November 9, 2009
More emotion based rantings from that genius Meghan McCain

Posted at 3:20 pm, in: Entertainment, Feminism
Tags: Hillary Clinton, Meghan McCain, Sarah Palin

After missing the Sunday Rule 5 opportunity, yesterday, I knew today I had to get right back in the saddle and start writing. I’m a little pressed for time, with my thesis due on Wednesday, but I always have time for Miss Meghan McCain. And, what is Miss McCain upset about today? Oh, it’s our male-dominated, anti-woman media and society, of course:

I myself straddle the line between political commentator and a member of the political universe (in the sense that I have campaigned and know what it’s like to be in the trenches when you’re under fire) and it’s not easy being a woman. But it’s a dilemma that I and every woman of my generation face. We want to be involved in politics—perhaps even run for office—but it’s a steep price to pay. One day there will be a woman president, we are all told as little girls. You too can be a congresswoman or senator. But the reality of today is that to do so, you have to give up so much, in a way that is never asked of a man, and I believe running for office has become less and less appealing for women.

In fact, it’s gotten so ugly out there that two of the most prominent women in politics—Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin—have become verbs: Candidates now regularly get “Hillary Clintoned” or “Sarah Palined” in the media. Misogyny works on both sides of the aisle.
The brutal criticism of Sarah Palin—which will only increase when her memoir comes out—is yet another example of the double standard and cruel treatment of women in politics. Sarah has been attacked for everything from her hair to her clothes to the number of children she gave birth to. Maureen Dowd even nicknamed her “Caribou Barbie.” I can’t even begin to think of what that kind of judgment—criticizing parts of your life that have nothing to do with what you stand for or want to accomplish politically—feels like.

Through it all, the example both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin set is so admirable. I respect any woman who will go out there and run for office. Maybe it’s a cliché, but no matter how many differences I may have with a woman politically, there is still a sense of kinship I feel for a woman in politics.

But having seen female candidates attacked on the right and the left, why would any woman my age ever feel inspired to run for office? What kind of example has the media set for my generation of women? I struggle with this. I don’t have ambitions to run for office—I have already done enough campaigning for one lifetime—but I already have a pretty good idea of what it would feel like. I have often wondered how the media would react if it were my brother writing these columns and speaking out on behalf of moderate Republicans. I can pretty much bet that his weight wouldn’t have been an issue.

So yes, Sarah Palin is a woman with five children and her physical appearance is deemed “too beautiful for politics.” And on the other end, Hillary Clinton is criticized for not being beautiful enough, for being “too tough” in the man’s world that she resides.

It seems to me the male-dominated media suffers from a Goldilocks Syndrome that keeps women from shattering the glass ceiling. Worse, I fear it will prevent tomorrow’s female leaders from even seeking office.

This one is too hard. This one is too soft. Who will ever be just right?

Meghan says that she has admired Hillary Clinton for years, even though they “disagree on nearly everything politically.” Come on, now. That’s simply not true. Meghan McCain has more in common with Hillary Clinton, politically, than any female member of the Republican Party, other than Dede Scozzafava. But, minus her politics, what exactly does Meghan admire about Hillary?

Hillary Clinton isn’t an independent woman who has made her own way in politics. Her career is completely dependent upon her husband, which is nothing to be admired. But, I guess when your career is owed to your father, of course you would identify with another woman who owes her whole career to a man.

What barriers has Hillary Clinton broken as a woman in American politics and what has she had to go through to get there? Let’s be honest, Hillary Clinton has been riding Bill’s coattails since they met. He publicly humiliated her, over and over again (most notably with the Lewinsky affair) and Hillary stood by him knowing that to leave him would be to leave all of her political ambitions behind.

Nothing Meghan credits Hillary with accomplishing was actually Hillary’s accomplishment. Hillary overstepped her bounds as first lady, acting as if she was elected president, rather than her husband and the policy agenda most closely related to her was health care, which failed miserably. She bought her senate seat in New York, still riding the wave of fame and adoration the public had for her husband. And, she was only appointed to Obama’s Cabinet in order to shut her up and move her out of the way, rather than having to battle her on Capitol Hill and possibly face her in a primary challenge in 2012. Hillary Clinton got the job because politically it was a smart move for Obama, not because Hillary has done anything to qualify her for the position.

Meghan speculates that the most famous incident in Clinton’s tenure as Secretary of State, so far, was when she yelled at the poor student in the Congo after his question was translated incorrectly. Meghan had one of those, “I am woman. Hear me roar!” moments when she first watched the video, but later came to realize that this emotional outburst by Clinton fed misogynists a prime example of why women shouldn’t be holding positions of power: because they are emotional and unstable. And, with this Meghan gives a perfect example of why you should identify as an individual, rather than part of a larger group.

Meghan admits that she straddles “the line between political commentator and a member of the political universe.” And, as we all know, that’s not all Meghan is famous for straddling. But, this isn’t about her sexual proclivities, so I’ll leave that for another day.

