(HILLARY GROUP) Could someone please explain to me about Maureen Dowd?

And her virulent hatred for Hillary, who likely doesn't even know Ms. Dowd exists?

I am an infrequent reader of the NYT and I gave up on the Opinion pages with the departures of Bob Herbert and Frank Rich. But a friend of mine, who, interestingly is a supporter of Sen. Sanders, sent me a link to Ms. Dowd's column in today's Times with the added note "She really hates this woman." (Referring to Ms. Dowd's apparent feelings for Hillary).

The column was a barely coherent screed aimed at impugning Hillary's character. I figured that it takes all types and was about to move on when I decided to read the comments. According to many of them, this is SOP for Ms. Dowd. So I looked up some of Ms. Dowd's recent columns and holy fregoli!

I get that Ms. Dowd is apparently a friend(?) of Donald Trump, but her columns about Hillary read like that of a scorned ex-wife dishing her ex-husband's new love interest. I actually felt a great deal of second-hand embarrassment for Ms. Dowd. And the Times pays for this?

Am I missing something? I know little about the side battles that the media have with certain politicians, aside from President Obama's affection for the late Helen Thomas, whose birthday he shared. I am just baffled why a columnist for the paper of record has been routinely allowed to vent her spleen in such a personal and frankly immature and unprofessional manner.