The Wilson Endorsement

By Michael J.W. Stickings

I just can't get excited about Joe Wilson's endorsement of Hillary Clinton, and perhaps that's because I'm just not excited about the candidacy of Hillary Clinton.

Would I support her? Yes (if she won the nomination). Would I vote for her? Yes (if I were American). But until then -- I prefer Edwards, Obama, Richardson, and, of course, Gore.

Nonetheless, I have nothing but the highest respect for Peter Daou, who organized the announcement of the endorsement via conference call with, yes, some of the finest bloggers around: Steve Benen, Steve Clemons, Taylor Marsh, Greg Sargent, Dave Johnson, Tom Watson, and Jeralyn Merritt, among others. It was an awfully smart move to reach out to the blogosphere -- not least because Clinton hasn't exactly been the darling of the liberal blogosphere (she's no Feingold) -- and, as a blogger myself, I celebrate any effort to take the blogosphere, and these great bloggers, seriously.

Pamela Leavey may be right that "Wilson's endorsement will play big for Hillary, but what will play much bigger, I think, is this effort to get the Netroots motivated and mobilized in Clinton's favour. Taylor captures the excitement of the conference call and understands its significance: "That Clinton offered the scoop to a group of bloggers shows just how far she's come... The strength of Clinton's candidacy continues to expand."

We shall see. For now, I still have my doubts.