Meghan feels that women are treated very differently than men in politics and that this double standard is unfair. Her fear is that the harsh treatment faced by women running for political office will deter women from running. She attempts to support this argument by claiming “that two of the most prominent women in politics–Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin–have become verbs: Candidates now regularly get “Hillary Clintoned” or “Sarah Palined” in the media. Misogyny works on both sides of the aisle.”

I guess I’m just confused because I’ve never heard of a candidate being “Hillary Clintoned.” What does that mean? Now, if someone said a person had been Sarah Palined, I would venture to guess that they were portrayed as mentally inept and incapable of leading because they were from some small state, went to a state school, and didn’t fit in with the DC in-crowd. But, what does it mean to have been Hillary Clintoned?

Sarah Palin has been brutally criticized, though, for just about everything. And, although I think she has faced questions and challenges no man, possibly, would have ever faced, I don’t think that Sarah was treated this way because she is a woman. It’s because she’s a conservative. But, considering Meghan doesn’t know what a Republican is, it would be foolish to assume that she knows what a conservative is.

The double standard isn’t between men and women in politics, the double standard is between those of one party and those of the other. For example, the press loves Meghan because she is liberal, even though she claims to be a Republican. If she went out there and actually stood for the principles Republicans are supposed to stand for, she would be getting much harsher criticism than she did for posting her now infamous little picture a couple of weeks back. If you are Republican you are judged by one standard and if you are Democrat by another. That goes for both men and women.

And, we’re going to add her next paragraph to my (growing) list of reasons I don’t like her. She wrote, “Through it all, the example both Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin set is so admirable. I respect any woman who will go out there and run for office. Maybe it’s a cliché, but no matter how many differences I may have with a woman politically, there is still a sense of kinship I feel for a woman in politics.” Oh brother! That’s not a cliché, sweetheart, that’s just retarded.

Don’t worry about your generation and the women of your generation not entering politics based on fear of retribution from the MSM. Women will continue to run for office because women are just as strong as men and can take any criticism thrown at them just as well as any man.

It’s not about what happens in the press or how you are portrayed. People who run for office hear a calling and they answer the call. Everyone running for office knows what is to be expected. Everything you have ever done, said, written, or joked about comes into play as fair game. The higher the office, the more dirt to expect. None of us are clean.

I don’t want to run for office, but I hear the call. The demand that tells me at some point I will not be able to sit on the sidelines any longer and just add my political comments of the day. I know that there is plenty that will come out. I will be humiliated, I’m sure. Nothing will be secret; nothing will be sacred. And, I don’t expect this because I am a women. I expect this because I am a conservative and that’s the way things go. I know that if I ever decide the time has come for me to answer the call, all bets are off and everything I have ever done in my life is on the table to be exposed for the world to see and judge. That’s the sacrifice one makes when entering politics, whether they pee sitting down or standing up.

And, now to Meghan’s conclusion about the “Goldilocks Syndrome” that is supposedly keeping women from shattering that glass ceiling and her fear that it will prevent tomorrow’s female leaders from seeking office. Let me put her fears to rest. Leaders are leaders. They know what it takes and they enter whatever field it is they desire to enter knowing that life’s not easy or fair and they’re going to have to work their butts off to make it, whether they are a woman or a man.

There isn’t some global male conspiracy trying to hold women down and the fact that Meghan subscribes to such victimology and class identification is saddening because if she really is as representative of her generation as she claims to be, we’re all in trouble. Fortunately, I know plenty of up and coming female leaders who are going to face the criticisms launched by both left and right and they are going to face it with grace and dignity and beat it back because women aren’t all delicate little flowers waiting to be crushed, as Meghan seems to believe. Strong women will not be deterred by a little bit of name calling, and the two women she uses to prove her point actually lend themselves more easily to mine.

Hillary Clinton and Sarah Palin have both faced some harsh criticism and yet they still keep coming back. They aren’t spoiled brats like Meghan who freak out at any hint of criticism. They stand up tall, take it and then they give it back. For that, I will give Hillary some credit. Hillary didn’t act like some crybaby and run away and hide from the world when the press turned on her during the primaries. She came back, drank a beer, and took a shot of Crown. That’s a strong woman.

See, Meghan is not a leader and doesn’t get it because she runs away and cries about criticism. She gets called fat or slutty and spends the next four months proclaiming to the world how she doesn’t care that she was called fat and tells everyone not to call her slutty. The only problem is, she obviously does care or she would just ignore these insults and move forward. It is women like Meghan who make women look emotional and unstable with her “I’m closing my Twitter account, now!” temper tantrums, her nonsensical blog rantings based on feelings rather than rational arguments, and her career that is based completely on her father’s accomplishments rather than anything she has done in her own life.

And, that pretty much sums it up. Meghan can’t handle the public criticism she has faced and so she assumes that other women will avoid entering politics because they are weak like her and won’t be able to handle the criticism, either. Weak people can’t recognize strength in others and so they assume everyone is as weak as them. It would seem to me that Meghan McCain is the misogynist, here, and she is projecting it onto everyone else because it is Meghan with this very column who is telling the world that women are too sensitive and weak to be able to take what the press has to say and so would bow out of politics all together rather than stand tall and fight.