Is Hillary Clinton Really The Best Choice For Democrats In 2016?

It is 2015 and here we are back in another presidential election cycle. It seems like we were just here last year but here we are again. It doesn't seem like it was 2008 when we last saw Hillary Clinton running for president. It doesn't seem like it was seven long years ago but it was and now here we are again. A lot has happened since we last saw Mrs. Clinton on the biggest stage in America. She served as Secretary of State of the United States for four years under Barack Obama. While she was in that position an American embassy in Benghazi, Libya was attacked resulting in the deaths of four Americans including a high ranking official. Clinton received a lot of negative backlash regarding that incident which she still deals with. But yet she seems unfazed by the attention given to it and has once again thrown her hat or pants suit as it were, into the fracas that is affectionately known as running for the office of president of the United States.

In 2008 when Hillary Clinton first ran for president she was the leading candidate for much of the primary season. In the first few primaries she commanded a sizable lead over the rest of the Democratic field and was considered by Democrats and Republicans to be the eventual nominee of the party......until a little known senator from Illinois started gaining momentum that eventually overtook Clinton. When the dust cleared Barack Obama, a first-term U.S. senator was the Democratic nominee leaving Clinton and her supporters wondering what happened. Obama was elected in the ensuing presidential contest and became the 44th president of the United States of America. Hillary Clinton and her followers were crushed and bitter. Many of those who were in her camp refused to vote for Obama out of revenge. Clinton however, even though she was emotionally demoralized, threw her support behind the party's nominee and urged her supporters to do the same. In a move that many political pundits thought to be an act of good will and consolation, Obama selected Clinton as his Secretary of State. Many Hillary supporters thought that Obama should tab her as his vice-presidential running mate but the newly nominated candidate rejected that notion and chose fellow U.S. senator Joe Biden as his running mate and the rest as they say, is history.

As Hillary Clinton moves through this election cycle she is finding one thing glaringly clear.........the Benghazi incident is not going away anytime soon. And that's a bad thing. Ever since it occurred the Benghazi tragedy has been a thorn in the side of Hillary Clinton. As much as she tries to shake it loose it keeps coming back to bite her in the pants suit (I just can't stop saying pants suit--lol). At this point it is her Achilles heel which brings forth the question posed in the title of this Hub "Is Hillary Clinton the best choice for Democrats in 2016?" And if she is not who is?

Clinton has some extra baggage with her that she really doesn't need. In 2008 she had to deal with detractors who felt she was Bill Clinton 2.0 and didn't want anything to do with that. She was one of many senators who voted in favor of the Iraq War, a weight that still pulls at her although not as much as before. She back then had to deal with several scandals that occurred in the White House when her husband was president including Whitewater and Monica Lewinsky. And now add to that Benghazi and you have a candidate that has a lot to overcome. In addition you add to that the fact that Clinton is about 67 years young which by modern standards is old for a first term president and you have a few issues for voters to sort out as they make their decision. There is little doubt that Mrs. Clinton is qualified given the fact she was the wife of a president and was closely involved in policy making and was the secretary of State for the country. But is her experience enough to overcome all of the other distractions and negatives that she also has?

The Democratic Party is faced with a difficult situation. They need to come up with a good candidate if they hope to retain the White House. The present leading contenders Hillary Clinton, Bernie Sanders (and possibly Joe Biden), although qualified and experienced. leave much to be desired. All are up in age and that is a problem. As mentioned Clinton is in her late 60's, Sanders is 73 years old and Biden if he chooses to run will be 73 in November of this year. All of them are a bit long in the tooth to be running for president, a very demanding job. A perfect example is Barack Obama. When he first assumed office in 2009 his hair was completely black. Now it is mostly gray. The demands of the office of president ages a person exponentially. The last three presidents have been in their 50's or younger (George W. Bush was 50 in 2000, Bill Clinton was 46 in 1992 and Obama turned 47 in 2008) which is a pretty good age for a person running for the office. Not too young and not too old. Late 60's and early 70's is a tad beyond the threshold which leaves the democratic party with a dilemma.

At this point it is safe to say the options are still open but the window of opportunity is closing fast. With Clinton and Sanders now owning a great share of the financial backing another candidate will be hard pressed to find sufficient financial support to mount a strong campaign even if they are younger and qualified. So it goes without saying it looks a lot like Clinton or Sanders will be the likely nominee unless someone slips in shortly and pulls a Barack Obama and steals the show. In all likelihood that will not happen and Democrats will be left to choose between old or older and that could end up being the difference between winning and losing.

We will wait and see.