James Carville's 'Judas' analogy continues to resonate

How out there was James Carville's "Judas" reference to Bill Richardson in reacting to the New Mexico governor's decision to endorse Barack Obama?

So out there that even Howard Wolfson -- the pugnacious, rarely-known-to-pull-a-punch communications director for Hillary Clinton -- distanced himself from it.

During an appearance on MSNBC's "Morning Joe" show, Wolfson had this to say about Carville's comment: "It's not something I would have said."

After adding that he considers Carville "the most brilliant political mind of the last 20 years," Wolfson reiterated: "It's not something that I would have said."

The man in the middle of the flap ...

... wasn't backing down one iota.

Carville, who usually appears on CNN as an analyst, today was an interviewee, telling Wolf Blizter that his quote "had its desired intent" -- i.e., depicting Richardson as disloyal to the Clinton brand that he once had been so firmly affixed to.

The furor, of course, also had the effect of keeping Richardson front and center -- we doubt that his turn on "Fox News Sunday" and the invites he received today from various cable new shows (culminating tonight with a chat with CNN's Larry King) -- were based solely on the desire to hear more about why he now backs Obama.

Carville, while unrepentant about dissing Richardson, displayed his distinctive flair in assuring Blitzer that he would have no problem in helping Obama if the Illinois senator triumphed in the prolonged fight for the Democratic presidential nomination.

Referring to his own dome and one of Obama's top aides, Carville said that "Corporal Cueball" would enlist in "Captain [David] Axelrod's army" from "Day One."

For our money, the best sound bite -- among the hundreds -- being offered on Carville's "Judas" remark came from political strategist Matthew Dowd on "Good Morning America." Dowd (who, as long as religiously tinged terminology is in vogue, underwent a much-publicized conversion from George Bush loyalist to critic), had this to say:

"Probably fortunate for Bill Richardson it wasn't Fourth of July because he'd probably be Benedict Arnold today."

-- Don Frederick

 

Comments

[pat s austin]

It seems that a person Should not and CANNOT think for themselves if the Clintons own them. That was the same way they thought about the black voters. Penn even went far as to say that the clinton camp will win black votes by 50% consequently ending the race by super Tuesday. They always think that somebody owes them. Was the presidency passed down from Clinton's dad to him or is the presidency an office of the United States? I thought Bill Richardson was working for the country instead of for the Clintons. I never once thought that the Clintons were "using the office" of the presidency or were they???
Talking about betrayal, Why not ask the first lady?

[SALVER]

We all know where James Carville is coming from, it takes an egotistic Judas like Carville to say such, Now let us really look at Carville's camp of Judases starting with HILLARY AND BILL.
HILLARY RODMAN CLINTON AND BILL CLINTON SEEM TO HAVE CHOOSEN JOHN MCCAIN FOR PRESIDENT OVER ANY OTHER DEMOCRATIC CANIDATE OTHER THAN HILLARY. HILLARY AND BILL HAS BEEN MAKING THE ARGUMENT OVER AND OVER AGAIN THAT ONLY SHE AND MCCAIN HAS THE EXPERIENCE TO BE PRESIDENT.
I SOMETIME WONDER, HOW DOES SHE HOPE TO UNITE THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IF EITHER SHE OR OBAMA SHOULD LOSE THE PARTY NOMINATION. IS SHE AND BILL SO DUMB OR IS IT THEIR INTENTION TO SPLIT THE PARTY WHEN THE NOMINATION IS LOST. NOW THAT IS A "JUDAS".

[John Broadhurst]

Now this is a real blood feud. These insults from the Clintons will not be forgotten. And will possibly give the Bush team a third term.

Race-baiting, innuendo ("he's not a Muslim.. as far as I know), fear-mongering... questioning Barack's patriotism.

Meanwhile, Hillary's conduct is bizarre and unbalanced. Does she have the judgment or temperament to answer that red phone at 3am?

She can't control her surrogates, and she has mismanaged her campaign strategically and financially. She has no message. Yet she has a royal sense of entitlement. You get the feeling it's all about restoring the Clintons and their cronies to power, not about helping people.

Is this the woman, and the pack of jackals, we want running our country?

[Matx]

Richardson wants the vice presidential nomination and believes that Obama will be the candidate to give it to him.

Is that so incredibly difficult to understand?

So, Richardson dumped the Clintons in much the same way that Obama dumped:

1) His friend Rezko
2) His friend Wright
3) His own grandmother

Birds of a feather and all that...

This country is so much better than any of the candidates running.

