chance at winning the Presidency. Third, and as Matt said, she is smart and charismatic (and underestimated by many of her opponents). Finally, the current political situation is in her favor, with the scars of her husband's Presidency hidden by the horrors of the Bush years in office. In a normal situation, and I am sure what she thought when entering the race, she would win the primary in a cakewalk.

Instead, Hillary is on top of the national polls, but underpolling in Iowa, where the averages suggest she is Iowans third favorite candidate. Unsurprising, progressive Democrats are not supporting her, as they supported Dean in 2004, but the progressives are split, supporting Edwards and Obama with near equal intensity. Still, Hillary is not running away with the nomination, and that remains an unanswered puzzle.