Not to be outdone by a populist dictator like Chavez, Jerry Falwell upped the ante in the devil wars by saying this about the possible presidential run of Hillary Clinton:''I certainly hope that Hillary is the candidate,'' Falwell said at a breakfast session Friday in Washington. ''I hope she's the candidate, because nothing will energize my (constituency) like Hillary Clinton,'' he said. ''If Lucifer ran, he wouldn't.''Interesting sentiment. For the record, while Chavez apparently referred to our dear President simply as the devil, the Good Rev. Falwell makes use of Lucifer, the angelic name given to the Prince of Darkness before his fall from grace, when he was still, ironically enough, the Prince of Light. Interesting note on the origins of the name to refer to the Christian Devil:
Jerome, with the Septuagint close at hand and a general familiarity with the pagan poetic traditions, translated Heylel as Lucifer. This may also have been done as a pointed jab at a bishop named Lucifer, a contemporary of Jerome who argued to forgive those condemned of the Arian heresy.That Jerome played for keeps!
Aside from its historical and humorous features, this incident may make a potent political point. The right wing HATES Hillary. Probably worse than her husband, which is entirely unfair, but hey, politics isn't about being fair. If she runs, the GOP will run mad and hard against her.
But, and stay with me on this, perhaps so mad that they'll alienate the moderate (especially female) voters that they NEED to win any national election? By running on anger would Republicans risk the Dem Curse of '04: Big attacks, little substance to offer in return? And would Americans sympathize with Hillary after months of what are sure to be dirty attacks? Not sure, but with Falwell already comparing her to the devil, the Grillmaster thinks that it's worth keeping this point in mind.
