Clinton and Palin – One Year Later

In 2008 Senator Hillary Clinton and Governor Sarah Palin were two key figures in one of the most watched and contested presidential elections in American history.  In the end, neither woman was elected to the position for which she aspired.  One year later the professional fortunes for Clinton and Palin have certainly changed and, one might argue, not for the better.  It could be argued that both are being marginalized.

Consider this: Senator Clinton became Secretary of State in President Obama’s administration.  Have we seen much of the SoS?  Mrs. Clinton arrived in Kabul, Afghanistan for the inauguration for President Hamid Karzai.  This is her first visit to Afghanistan.  A month or two earlier, in the midst of a controversial election, Senator John Kerry was sent over to confer with Karzai about how to handle a re-vote.  Senator Kerry certainly is familiar with a controversial election, to be sure.  However, wouldn’t that be a job for the Secretary of State?  Shouldn’t Mrs. Clinton have been a member of the delegation to meet with Mr. Karzai?  Not good enough to meet with a foreign head of state but good enough to send to his big “tea party.”  Interesting.   During a recent television interview, Mrs. Clinton was asked if she’d have coffee with Sarah Palin (something Palin said she’d do in her book).  Not exactly the most pressing question one could ask the Secretary given what’s going on in Iran, Iraq, Afghanistan, and North Korea right now.  But it makes for a good sound bite.

Furthermore, earlier this year two American women of Korean descent were held as spies in North Korea.  It was not Mrs. Clinton  who was sent on the trip to meet with North Korean official but instead Mr. Clinton.  To be fair, the North Koreans requested the former president but, again, the current Secretary of State was not even among the delegation.  Is Mrs. Clinton a Secretary of State in name only in this administration?

Governor Palin resigned her office in July 2009, seeking other opportunities.  Some said the media “drove” her out.  Others said she left due to “scandals” swirling around her administration and family.  Political pundits said she was going to do a PR tour to begin the preparation to run for president in 2012.  Fast forward to now.  Governor Palin has written a book that was at or near the top of the best seller lists for two months before the book was even available on book shelves or online.  On the date of her book’s release what was the cover story on the November 17, 2009, Newsweek magazine?  “How do you solve a problem like Sarah?” was the splash on the cover next to a photo of Palin in running gear and pig tails.  Quoting from the Newsweek story…”Obama knows the long odds against a right-wing populist winning the presidency, no matter how good she looks in a skirt (or running clothes), brandishing a gun.”  No matter how good she looks in a skirt?  Excuse me?  I don’t recall commentary in political stories about how good Bill Clinton, Newt Gingrich, Barack Obama, Joe Biden, Joe Lieberman, George Bush, or John McCain looked in running shorts or any other sort of attire.   It is sexist, it is demeaning, and it is beyond the pale of what responsible poltical commentary or reporting should be about in the 21st Century. Evan Thomas needs some sensitivity training.

For all the media’s and political pundit’s talk of elevating women and how we must be more tolerant and inclusive, two of America’s leading women in politics are still being marginalized and aren’t much better off than they were one year ago.  Know your place, smile pretty, and look good in a skirt.  But for goodness sake, leave the important and difficult stuff to the men.  Don’t you worry your pretty little head about it. 

Outrageous.