We’ve gotten a ton of great responses to my weekend question about whether or not readers are ready for a Hillary Clinton candidacy, whether they’re supporting her, how enthusiastically, etc. They’ve run the gamut. And I’m going to be publishing a bunch of them. But this email from TPM Reader AC brings out an issue that is either implicit or referenced in many of the emails you’ve sent in: namely, how support for Hillary is shaped by the intense and close-fought 2008 primary battle and Hillary’s loyalty and work for Obama after her defeat.
From AC …
A factor helping Hillary, which I haven’t heard much about, is that some Obama ’08 supporters feel they owe a personal debt to Hillary ’08 supporters.
I strongly supported Obama in the ’08 primaries. But many friends, including my now-wife, supported Hillary. By the convention they all got on board for Obama. Now they are lining up behind Hillary again.
If ’16 were Hillary’s first run, I might be supporting Bernie Sanders in this primary. But am I going to go against all the Hillary supporters in my life a second time? After they helped my guy (eventually) in ’08 and ’12? Not likely.
Of course, it might be a different story if there were a stronger alternative to Hillary this cycle. I’m just in no mood to seek one out.
