The day before Missouri's Democratic primary, a mailer zipped across the state from "Paid for by Hillary Clinton for President" in Arlington, Va.

It came with this charge against Sen. Barack Obama: "He wants to raise Social Security taxes by a trillion dollars."

Now if that didn't set older tongues wagging, nothing will. Few had time to check this out before the Feb. 5 vote. In politics, timing is everything.

I phoned Sen. Claire McCaskill of Missouri to ask why she backed such a knucklehead, who would bankrupt gramps and the grandkids.

McCaskill laughed when I read her the mailer then said, "The best advice I can give voters is to ignore what comes in the mail just before an election." She added, "He said he's going to fix Social Security." He would go after the wealthiest Americans, she said, not people who truly depend on Social Security for their longevity.

The Clintonites learned nothing from Missouri, which Obama won. But we all know by now that the Clinton Experience rests on a solid foundation of bad judgment. Sen. Clinton claims she hears Ann Richards speaking from the grave, when it's really Ann Lewis giving bad advice.

There are reasons Clinton's lead in some states has narrowed. It's not all gender; it's also character. Some of what has come from her campaign has been bogus, petty, divisive and underhanded.

Given the Missouri mailer, it was odd how Clinton reacted to an Obama mailer to Ohio voters condemning her NAFTA support.

What upset her most was that Obamaphiles exaggerated the extent of her support for the agreement, reached during husband Bill Clinton's presidency. She was for NAFTA but not as much as Obama claims. Another Clinton Experience taught us that it depends on what you mean by "is."

With ire and irony, Clinton shook one Ohio mailer and said, "Shame on you, Barack Obama."

That rapid shape-shift from kinder-gentler debater in Texas to scalding scold in Ohio was scarier than any campaign mailer.

Which begs the question raised in Clinton's new "red phone" TV ad.

An announcer asks, Whom do you want to be in the White House when there's an emergency phone call in the middle of the night? Clinton's face appears.

But which Hillary will pick up at 3 a.m.? There aren't enough debates to give her multiple personas time with the consistent Obama, who by the way, was endorsed by Jay Rockefeller for his good judgment on national security matters. We know who he thinks is ready Day One.

In Wisconsin, Clinton should have picked up some cheese with her whine. When will this phony princess quit complaining in speeches and debates about sleeping on the pea? Our warrior women sent with Clinton's vote to fight an unnecessary war in Iraq aren't complaining.

Clinton demands accountability but won't provide it. Obama released his tax returns; she won't. This financial disclosure helps voters make informed choices.

Clinton touts her White House experience, but in Ohio, she claimed she can't provide records from those years because the Bushies won't release them. The Bushies, no fans of transparency, claim the Clintons aren't being truthful. What if on Day One, President Hillary invokes executive privilege?

Clinton claimed Obama was too busy campaigning to attend Senate subcommittee meetings. Yet in the Ohio debate, she said her schedule didn't allow time to release her returns ahead of her nomination. Yes, we recall the Clinton Experience as one of delay, dodge and deceive.

During the Ohio debate, Clinton mentioned a "Saturday Night Live" skit that depicted her as media victim to Obama's pampered prince. Omitted was another "SNL" skit that slurred her. Why no, "Shame on you, 'SNL'"?

In the "Weekend Update" skit, Tina Fey said, "People think Hillary is a bitch. Yeah, she is. … But you know what? Bitches get stuff done." And, "Bitch is the new black!"

The feminine mystique demystified! We've come a long way, Barbara Jordan and Ann Richards.

Rhonda Chriss Lokeman (lokeman@kcstar.com) is a columnist for The Kansas City Star. To find out more about Rhonda Chriss Lokeman and read features by other Creators Syndicate writers and cartoonists, visit the Creators Syndicate Web page at www.creators.com.

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