Maureen Dowd of the New York Times fires the opening salvo in Camelot's Second Crusade: That is, go back and destroy the victors the same way you were gonna right before they destroyed you.  Kinda like this wholly unself-evident death threat from Camelot via the New York Post:

"The governor's going to pay for this," said a well-placed Democrat. "Ted is furious. The family is furious. The Kennedys are now against the governor."  

OK. So Uncle Teddy's furious.  So are a lot of people these days. Like the Clintons with Uncle Teddy and Niece Caroline. Politics is like that, I guess. 

That Uncle Teddy and Camelot, including Dowd, now want to kill the entire village they couldn't capture--but haven't got the juice for either--is seriously Shakespearian.  Or Republican-Guardian.

But if you doubt either the the blood lust or amplitude of the effort, check out Dowd's full-bore kamikaze into trash-that-new-bitch mode: 

So now we have an N.R.A. handmaiden in Bobby Kennedy’s old seat? Kirsten Gillibrand, a k a Tracy Flick, accepting the honor with her Republican pal Al D’Amato beside her on stage? Gross.

Dowd then follows up with more of that gauzy, perfunctory Kennedy narrative (see above) that I think she genuinely believes qualified Caroline for the job:

Then the Democrats would have had another Kennedy in the Senate representing New York — Bobby’s niece and a smart, policy-oriented, civic-minded woman to whom the president feels deeply indebted in an era when every state has its hand out.

Note to Dowd: The president wants to get mixed up in New York politics about as much as he wants to get mixed up in Chicago's share of the stimulus package. Or testifying at Blogo's impeachment proceedings.

Then comes--of course--the requisite anti-Gillibrand talking points (Or is this Kevin Sheekey again?):

Instead they have Gillibrand, who voted against the Wall Street — as in New York — bailout bill. And who introduced a bill to balance the federal budget annually, which suggests she would oppose the $825 billion in deficit spending that President Obama proposes to rescue the country, not least New York.

Hmm. Gillibrand "suggests" we ought not "rescue the country?" Kinda like the unforgettable "lack of courage" bit from Kevin a few months ago. Or that Gillibrand's pro-illegal-gun. Or how the governor's committed "political malpractice?"

Let it go, Kevin. You guys blew it. Just like the complete mash you made of congestion pricing.  And if I were Uncle Teddy, I might be coming after you too for engineering this fiasco. 

Dowd next sockpuppets Team Camelot's meta-theme on Team Paterson and Team Clinton: 

Paterson’s five weeks of dithering let the jealous vindictiveness of the Clintons and friends — still fuming over Caroline’s endorsement of Obama and Teddy’s blocking Hillary from a leading health care role in the Senate — poison the air. With his usual sense of entitlement and aggrievement, Bill Clinton of Arkansas did not want Caroline Kennedy of New York to have the seat that Hillary Clinton of Illinois held.

Isn't it all clear now? Caroline can have Uncle Teddy firing scuds from the Compound, but the Clintons get zero say in who's going to succeed Hillary. The Times editorial board couldn't have done a better job in making it seem like this makes sense.

Paterson wasn’t thinking of New York, only of how an upstate ally who was a woman would bolster his own chances for re-election. We can only hope that an avenging Andrew Cuomo takes him out in a primary.

"Avenging Andrew Cuomo?" That other generational Compound Kennedy enemy? I thought they're on him for trashing one of the cousins? So, the Kennedy's and Dowd are good with Andrew now?  Dowd, is it any wonder you Team Camelot people couldn't engineer the Senate deal? You can't even keep your enemies straight.

Then Dowd's back again with the Tracy Flick branding thing:

The 42-year-old Gillibrand, who has been in the House for only two years, is known as opportunistic and sharp- elbowed. Tracy Flick is her nickname among colleagues in the New York delegation, many of whom were M.I.A. at her Albany announcement.

Sorry, Dowd. Do some homework already. "Tracy Flick" sticks to Gillibrand about as much as "I was actually at that press conference I'm referencing" or "I've met and/or actually spoken with Gillibrand" sticks to you.

Then back with some more kill-the-village smack--now it's Schumer:

Chuck Schumer embraced Gillibrand because at long last he can be the best-known senator from New York, something that would have been impossible with Kennedy.

It's a real shame that Dowd soon might not have a newspaper to play dominant-female-in-charge. Maybe it's because people think The Times' sophistry is about as valuable as the people responding to Dowd's adolescent commentary.  They don't seem to like Maureen either.

Why are The Times' impending demise, Dowd's catty character assassination and another botched Kennedy-destiny date a fitting coda here? This whole thing's almost operatic. Or maybe like some post-modern rendition of Sunset Boulevard, everybody waiting around for a Cecil B. DeMille to make them important again, right before receding into the sunset of their old world.