Clinton

Why do people hate Hillary Clinton so much? Part of it is simply part and parcel of being a politician - whatever you do, whatever stance you take, whatever policies that you advocate, somebody is going to be against it. But it seems like she's getting hit from not only the right, but the left as well. She's too liberal, no she's not liberal enough; she lacks experience, no she's too much a tool of the establishment; holy crap, make up your damn minds. I can understand the hatred from the right - after all, despite not being a democratic socialist (or social democrat) like Senator Sanders, her nominees to the Supreme Court will presumably not being found in the strict constructionist, overturn Roe vs. Wade camp, and her overall policies can be expected to skew to the left, at least when it comes to social policies. A President Clinton will also not be trying to overturn "Obamacare". But the vitriol from the left is disappointing. I can understand the excitement that a self-proclaimed socialist brings to the candidate selection process, I understand how someone so seemingly outside the mainstream can energize younger, non-racist voters. I get it. But many voters who wouldn't have voted for a Republican in any circumstance are parroting the Republican talking points about Secretary Clinton. Every loss by Sanders is blamed on rigged elections, with Sanders supporters sounding like college football fans who blame the referees for every game that their team loses. Every statement by Clinton is twisted and interpreted in the worst possible light.

Two things inspired me to write this post: one was a quote from back in January that made the rounds last week, Clinton, who recently became a grandparent was talking about giving the children of our country the opportunity to succeed. She mentioned how many people talk about their extraordinary grandchildren, and that she actually has one. What I got out of it was that, as a new grandparent, she is more focused than ever on helping ensure a bright future for everybody's grandchildren. But the Sanders supporters took this as an attack against Sanders, who has many grandchildren, none of whom happen to be biologically related to him. She was even misquoted as stating that she had a "real" grandchild. The other thing was when Clinton talked about successful people, comparing them to "pretend successful" people, to me, an obvious swipe at Trump, but no, the Sanders crowd took it as a swipe against small business owners, who incidentally, Clinton has always spoken highly of. Sanders supporters advocate a third-party run if Clinton gets the Democratic nomination, apparently unwilling to see how this would virtually guarantee a Trump presidency, putting the hypothetical future blame on Clinton supporters who in their opinion foolishly nominated the weaker candidate.

Some of the dislike for Clinton goes back to her days as First Lady. She definitely rubbed a lot of people the wrong way by refusing to conform to the popular expectation that women defer to men and eschew having opinions of their own. Most of it, in my view, is simply the need to demonize the other side in most political contests. When you can't realistically address your opponent's positions, mock their appearance, ascribe to them evil motives and exaggerate their mistakes. Or convene congressional investigations, the purpose of which, according to the committee chairman, is to target Clinton.

Let's not underestimate the irrational desire by many Americans to elect as President someone who knows nothing about the economy, libel laws, trade, the function of the military or international relations. The Republicans quickly showed the door to any candidate who had even a hint of governmental experience, and many Democrats mistakenly think that Bernie Sanders, who has been in Washington for 25 years and a Vermont politicians before that, is an outsider.

Hillary Clinton isn't perfect, but she has the experience and credentials to lead the country as President.