SOMEBODY PLEASE HELP ME LET GO OF HILLARY CLINTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
First of all let me say that I like Barack Obama and that I am an older white woman. In fact I admire him though my first choice for the democratic nominee was John Edwards. I actively worked for John and contributed financially to his campaign. When he left the race I was devastated. For weeks I followed the campaigning and primaries of Obama and Clinton trying to decide who next to support as both claimed to have a sincere interest in giving the middle class the attention that it deserves which is so important to me. Plus it is very important to pick the candidate that has the best chance of winning the presidency in the fall. Everything would suggest that the obvious choice would be Obama. He is new and has a different approach to politics. He is inspiring, bright, inventive, courageous and I agree with almost everything he says. Plus he always seems to take the high road in political issues.
I have always liked Hillary Clinton as well. It is true that she has voted for or been associated with several concerns that I have not agreed with and of late her actions aren’t always admirable which gives her the appearance of wanting to win at all cost. But there is something about her that I can’t let go of. I believe that she REALLY believes that she is the best candidate and that she has the best chance of beating John McCain. I also believe that she believes in most of what she is saying and that she will try and follow through on those beliefs.
As of today it seems inevitable that Barrock Obama will be the Democratic Presidential Nominee. Super delegates, newspaper editorials, TV commentaries, and most of my friends have jumped aboard the Obama Express. Why can’t I ? It can’t be just because I am a woman. But as more things seem to go wrong for Hillary the stronger my allegiance grows for her. Why? It doesn’t make sense. It can’t be that I feel sorry for the underdog can it? Both of the candidates are historic nominations. Both candidates have practically the same view as I do on most issues. I like both of them.
After weeks of reading the newspapers and listening to political programs on radio and TV, I find myself shunning them all because they are all now, justly or unjustly, so negative about Hillary and I don’t like hearing it. I know I am not one of those women who like Hillary no matter what she does, that’s not me. For weeks now I have been searching for why this loyalty of mine exists for this person.. It’s almost like I am digging my feet in the sand over it.
Any thoughts, suggestions, or help with this dilemma?
Claire Callaway, blogger for In the Trenches Productions, The First Entertainment Website Celebrating the Power of Women Over 40.
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Claire,
I hear you loud and clear. I still like the collective genius of Bill and Hillary. They were a fine team in the 90’s, but they do come with the type of old baggage that reminds me of that vintage, baby blue, plastic Samsonite luggage in my grandparents’ closet. This country is about to embark on a tremendous journey and we’re going to need something new, something descent and something good to carry us through.
Now more than ever our country needs conscious thought as the impetus behind any action set forth by our new Commander-in-Chief. Conscious thought that is born of decency and marinated in morality before even ONE step is taken, before one bill is signed into law, before one committee or cabinet takes shape. And I believe that conscious thought can only begin to take shape by one who is open to the possibility of change. Not just open but willing to take the rhetoric of “being open to change” and transforming that yada-yada into action BEFORE taking office. Can you think of the last time a presidential candidate accomplished such? And in the primaries no doubt?
From the beginning Obama was open to a primary that could be won without the customary mudslinging of dirty politics. The more powerful his candidacy became the more mud facials he endured, but still he held true to the possibility that one can reach the Oval Office without wallowing in the muck and mire. Courageous? Possibly not, but refreshing? Absolutely.
There’s something much deeper beneath the surface of this openness and this lofty approach Obama is taking. There is a willingness to go beyond just placating the American people with champagne promises and catchy slogans that will be fulfilled (cough…forgotten) come January.
Obama committed to a big promise, one that could have proven to be a debacle to his campaign. Decency in place of mudslinging? Are you a mad man Obama? I must refer back to the word decency. Because I think deep down that’s why we rally behind this man. The cry for decency and honor to be brought back to our highest office is a cry so pervasive that it transcends experience, it transcends the economy, the war, the oil and Katrina. Because deep down, at our basic, human, conscious level we all know that had decency and honor been in place in 2000 these issues would simply not be.
So no matter what you’re letting go of Claire, reaching for decency and honor is a good thing. This is not to imply that Hillary is not those things, but Obama has proven thus far that these are virtues, not ideas.
Whether it is a glass ceiling, crossing the Delaware, or walking the Lewis and Clark trail barefoot, Hillary wins for stamina, perserverance, and courage. This is not the time to bury our feet in the sand because the trench will widen narrowing the gap for a McCain presidency.
We have seen winners lose elections. We have lived with a looser who has lied, cheated and decieved.
What are the costs? Our future, your children’s future, our country.
Yes! I want her to win! Yes! I voted for her! Yes! I lived to see a woman, the runner with the popular vote attached to her bonnet. Sure he’s got charm, character, and a winning spirit– he’s got all that it takes– and more. Is he the the parties panacea? Will he bridge all of the gaps, create a stable economy? Get us out of a henious war? Create global initiatives to reduce our dependency on foreign oil? Create a healthcare plan that is inclusive not exclusive? WILL HE LISTEN to his wife? Serioulsy listen to her every word?
