OPINION:
Hillary Clinton has lived her life in a soap opera, and now NBC will make one about her. The writers of NBC’s projected four-part miniseries have lots to work with. Bubba and his loose zipper could have been the inspiration for Anthony Weiner, though Mr. Weiner was never accused of rape and has violated only the law of common sense.
The lead role goes to Diane Lane, a contributor to far-left causes, such as MoveOn.org, and an Oscar nominee for her role in “Unfaithful.” Experience is the best teacher, and Hillary learned a lot living with a faithless zipper in the White House. “The script will begin with [Mrs.] Clinton living in the White House,” says an NBC spokesman, “as her husband is serving the second of his two terms as president.” To avoid an X-rating, the writers will have to make up a lot of stuff.
The Clintons are said to be livid about the comparisons to Anthony Weiner, but Huma Abedin, the Weiner missus, dined in Washington Monday night with Phillippe Reines, Hillary’s press spokesman, at the fashionable Chinese restaurant Meiwah, and if they met to talk about the script, they had similar tales to talk about. Earlier in the day, Hillary lunched at the White House with President Obama, a lunch described as “mostly social,” with no spicy Szechuan or Hunan dishes. The corporate suits at Comcast, which owns NBC and MSNBC, say their miniseries is only about attracting viewers and making money, not politics. Tying the series to the 2016 elections is only about “event programming.” Indeed.
Considering how the fortunes of GE, which until March owned half of NBC, depend on having a favorite man in the Oval Office, a sloppy wet kiss for the Clintons is prudent insurance. GE collected billions in stimulus and subsidies for such Obama favorites as windmills and high-speed rail projects, and President Obama even appointed Jeffrey Immelt, the CEO of GE, to chair the President’s Council on Jobs and Competitiveness. This was mostly honorary, and beyond buying office furniture, installing telephones and printing impressive letterheads, the council never amounted to much. It rarely met, created no jobs and was soon abandoned. A business model built on government support is inherently risky. Instead of satisfying consumers such a company only has to satisfy the politicians who write the business rules and regulations.
Other mythic tales are on the way. CNN Films is planning a feature-length documentary on the former first lady, secretary of state and mistreated wife. “I am very excited to be making a film about Hillary Rodham Clinton,” says Charles Ferguson, the producer. Her fascinating life and work “embody so many of America’s, and the world’s, hopes and challenges.” A major motion picture celebrating Hillary’s early years as a liberal lawyer in Arkansas is in “pre-production,” Hollywood talk for “nothing definite yet.” Several A-list actresses, including Scarlett Johansson, are said to have passed on the title role in “Rodham.”
Democrats, with movie and television studios and billion-dollar budgets at their back, need only a star for real life. The choice now seems to be between Hillary and Joe Biden. Neither Hillary nor Joe is necessarily the pretty face the voters are looking for. A McClatchy-Marist poll finds that 63 percent of Democrats would prefer Hillary in a primary, but speculation this far out is merely hope and gossamer.
Automobile News reports that more than a dozen members of the National Automobile Dealers Association objected when convention planners picked Hillary to make the keynote address at their annual convention next year in New Orleans. Soap, like a wine served after its time, does not always travel well.
The Washington Times
Please read our comment policy before commenting.