During the 1992 presidential campaign, candidate Bill Clinton famously repudiated a black political activist's comments about race, angering members of the Democratic base he was trying to court.
It was dubbed his "Sister Souljah moment" -- named after the woman he scorned for what he believed were racist comments. It was highly controversial at the time, but it eventually positioned him as someone who would stand up to his own base in the heat of battle.
Claire McCaskill had a Sister Souljah moment in Springfield recently, when she was here promoting a military bill of rights.
During a question and answer period with audience members, a Democratic activist asked her if she would take the lead in impeaching President Bush. McCaskill said flatly she would not.
"I know this isn't the answer you want to hear, but I will always tell you what I really believe instead of the answer you want to hear. I honestly believe that any attempt to try impeachment is going to distract the country from its problems," replied the Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate.
It's not exactly a shock that McCaskill is trying to distance herself from the more liberal members of her party in a state turning increasingly red. But it was a direct response to a Democratic activist hoping for a different answer. I guess that raises the question, as McCaskill moves to the center, does she have to worry about losing her own base?
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