No doubt there will be swooning all round when President Barack Obama descends upon Australia next month for his first official visit “Down Under” since coming to office just over a year ago.

Looks like we've made it, look how far we've come now baby.

While the precise details of his itinerary are understandably a closely guarded secret there can be no such mystery as to what the reaction of much of the local media will be.

Breathless comparisons with the charismatic US leader and his young family to the photogenic heyday of Camelot are sure to be exceeded only by gushing commentary of his wife, Michelle Obama. And given our sunny climes are more accommodating of sleeveless gowns than chilly Washington DC, fashion observers might just be rewarded with a glimpse of the First Lady baring those famed biceps.

Throw in a rousing speech or two from the man himself (surely a distinguished orator such as Obama will be able to do a little better than “man of steel”) and it seems we’re destined to be collectively seduced by Obamania.

Yet I can’t help but think what could have been. What if Obama left his family at home and was joined on the trip by the other significant woman in his life? You know, the one he isn’t married to.

No, I’m not suggesting the US president is following in the tradition of some of his predecessors in cheating on his wife. All evidence would suggest his picture-perfect domestic relations remain blissfully intact. I don’t doubt for a moment he’s leaving the sleazy behaviour to his one-time would-be running mate, John Edwards.

Yet there is another woman. And it’s Hillary Clinton. Once Obama’s fiercest rival, now his loyal secretary of state.

As half of one of the most well-documented marriages on the planet, we all know Clinton has long been spoken for. So given she’s with Bill and he’s with Michelle, it’s not surprising Hillary and Barack: A Love Story is a largely untold tale.

Unconventional, combative, and – I hasten to clarify – strictly platonic, it’s a partnership with an intensity to rival the most overwrought of paperback romances. Like all star-crossed lovers before them, theirs was a relationship initially founded in mutual respect and admiration until circumstances saw that fondness replaced by less benevolent emotions.

Indeed in the eyes of most observers, Obama and Clinton will always be foes. And not without reason. It’s not that long since the pair attempted to annihilate one another in the notoriously drawn-out battle for the Democratic presidential nomination.

It was a contest as historic as it was bitter. The eloquent, dynamic young senator destined to become America’s first black president versus the fiercely intelligent, tenacious senator destined to become America’s first female president.

Given we all know how it turned out, it’s often forgotten how close Clinton came to making history of her own. More importantly, she played a critical – and largely unacknowledged role – in shaping the candidate Obama would ultimately become.

For all his inherent talent and ambition, it was his exhaustive battle against the former first lady that saw Obama become a vastly more disciplined and focused contender.

In the recently released book Game Change: Obama and the Clintons, McCain and Palin, and the Race of a Lifetime, John Heilemann and Mark Halperin recount the behind-the-scenes antics of the 2008 presidential campaign.

With its larger than life characters and unforeseen plot twists (no matter you already know how this particular story ends), it’s this summer’s definitive blockbuster.

As political reporters themselves, Heilemann and Halperin have the good grace to concede the American media gave Obama a virtually unprecedented free ride during his ascent. Clinton, meanwhile, was subjected to a level of scrutiny few of her peers would be capable of withstanding.

By October 2007, she was still considered the frontrunner when she attended a primary debate in Philadelphia. What ensued was a remarkable display of bullying – with Edwards at the helm – as her six fellow Democratic presidential candidates joined forces in attacking her. More than half of the questions asked of the seven participants were directed solely at Clinton. Only on five occasions did a candidate challenge another rival. And when questions were put to Obama they included benign queries as to what costume he was planning to wear for Halloween. Not even the most ardent admirers of Obama, nor the most strident of Clinton’s critics, could deny the double standards at play.

But Clinton knew she could ill avoid to complain. To voice her frustration would have been dismissed as shrill and self-pitying. By early 2008, Clinton was facing inevitable defeat. Obama was no longer just a fellow candidate hustling for the nomination – he was a rock star; the darling of the party’s establishment; and the personal favourite of the almighty Kennedy clan. Yet even with Clinton effectively slain, she was never far from Obama’s thoughts. While less forgiving heads ultimately prevailed, it was Obama who found it hard to think of anyone more equipped to serve as his VP.
And when a gun-toting, beauty-queen governor from Alaska unexpectedly burst onto the national stage and stole the limelight for several weeks, Obama suspected Clinton was the only person who could effectively puncture the Sarah Palin fairytale. 

It’s telling that Game Change devotes its final chapter to a particular twosome. It’s not, as might be expected, Obama opening a bottle of champagne with Michelle to toast his historic success in winning the White House. Nor is it a picture of a still-seething Hillary and Bill Clinton plotting their revenge in 2012. Neither failed Republican nominee John McCain or Palin manage to squeeze in a parting shot in the book’s closing pages.

Instead the last words go to Obama and Clinton, when they meet to discuss her becoming secretary of state. After months of hostility, it’s a poignant exchange in which they let down their respective guards for the first time.

With the divisive contest behind them, candour and a shared sense of commitment prevails. While Obama finally admits he needs Clinton by his side, she confesses her personal baggage can be a liability; an admission she had long resisted.

We all know there’s no happily ever after though. It’s not that kind of story. But in its own unique fashion, it is a love story, just the same.

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23 comments

Show oldest | newest first

    • acker says:

      08:07am | 17/02/10

      Barack & Hilary, Condaleeza & George W, Bill & Monica, Martha & George Snr, Ronnie & Maggie, Jimmy & A Peanut, Gerald & ????, Dick & Kissenger, Lyndon & Ladybird, Jackie & JFK, Ike & The Marine Corp ......the mind boggles

    • Jamers Hunter says:

      10:11am | 17/02/10

      malcom frezer and gough whitlam

    • Adam MacLeod says:

      12:59pm | 17/02/10

      bob hawke and paul keating.  true love.