[Richard Schauer]

Becase of President Clintons behavior in office, he could not get many A team players in his cabnit who had to stick up for him when he lied. Govenor Richardson was an A team player and served his President well. He had paid back the Clinton's in full. Carville's pit bull job should stop soon, it is getting old.

[Joe Momma]

James Carville is an idiot!

[John Fergus-Jean]

It is surprising that the expediency of politics surprises those who make a living by prostituting values. Carville is supremely disingenuous, a wonk, and doubly parasitical. Richardson is simply laying odds on a stronger horse; his game, lets say something like a cabinet position. I am personally shocked that politicians are so interested in consolidating their own power. How unseemly.

[commonsense]

Governor Richardson's endorsement of Senator Barack Obama is seen by many of us as a betrayal for the following reasons: 1) his endorsement at this time of the campaign was not necessary for the candidate with the widest margin of delegates and the best case scenario for victory; 2) he led the Clintons to believe that his endorsement of Senator Clinton was pretty much assured and; 3) he quit returning phone calls to the former President after he had made his decision on endorsement and before notifying Senator Clinton. So, it does not seem a very courageous action or even one based on a lofty principle. It comes across as a personal attempt to hurt Senator Clinton, a "personal" thing to either shine the light on himself and garner self attention at her expense, or to demean and embarass her. His remark that the Clintons have a "sense of entitlement" is a reflection of his own personal resentment toward the very people who put him on the national stage in the first place. One reason the Clintons may be so hated is because they have never been "entitled", "rich, or privileged". They have had to fight and scrap for every achievement and they were fine to ride to personal ambition while the riding was good. The spectacle of this over indulged, jowl faced man, flushed with something, in his white pants and dark jacket, gushing over his chosen candidate was sickening. It looked exactly like what it was: polishing the apple for his own bite; going with the winner. At best, he could have remained neutral without all the public demonstration or "purging" of his resentment if he had any sense of decency and respect. He could have exercised his choice in the confines of the SuperDelegate caucases. But he chose instead to do it in such a public way, as if all the rest of us will rush to follow him! First, he should clean up the public education system in New Mexico; the healthcare there; the roads. With all the tax dollars New Mexico receives from tourism and the rich celebrities who reside there, there is no excuse for how the rest of the population lives in his own state.

[Character Counts]

Enough of the meanness and hyperbole. According to Wolfson, Carville is "the most brilliant political mind of the last 20 years." May the Lord save us from these people, and more of the same. America does not deserve an encore.

[Girl with the bushy armpits]

Obama sure appreciates diverse company...like Hello ?
Adding Judas Richardson that compulsive brown noser
to the Wrights,Farrakhans and Rezco...whats next ?
My guess is the Hells Angels

[commonsense]

Governor Richardson's endorsement of Senator Barack Obama is seen by many of us as a betrayal for the following reasons: 1) his endorsement at this time of the campaign was not necessary for the candidate with the widest margin of delegates and the best case scenario for victory; 2) he led the Clintons to believe that his endorsement of Senator Clinton was pretty much assured and; 3) he quit returning phone calls to the former President after he had made his decision on endorsement and before notifying Senator Clinton. So, it does not seem a very courageous action or even one based on a lofty principle. It comes across as a personal attempt to hurt Senator Clinton, a "personal" thing to either shine the light on himself and garner self attention at her expense, or to demean and embarass her. His remark that the Clintons have a "sense of entitlement" is a reflection of his own personal resentment toward the very people who put him on the national stage in the first place. One reason the Clintons may be so hated is because they have never been "entitled", "rich, or privileged". They have had to fight and scrap for every achievement and they were fine to ride to personal ambition while the riding was good. The spectacle of this over indulged, jowl faced man, flushed with something, in his white pants and dark jacket, gushing over his chosen candidate was sickening. It looked exactly like what it was: polishing the apple for his own bite; going with the winner. At best, he could have remained neutral without all the public demonstration or "purging" of his resentment if he had any sense of decency and respect. He could have exercised his choice in the confines of the SuperDelegate caucases. But he chose instead to do it in such a public way, as if all the rest of us will rush to follow him! First, he should clean up the public education system in New Mexico; the healthcare there; the roads. With all the tax dollars New Mexico receives from tourism and the rich celebrities who reside there, there is no excuse for how the rest of the population lives in his own state.

[rose]

An honest man makes a difficult decision with integrity, and has to listen to this tripe. This is so typical of the level of this campaign. Can we please put aside the negativity, divisiveness and attacks and get back to discussing the issues. Oh, I forget, Hillary can't do that, because she'll lose. After 11 straight primary losses, this became her tactic. It's our tragedy as Americans that this sort of thing somehow influences. Shame on America. Uh oh, now I'm Reverend Wright.

