Hillary’s “In to Win!”
Hillary’s in. It’s not a surprise. What is a surprise is she announced on a Saturday not the usual day for big announcements. What it did was make her a prime subject for the Sunday yap fests.
Hillary’s use of the internet has been panned as “me too,” but I see it as an evolving part of her campaign. She doesn’t need to be the YouTube or Digg candidate because she’s the front runner. She can leave gimmicks to her challengers chasing her. Hillary can use new technology in ways that feel more mainstream and less techy.
In 2004 President Bush could have jumped on the trend of having his own active weblog like Sen. John Kerry and Howard Dean, M.D. Instead, BushCheney employed e-mail lists to get people to events, parties, and out to vote.
More importantly Hillary has to advance issues and ideas in a way that connects with voters. It’s about authenticity, smarts, and competence.
A minor sidenote involves Hillary’s use of just her first name. I don’t see it as too informal and treating her more casually because she’s a woman. We’ve already endured on President Clinton. Using “Hillary” avoids confusing her with Bill. It’s what will take place in common conversation across the country so it makes sense for the campaign to emulate that. It’s simply branding.
