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As a woman journalist (I love saying that, although a part of me still likes the scrappy-sounding “girl reporter” moniker, dated and condescending though it may be), I should be excited about the current presidential campaign, right? Not only did we have the first POTENTIAL female major-party presidential candidate, but we now have a young and dynamic female governor with a shot at becoming the first female VP in American history.
And yet.
It’s heartening to know that much of the sexist vitriol that dogged Hillary Clinton’s campaign has died down a bit, although it’s also appalling that it took someone like Sarah Palin — a young, conventionally attractive former beauty queen — to silence the misogyny. Still, for those who have swung their support behind the Republicans primarily because of her nomination as vice-presidential candidate, I ask you: Do you really know what you’re getting us all into?
Leaving aside Palin’s cringe-inducing round of interviews with the mainstream media in the days before the first debate last week, she has demonstrated not a lick of evidence that she is capable of filling in the shoes as even vice president of this country, let alone president. Sure, she can ride a snow machine, shoot a moose, even run the affairs of a tiny, snowbound village in Alaska, but how exactly does that translate to the skills necessary to run the nation’s Senate? Given that the modern vice presidency has evolved to become a critical advisory role to the president — see Al Gore and Dick Cheney — how does her admittedly stellar charisma give her the background necessary to fill that crucial office? Does the fact that I once served as executive assistant to a college president give me the skills necessary to run an academic institution myself someday?
Palin demonstrated great appeal at the Republican National Convention and again at the debate last week. She clearly knows how to reach out to her audience and draw them into her inner orbit. And yes, she even knows how to disarm world leaders with her beauty and allure.
What she has yet to demonstrate, however, is whether or not a sharp intellect, diplomatic skill and a firm grasp of sophisticated economics and policy lie behind that superficial charm. So far, she hasn’t given any indication that they do. Indeed, what she has been able to demonstrate is a clear disregard for ethical behavior — Troopergate, anyone? — and willful ignorance of even the most basic tenets of foreign policy. (Do I even need to bring up the whole I-can-see-Russia-from-our-state comment?) Indeed, her appeal seems to lie largely in her ability to reach out to her audience with her signature winks, blown kisses and waves, her piercing gaze and her strong, resonating voice. Great weapons in your arsenal if you’re a motivational speaker or corporate trainer, but you’re going to need more than that if you’re gunning for the vice presidency of the United States.
Even with regards to her much-touted “feminist” credentials, Palin falls abysmally short of expectations. Merely being a woman in power doesn’t necessarily make one a feminist, or even pro-woman. Although she likes to claim the f-word adjective to describe herself, Palin is far from feminist in her actual political positions, most notably in her vehement opposition to a woman’s right to reproductive choice. If a woman isn’t granted the most fundamental right — that over decisions regarding her body and her health — then how can a candidate possibly call herself pro-woman and pro-feminist? How dare she align herself with those of us who truly believe in the equal rights of women when she herself doesn’t believe that a woman can be trusted to make responsible choices regarding her life?
As a journalist, I’m ecstatic that this presidential campaign has galvanized many constituents who have otherwise ignored or stayed away from politics. Still, I hope that the emotional rhetoric and the novelty of a woman in the spotlight don’t blind us to the fact that, in this extremely critical time in our nation’s history, we need a brilliant, strong and ethical team to lead us out of this mess that the current administration has dragged us into. Lipstick and old war stories alone won’t get us out of it, no matter how much they try and spin them.
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Marjorie R. Asturias is a freelance writer and weekly FP columnist living in Grand Junction. Reach her at marjorie.asturias@gmail.com.
And yet.
It’s heartening to know that much of the sexist vitriol that dogged Hillary Clinton’s campaign has died down a bit, although it’s also appalling that it took someone like Sarah Palin — a young, conventionally attractive former beauty queen — to silence the misogyny. Still, for those who have swung their support behind the Republicans primarily because of her nomination as vice-presidential candidate, I ask you: Do you really know what you’re getting us all into?
Leaving aside Palin’s cringe-inducing round of interviews with the mainstream media in the days before the first debate last week, she has demonstrated not a lick of evidence that she is capable of filling in the shoes as even vice president of this country, let alone president. Sure, she can ride a snow machine, shoot a moose, even run the affairs of a tiny, snowbound village in Alaska, but how exactly does that translate to the skills necessary to run the nation’s Senate? Given that the modern vice presidency has evolved to become a critical advisory role to the president — see Al Gore and Dick Cheney — how does her admittedly stellar charisma give her the background necessary to fill that crucial office? Does the fact that I once served as executive assistant to a college president give me the skills necessary to run an academic institution myself someday?
Palin demonstrated great appeal at the Republican National Convention and again at the debate last week. She clearly knows how to reach out to her audience and draw them into her inner orbit. And yes, she even knows how to disarm world leaders with her beauty and allure.
What she has yet to demonstrate, however, is whether or not a sharp intellect, diplomatic skill and a firm grasp of sophisticated economics and policy lie behind that superficial charm. So far, she hasn’t given any indication that they do. Indeed, what she has been able to demonstrate is a clear disregard for ethical behavior — Troopergate, anyone? — and willful ignorance of even the most basic tenets of foreign policy. (Do I even need to bring up the whole I-can-see-Russia-from-our-state comment?) Indeed, her appeal seems to lie largely in her ability to reach out to her audience with her signature winks, blown kisses and waves, her piercing gaze and her strong, resonating voice. Great weapons in your arsenal if you’re a motivational speaker or corporate trainer, but you’re going to need more than that if you’re gunning for the vice presidency of the United States.
Even with regards to her much-touted “feminist” credentials, Palin falls abysmally short of expectations. Merely being a woman in power doesn’t necessarily make one a feminist, or even pro-woman. Although she likes to claim the f-word adjective to describe herself, Palin is far from feminist in her actual political positions, most notably in her vehement opposition to a woman’s right to reproductive choice. If a woman isn’t granted the most fundamental right — that over decisions regarding her body and her health — then how can a candidate possibly call herself pro-woman and pro-feminist? How dare she align herself with those of us who truly believe in the equal rights of women when she herself doesn’t believe that a woman can be trusted to make responsible choices regarding her life?
As a journalist, I’m ecstatic that this presidential campaign has galvanized many constituents who have otherwise ignored or stayed away from politics. Still, I hope that the emotional rhetoric and the novelty of a woman in the spotlight don’t blind us to the fact that, in this extremely critical time in our nation’s history, we need a brilliant, strong and ethical team to lead us out of this mess that the current administration has dragged us into. Lipstick and old war stories alone won’t get us out of it, no matter how much they try and spin them.
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Marjorie R. Asturias is a freelance writer and weekly FP columnist living in Grand Junction. Reach her at marjorie.asturias@gmail.com.
