Political Diary

Hillary's Vast Right-Wing Conspiracy

What was Hillary Clinton doing sitting down for an hour-long interview with Fox News's Bill O'Reilly this week? For years, the aggressive Mr. O'Reilly has been dismissing her as a "socialist" and slammed her for not appearing on his program.

Mrs. Clinton had one goal in mind: outreach. Independents and Republicans can vote in next Tuesday's Indiana Democratic primary, and North Carolina still has many registered Democrats with conservative views. Make no mistake, it was the Clinton campaign that reached out to Mr. O'Reilly this past Monday and offered sit-down time.

It was hardly a coincidence that her opening to Mr. O'Reilly came the same day Rev. Jeremiah Wright grabbed the national stage with his controversial National Press Club speech – which Barack Obama had to distance himself from the next day. Mrs. Clinton used her time on Fox to make clear that she thought Mr. Wright's comments were "offensive and outrageous."

Mr. O'Reilly said he felt a little badly that Mr. Obama's "whole campaign has been derailed by some loony guy" and asked Mrs. Clinton if she, too, felt sorry for her rival. Her decision not to answer spoke volumes. The Rev. Wright gives her a chance to close the sale with voters nervous about Mr. Obama's inexperience and choice of associates. Should she win Indiana and make a surprisingly good showing in North Carolina, doubts about Mr. Obama among the superdelegates will only grow. And the remaining primaries – in places such as Kentucky and West Virginia – are on turf largely friendly to her.

Don't be surprised if Mrs. Clinton's next stop on Fox is with Sean Hannity.