Dems may need intervention to contain Hillary Clinton, NYT editorial board member says

.FILE - Hillary Clinton talks with Jeffrey Goldberg, editor in chief of The Atlantic, during The Atlantic Festival, in Washington. (AP)

If Democrats are to be successful in this year’s midterm elections, they may need to hold an intervention to stop Hillary Clinton from complicating their lives with incendiary comments and unnecessary drama, according to a New York Times op-ed from a member of the editorial board.

In her column, Michelle Cottle argues Clinton's rash of appearances on national TV and other venues to discuss hot-button issues will only cause problems for her party.

In a recent interview, Clinton advocated throwing out civility when dealing with the Republican Party, which could turn off swing voters being courted by Democrats as the party seeks a congressional majority.

"You cannot be civil with a political party that wants to destroy what you stand for, what you care about," Clinton said in an Oct. 9 sit-down with CNN.

Cottle wrote that the message could energize the GOP, whose base sees Clinton as the “ultimate boogeyman to be invoked when a Republican politician is having trouble exciting his constituents.”

What could be more helpful than “Crooked Hillary” inflaming partisan passions, she wrote.

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During a recent appearance on “CBS Sunday Morning,” Clinton’s take on her husband’s affair with former White House intern Monica Lewinsky didn’t help either, Cottle said.

During the interview, Clinton pointed out that Lewinsky was an adult at the time of the dalliance and that former President Bill Clinton was right to not resign.

She then demanded to know why no one was investigating the multiple sexual harassment accusations against President Trump.

By playing down her own husband’s acts, she makes it easier for Trump supporters to ignore his, Cottle said.

Clinton also rejected a suggestion that having “not contended fully” with her husband’s accusers makes it harder for her to be an effective supporter of #MeToo movement.

“Well, no because there was the most intense, comprehensive investigation,” which she believes “came out in the right place,” Clinton said in the interview.

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It is that ”moral arrogance,” Cottle said, that has troubled some Democrats.

Ahead of the midterms, the plan for Republicans is to closely tie Clinton to the Democratic Party.

“We’re going to make them own her,” a Republican National Committee spokesman said.