Without Hillary there would have been no Bill. Without a democrat in the White House this time, we might consider living in another country, third world, and learn to carry water on our shoulders.
I’m voting for my party– and I doubt whether or not I will ever get an invitation to The White House
but that’s okay because Lincoln’s bedroom will finally get guests who deserve that priviledge and I think Michelle and Barack will make terrific leaders and great hosts.
And if by chance, in August, Hillary marches into the convention wearing a cream colored pant suit
with Bill by her side– and the delegates claim her to be the nominee– I will scream out loud, do two summersaults backwards, leap onto my husbands lap and say,
“It’s your turn to take out the garbage!”
Nancy Chuda
Co-founder of Healthy Child Healthy World and
The Colette Chuda Environmental Fun
Yeah, Chuda!! I agree! - AND - if the press had not been full of slimy sexists (and they don’t even seem to be aware of their own prejudices - like the rest of the world)they would have concentrated on what she wants to do and how she wants to do it instead of on her pantsuits (don’t men wear suits that involve pants??), her occassional tears
(why is it men are having ‘heart felt feelings’ when they tear up??),
and a meaningless misdeed of her husband (other men NEVER hook up with ladies they ain’t married to, do they??)Shame on the press in this election. Shame on them for abandoning the role of ‘journalist’.
Judy Bilek
Go with your gut feelings,don’t vote for Hillary because she’s a woman,or because of Bill’s presidency, she was still his wife, not the president. Was Hillary with Bill when he was signing & making decisions on ALL policies? NOT!! Was she with him when he was with Monica Lewinsky? NOT!!! Stop believing Hillary was with Bill 24/7. Bill had an advantage when he became president because he came when the country was dealing with Reaganomics, and ready for change, just like now with the the Bush administration. No president had the SO called experience that Hillary is saying Barrack need, because the prior presidents had SO called experince and we still had problems…..including Bush.
Dear Claire, I am so excited to have just run across you and this blogging site as I have been sitting here today in a state of total dismay as well as total rage. I like Barack Obama as well BUT the reasons that I also cannot let go are almost exactly the same as your’s are. I am truly reluctant to charge in and move over to the Obama camp in any way. I have NO idea of what I am going to do when AND IF I enter the voting booth. The fact that The MEDIA basically catapulted Obama into the Second Coming of Christ caused such an incredible rage inducing state in me that I almost broke my TV so that I wouldn’t have to listen to the ‘talking heads’ despite all of my friends telling me NOT to watch the PUNDITS which just raised my Blood Pressure.
However, I did send my letter off to Hillary.com telling her that I would support her no matter what she chose to do. She is the one who was so degraded by the press, so made to look like a little kid who didn’t know when to leave the Party. Why in the world should she have had to leave the race? Can you imagine the backlash if it had been a white man who had been basically told to drop out of sight and go back and play with your little cars. I am bitter and I have been since …. forever … I guess. I am old now and to show you how old I am, I was broken hearted when Eugene Mc Carthy was not the Dems nominee back in 1968. This is probably only the second campaign that I put my entire Heart and Soul into and maybe I am just too tired to fight anymore and if ir were not for the WAR, I might just soothe my broken heart by pushing the button for McCain.
I also think I want her to consider running as an Independent and let those MEDIA MEN, MACHO MEN, Manipulative MEN and all the rest who tried to destroy her. I do not think many of us can easily forget the pain of this campaign and I think she should ask the Dixie Chicks to ‘lend’ her the use their song ‘We’re Not Ready to Make Nice’ and perhaps run as an Independent. Why does everyone just expect that she should fall into line after they have treated her the way they have … it is a total disgrace how patronizing Oback has been … and had it not been for his remark that she ‘blazed a trail that was historical and would be especially beneficial to his daughters’ and everyone is saying that he is so special — sorry, if you take his teleprompter away, he is lost. So, I hope that she can find a way to find contentment after all of the pain and the truly heartbreaking events that took place over the past 16 months. I admire her so much and can only prayer that she will make the right decision for herself and her family first. Just like every woman, she put everything and everyone else before herself so this decision should be WHAT IS BEST FOR HER. I agree that if she left the political arena, it would be an irreplaceable loss but I might be angry enough to just walk away and spend the rest of my life travelling and taking time to enjoy my family and especially her daughter. Perhaps she and Chelsea can come up with another way to be more powerful then the second spot on the ticket. So, Clair, I obviously have no answers for you and hope that we can only ease into whatever happens and hope that she is HAPPY.
I am with her wherever and whatever she chooses to do. All the best to you. Patti be y
I think we all need to focus on the goal now, that is put a Democrat in the White House. The treatment of Hillary by the media was shameful, but don’t think that changed anyone’s opinion. The male chauvinists are out there, they just came out of the closet. But I doubt it changed any votes. If our goal is truly to work for change in women’s lives, then the choice is obvious. It is most certainly NOT a vote for McCain, or tossing away your vote on a write-in or independent. Be realistic.