Key Dems May Have Had Enough

As Hillary Clinton loses Democratic stalwarts like Tom Daschle, John Kerry, and now Ted Kennedy, the New Republic looks at Democratic power brokers who have had enough of the Clinton brand and many who dismiss the former first couple as power-hungry and legacy-obsessed. Although it’s not obvious outside Washington, the Clintons have dominated Democratic politics since the '90s.

With Clintonites running the DNC, major policy groups, and 527s, it seemed to some as if the 42nd presidency never ended. What’s more, Daschle—who passed on many influential staffers to Barack Obama—and Kerry both felt Bubba stepped on their toes in 2004. The Clintons weren't undercutting Kerry, says a friend, "but there was a sense that, at key moments, their legacy or their role in the party was paramount." (More Hillary Clinton stories.)