I’m going to try and drop the news editor mantle for just a moment and speak as a voter. I’m taking in a lot of information about the candidates every day, and this has led to even less clarity.I was into Hillary Clinton. Before the race really got going, I thought she was a good candidate. I liked a lot of her positions, and I liked how specific her speeches were. I’ve heard lots of people talk about how they just hated her without having much of a reason. “I just do,” was the typical response. This came from women and men, and I chalked it up to internalized sexism and just plain old sexism. All along, she’s been fighting with gender roles. People say she’s bitchy, but I always thought she was just another candidate doing what candidates in this country do: slash away at one another and see who’s standing at the end of the day. I think I would be disappointed in any candidate, regardless of gender, based on some of this nonsense today. Clinton’s resorted to making fun of Barack Obama’s speeches. “Let’s just get everybody together. Let’s get unified. The sky will open. The light will come down. Celestial choirs will be singing, and everyone will know that the world is perfect,” she’s quoted as saying in news outlets everywhere. That’s damn childish, and it seems ill-advised seeing as how her “that’s change you can Xerox” line at the Austin debates went over like a someone had just dropped a fiery bag of dog shit into the room. But the one that’s really getting to me concerns a photo of Barack Obama wearing a traditional Kenyan garb, which includes a turban-like wrap. Obama’s people say Clinton’s people circulated the photo to cast doubt about his background, claiming he might not be mainstream enough for American voters. They’ve alluded as much in the past. The BBC says the Obama camp sees the photo circulation as offensive. It’s too bad that Obama has to run from this photo, a shot of him being presented clothes by Kenyan elders. His father is from Kenya. Further, is it too much to hope that the country can handle an image like this? It doesn’t help that Clinton is casting aside her specifics approach for a “ populist” one. (Read: Appeals to the lowest common denominator). She’s got her bitch face on. I’m bummed that she’s giving all those people who “just don’t like her” a good reason not to. I think you should vote for a candidate who you think will do the best job of leading the country. Don’t vote against someone. Vote based on ideas and ideals. But if the Clinton photo circulation thing is true, and I’m not saying it is, what does that tell me about her opinions of other cultures? A president is a diplomat, after all.
Clinton Pulls No Punches
Confessions Of A Confused Voter
3 min read
