For a moment, it seemed the Democrats on stage were running for student council president, rather than the leader of the free world.
Hillary Clinton was asked at the New Hampshire debate Saturday what her reaction was to the fact that voters seemed to like Barack Obama more than her.
Clinton answered with grace and humor and a sweet, pouty smile.
"Well, that hurts my feelings," she joked. "But I'll try to go on."
It was a superb answer - if you're trying to be liked. But is that what a president or presidential candidate should aspire to?
Here's what might have been an even better answer:
"Hmm. Good question - if I were running to be PTA president. But I'm not. I'm running to be the president of the most powerful nation on Earth, and the commander-in-chief of the U.S. Armed Forces. As such, your question could not possibly be more trivial.
"I'm asking for your vote so I can go to the White House and fight terrorists and negotiate firmly with terrorist-leaning states in order to avoid having to bomb them into the 7th century.
"I'm running for president so I can stop the lifeblood from gushing every second out of this country's manufacturing base due to unfair trade practices in China and elsewhere.
"I want your vote so I can stop illegal immigration once and for all. I know you're not used to hearing that from Democrats, but you know what? Sitting by and letting men, women and children break the law by coming here illegally and then turning your cheek when they're living in fear in the shadows is not exactly what I call compassion. Oh, and by the way my union friends in the Democratic Party, you think all that cheap, illegal labor that depresses wages is good for American workers? I think not.
"I'm running for president to stop the tsunami of red ink that's going to be crashing down on our children and grandchildren as baby boomers retire and start receiving ever-escalating entitlement benefits that, unchecked, will bankrupt this country in just a few decades.
"You think the president who straightens out the entitlement mess and tells the American people that they're stealing from their children is going to be given parades? As if!
"Likability? Good grief! That's the last thing you'll need in your next president. There are any number of crises on the horizon - and I guarantee you, being all sweetness and light won't cut it. You know, John McCain actually likes to point out that he's not Miss Congeniality in the Senate either. His point is, that's not how you get things done. It's not how you protect Americans.
"The next president will have to do some difficult things: face down the nuclear ambitions of Iran and North Korea; help bring stability to Pakistan, Afghanistan and Iraq; find Osama bin Laden and kill him; shame Congress into getting their hands out of your pocketbooks; get entitlement reform started in order to save this country for your grandchildren - and that's just the start of what needs to be done.
"Hey, you want Sally Field, get Sally Field. I don't care whether you like me, and you shouldn't either. You don't need likeable, you need tough and determined and courageous and principled.
"This isn't a popularity contest. It's a test of leadership. More than ever, we need a leader."
Such an answer might not have been what voters wanted to hear.
But it's what they needed to be told.
Comments
Now Hillary is almost crying on TV to show how emotional she is. Just what America needs, a leader who will break down and cry when things get tough. We need someone who is tough enough not to break down and cry when the going gets tough or when you are trying to get a message out.
The AC has such hate for Hillary that it even takes a funny line out of context. Humor and wit seperated Reagan from Carter as being more like the average guy. First, she's criticized for being too tough and part of a machine. Now she's catching it for being humorous and human. If you disagree with her politics fine. However, these continuous personal attacks are quite sickening. I'm just waiting for the Anne Coulter's to dig up the next Willie Horton.
This is a truly stupid article. Shallow and poorly thought out. Every now and then someone on the editorial staff lets some high schooler provide them with an idea. This seems to be one of those times. Of course likability is part of the job. It's not the most important part by any means, but it's certainly not mutually exclusive with competence either. Using Hillary as an example is silly because every event she's been involved in, up to her presidential effort, has been totally choreographed. Every interview, every "news conference", every picture, every fund raiser. The first time she had to offer a spontaneous response to a surprise question, it became obvious who and what she is. That's why she runs from unscripted interviews.
The defining moment in the debates in NH came when Edwards questioned her attack on Obama. She turned red and snapped back in an out of control way. The story of the election has been her disintegration during the debates as Obama has performed well.