    • Ron says:

      01:25pm | 17/02/10

      Wrong Adam, Paul Keating & Paul Keating, that’s true love.

    • Jack Thomas says:

      08:48pm | 17/02/10

      You got one thing right, the swooning for Obama will be positively nauseating.

      Kevin is already wetting his pants about it, if you though his “salute” gesture to George W Bush was smarmy and fake, you aint seen nothing yet.

    • iansand says:

      09:33pm | 17/02/10

      What about the embarrassing stain on the front of Howard’s trousers when he did but see Bush passing by?

    • Eric says:

      08:08am | 17/02/10

      I’ll bet some of those Obama supporters are having second thoughts, with The One down to below 50% in all the popularity polls. Democrats have lost ground even in traditional strongholds such as Massachussetts due to the incompetence of this inexperienced president.

      Obama is on the way to a spectacularly failed one-term washout. And anyone who thinks Hillary is not waiting to pick up the pieces in 2012 is probably a bit naive.

    • Pete says:

      08:48am | 17/02/10

      not ot mention being unfairly trashed repeatedly on the Fox News Channel….I reckon Eric that the Democrats and Obama will win the next election,

      You’ve got a very short memory…can you say George Dubya?

    • Eric says:

      09:00am | 17/02/10

      It’s true that Fox is both the most trusted and most watched cable news channel in the US - but almost all the rest of the media are big Obama supporters. Even with such support, Obama is stumbling.

      http://www.gallup.com/poll/113980/Gallup-Daily-Obama-Job-Approval.aspx

      I do remember George Bush. When he hit Obama-like approval levels, the Republicans lost a lot of seats. Very similar to what the Democrats are facing now.

    • Martin G says:

      11:00am | 17/02/10

      @Pete “not ot mention being unfairly trashed repeatedly on the Fox News Channel….I reckon Eric that the Democrats and Obama will win the next election”

      ...as Dubya was trashed by all the other television media in the country when he was in power. Demmycrats have no reason to complain about Obama’s media coverage. FOX News happens to have the guts to hold Obama to account for his failed promises and underwhelming leadership.

      And as Eric says: “It’s true that Fox is both the most trusted and most watched cable news channel in the US”. FOX has the highest ratings, people are clearly tired of networks that continually fawn over Obama.

      Obama is beginning to look like a one-termer.

    • Anna says:

      08:27am | 18/02/10

      Eric, you are so right. Obama should have had a go at being a governor before aiming at the white house. Can’t deny the man is ambitious, a great and inspiring speaker, He would make a wonderful preacher. Truth be told: the most powerful man on the planet cannot excersice that power without his Congress

    • Ziggy says:

      09:59am | 18/02/10

      Dear Pete - guess who had the higher SAT scores? Dubya or Obama?
      Guess who never came from the most corrupt political organisation in the US? Don’t get a headache now.
      And please, people, stop referring to him as a great speaker. Now if you called his teleprompter a great speaker I will accept that.Poor guy even needs that to order from MacDonalds.

    • HeckleandJeckle says:

      08:21am | 17/02/10

      I am an Australian, not an American. I can only view President Obama at a distance. From what I have seen I like the man.. but once again I can’t and don’t even want to vote there. I wish him the best in the next election, but of bigger concern to me at this time is when will this humidity go away?.. its driving me batty

    • Kim says:

      10:52am | 17/02/10

      Talk about romanticising politics!  What a load of BS.  The facts are the facts but making it into a love story?

    • acker says:

      10:54am | 17/02/10

      Silvio Berlusconi and yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada,yada…...
      infinite possibilities…..

    • Terry says:

      11:39am | 17/02/10

      The media fawn over him just as the media fawn over krudd here & both of them are hopeless.

    • Harquebus says:

      12:02pm | 17/02/10

      Read recently that, in his first year as president, BO authorized more state sanctioned murders using robot planes than Big Dubbya did in his whole term.

    • Lady Fong says:

      12:21pm | 17/02/10

      You are all missing the point about Hillary and Obama! Can’t you see their mature behaviour, that rivals can work like partners after the elections are over. Hillary did not go into a sulk. Obama did not sideline her. Would that less mature democracies, e.g. Sri Lanka, could take a page out of their book. Let the winners have a chance at governing and getting their policies successfully implemented, without losers behaving like spoilers.

    • Ziggy says:

      01:14pm | 18/02/10

      Did not sideline her? You must be the only person in the world who believes that. He appointed all sorts of people to handle various parts of the world that should be handled by Hilary. And they report direct to him - not to her.Is that sidelining or not?

    • Anthony says:

      01:41pm | 17/02/10

      This is the most insightful article about Obama I have read in a very long time. Sarah, put down Game Change and start writing a book of your own

    • Ziggy says:

      01:16pm | 18/02/10

      All of Obamas books were ghostwritten. Except the articles he never wrote for the Law review at Uni - only editor never to be published - now that’s history for you.Of course he never had TOTUS then.

    • iansand says:

      09:38pm | 17/02/10

      It’s power.  Its acquisition.  Its maintenance.  Its perpetuation.  Any deal is acceptable to maintain power.

      Power.  All you know in politics, and all you need to know.

    • Jackson says:

      07:58am | 18/02/10

      The American people are completely disillusioned with the ‘hope and change’ that Obama promised. They have found he is as useless as Kevin07.

 

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