Posted by
woody on Sunday, November 11, 2007 12:10:20
It is a well-known fact among political junkies that Hillary Clinton is a very ‘handled’ politician. Her campaign constantly controls the environments she appears in, refuses to let reporters that concern them ask her any questions, and strong arms many magazines when they think the coverage of their candidate might be negative. This may work in the short term, but the Clinton campaign only robs their candidate the opportunity to grow and face challenges that will make her a stronger candidate. Likewise, the public may tire of the candidate that never has to answer for her answers and start to distrust this “smartest woman alive” as nothing more than politician with a hollow vision and no real experience to handle the tough challenges of being President.
As the primary voting season nears, the ‘other’ Democratic candidates are looking to put chinks in the armor of the front runner by finally asking her questions about her positions, and highlighting the disconnects of many of them. And as many in the nation saw in the recent debate and the aftermath, Senator Clinton’s armor may not be that thick. The more the challengers press her, the more confusing her answers got, and the less she appeared to really be the “smartest woman alive.” The New York drivers’ license discussion was just one of many examples where her unwillingness to take a real position left her open for cross-examination, the accusers smelled blood in the water. No longer will the “blame Bush” response work, as it gives no vision for the future, and no insight into what the senator really believes.
Further disappointing for anyone wanting to know what the senator really would be like as President was her (and her campaign’s) post-debate reaction. She and her campaign may not have exactly said, “Don’t hit me, I’m a girl!”, but that is the message that the rest of us got. Electing an unqualified person to the White House simply because they are a woman would be hurtful at best, catastrophic at worst. Margaret Thatcher never played any gender card to get what she wanted in politics. She fought for what she believed in because she saw it as right, not because she felt a feminine message needed to be heard. Our President must be able to deal with a scathing press, other world leaders who would just as soon spit on them than sit and negotiate, and the ‘piling on’ of everyone from Tim Russert and the Media to the results of the latest Zogby poll. A woman President, whoever that woman may be, will not be able to ask for the kid glove treatment because she is the ‘more delicate gender.’
The Clinton supporters who coddle their candidate and shield her from the challenges of a scrutinizing media hurt themselves, their candidate and potentially the nation as Senator Clinton never learns what it is like to have to answer hard questions. Sure, she is severely disliked and criticized by much of the country, but that is much different than having to make an accounting for her ideas. As the campaign progresses, and especially if she becomes the nominee for the Democrats, she would be foolish to expect that the real Presidential debates would not involve tougher questions, and that the Republican nominee would not press her on exactly what she stands for.
Perhaps the real reason she shuns the tough questions is because she and her party know that what she really stands for is simply unpalatable for the nation at large. Based on some of her quotes, one must wonder whether she believes more fully in Karl Marx’ Manifesto than she does in Thomas Jefferson’s Declaration. Mixed in with her attempts at warmth, her ‘tough’ stance on terrorism, and her criticism of Bush, she has vocalized beliefs that sound more like the positions of Politburo members than those of the Senate. But it is hard to tell for sure, as she really is all over the place as she attempts to cover all her bases for the diversity that is our electorate. So no one really knows who the real Senator from New York is, and we are simply left guessing about her competency, her ideals, and her ability to take a punch.
Good luck to the Clinton Campaign in its attempt to push their candidate of the lesser gender with unknown concrete ideas and untested leadership to the White House at a time when the nation really needs a strong President. My guess is that if they really want to win, they are going to have to prove that she can really lead, and that she has a vision that is right for America. Thus far their protection only weakens her chances. She will be too weak to compete, too weak to lead under duress, and too affected by what others say of her to be effective.