[N.E. BodyburHillary]

If Richardson is Judas, that would make Bill Jesus. Wow that takes some heavy duty spinning. Let's see, Hillary isn't Bill's mother so she must be the self avowed worldly street prostitute, Mary Magdalene. Now that one I can see. Didn't we tire of the comically sad theatrics back in Bill's scandal riddled administration?

[Barbara]

Your blog has recently become the attack Obama all the time blog. Maybe it's because you were threatened by his speech. I mean what would really happen if we united across race and class lines?

"I'm here because of Ashley."
Obama 2008

[Don]

Not sure what he means since on the one hand Judas was a betrayer, but on the other hand he was highly successful.

So is he saying there is no hope for Hillary and he feels angry about that?

[Keith]

Typical left-wing double standards. If Richardson supports Obama he's a Judas and yet Carville openly states that he himself would have no problem supporting Obama should he get the nod. How incredibly transparent can one person be?

[Impeach Governor Judas]

Another two-timing democrat, this last one hiding behind
a conquistador style beard.Obama has to be scraping the
bottom of the barrel to go after the endorsement of such
a nobody. Carville should celebrate the fact that Hillary will not be burdened with having to appear in public with
this stale and obese governor of a 3rd rate state that
voted Bush in 2004 despite Judas's best efforts

[Tom Rice]

Perhaps an encouraging sign that religion is no longer a forbidden subject in the Democratic party?

[MissClarity]

Marxist all. Look up definition on Google Search.

[betty nuggan]

where's the mystery?
the fat guy just wants to be VP

[Kenny Alan Cramer]

Can we all just stop this incessant hatred to one and other with in the party?! It is important to note that neither Hillary or Obama can be held accountable something one of their supporters says. We live in an era where privacy is all but abolished due to advances in technology. We live in a world where everyone can go online and become a pseudo-journalist with in the blog-o-sphere. Mr. Carville's comments reflect more about him than Mrs. Clinton. I do question why he seems to feel that Mr. Clinton "owns" Richardson and therefore Richardson "owed" him... But again the Clinton's did not say this, James Carville did. I should also note that Mr. Richardson continues to say he has nothing, but respect for Senator Clinton and her husband, his former boss. I see no reason to denigrate anyone because of their personal preference for a candidate.

While I am definately for Senator Obama, I AM A DEMOCRAT FIRST! I think Senator Clinton is a great politician who deserves better than the campaign staff she currently has. I guess my point is... STOP blaming the candidates!!! The media thrives amid controversy... despite the endless complaints and accusations of media bias from supporter in both camps, here is the truth... the media is not pro-Hillary or pro-Obama. They are PRO-Controversy! You can't blame them for it (ratings?), but we can understand it -- and more beyond it. The more dramatic the story, the more it sells... regardless of the validity of the accusation.

[Bill]

Richardson is a Judas. If this isn't a quid pro quo then we should expect Bill Richardson to be appointed to any cabinet position now should we? It is hilarious for Richardson to say that Obama of all people can best bring unity among the races. Really? Last I checked he was going to a racist, anti-white church that pledges alliance strictly to the Black community, not the Brown community (Richardson--that means your supposed peeps), not the Yellow community etc. Let's see who Obama tries to gain as an Asian endorser next as if that is going to cover up the fact that he is strictly concerned with the black community and proving his brotherhood, despite the fact that his black father deserted him and his white mother and grandmother were the ones to care for him, yet he points out his grandmother as being no different than Rev Wright. Last I remember Grandma didn't hate her country nor did she damn it to hell.

[fred doble]

You are all like chickens in the barnyard squawking and buk-buk-ing over three turds that look like worms
while the fox slowly creeps up........................................

What in heaven's name makes any one of you idiots
think that you could possibly know one iota of what's going on?

[What's his face]

Hey Don !
Benedict Arnold or Judas both fit Richardson as well.
Obama's fans on this site are asking assinine questions
like if Richardson is Judas who is Jesus ? I cant recall
reading such infantile and myopic gibberish.This eleventh
hour endorsement does not pass the smell test and should
demonstrate to the flock of naive and credulous Obama
fans what a constipated third rate politician Richardson
continues to be.

[sfv]

Like, Carville is so over. Seriously, he is about as marginal a political figure these days as Bill Clinton. IMHO, The only people who are paying any attention to these guys are political junkies like us -- I really think the rest of the country couldn't care less and barely remembers them. (BTW, I was a big BC supporter.)