Obama only talks about "change", but has not identified what he would change. He is more like an entertainer than a qualified Presidential candidate. I'm not sure any of the candidates are capable of leading this country!!
fd1962, you have captured the Hillary campaign process. Have you noticed how all of her spontaneous gaffs have been reinterpreted the following day?
The AC editorial puts it all in context. It states exactly what this country needs.
Of course likability is part of the process. W initially got elected because he was likable, not because of his leadership abilities and certainly not because of his intellectual capacity. Aw Shucks Huck won Iowa the same way. He came across as likable. Perhaps the AC intended this article as an admonition of what we've been dealing with the past 8 years: a president who you'd like to have a beer or go fishing with, but not one who you want running the country. There is a big difference.
Funny that a popularity contest and a high school like debate to see who can use the most cliches determines the nominee.
Buick..How come you didn't mention Hussien Obama? Why are only Republicans likeable?
Buick,,P>S> I took the liberty of using Hussien for Obama since I noticed we are using W and Huck.
i find it hard to believe that people are thinking about voting for a person that turns away from our flag. people need to be aware of all the facts, not just whether a person is likeable or not. when someone says they are going to make changes, i want to know how and what they are going to do to make those changes happen. remember words are just that - words.
Hillary has certainly blundered, and it's doubtful whether she has the make-up to be president. We have certainly discovered this with W. Now, Obama does not wear an American Flag lapel pin because he says he is demonstrating his patriotism through his actions rather than a symbol. Anyone can wear a lapel pin, but few politicians can live-up to the rhetoric. He is basically rebelling against those politicians that hypocritically wrap themselves in the flag. I find it refreshing, but there are some who like symbols rather than service.
While Obama may have a questionable voting record to some, he currently appears to be the best the D party has to offer. The campaign is young, though.
The AC spends way too much time on Democrats. They sure are scared!
whocares, she is a human being who has been accused of being too cold,and distant.she's tougher than the 2 cowards in washington who stole both presidential elections.both were vietnam era cowards as was her husband who knows what she's about. i notice there are no ther women in the race, why?because many women still have to have a man make the tough decisions for them.many still have thay "daddy" mentality that only he can keep the family safe.bulls$..t
shivas we're wasting our time here. the chronicle has always endorsed republicans maybe with the exception of jimmy carter.they will endorse mccain, because the owners of the papers and stockholders will keep getting the same.more war, more profits as they and their cronies sell more military hardware to the military, and their families keep getting filthy rich! of course their children won't be involved with the fighting the little pukes will be working on their suntans down in the carribean, until they go back to school.
Ah,charlieyonce, you parrot CNN and NPR so well. I'm sure the left appreciates your vote, but I'm afraid you don't exactly come across as accurately informed.
Willie Nelson is very likable.
Willie Nelson is very likable but what about his platform. He is for "PEACE" he says, but doesn't live like he actually believes in it. "Course he's from that "make love not war" era...
BTW Can you imagine making love to Willie Nelson?
Should Obama win the NH primary and eventually become his partys nominee, his former Muslim background will become the hot issue. As an apostate he will be in great danger constantly and will have impossible relations in the Muslim world.
mgroothand, please explain Obama's Muslim background to me. I am sure you have been caught-up in an internet hoax and believe everything you read.
Obama's full name is Barack Hussien Obama, III. His grandfather was muslim, thus the muslim name. That is what was being talked about yesterday on CNN headline news.
Why wouldn't the Muslim world be proud of one of their own.
I am not easily fooled by internet hoaxes. His Indonesian stepfather, a Muslim, registered him for school as a Muslim in Jakarta. An Apostate or Murtadd has to be executed according to Sharia law.
If likability wasn't a factor, Dukakis and Gore would have won their respective elections; not that that would have necessarily been a bad thing. I agree that we in America put too much emphasis on image and likability, but the article is ridiculously biased and overblown, probably written at one thirty this morning on a Red Bull bender.
well then why don't you enlighten us, pat? you know that this paper only endorses republican presidents. you know that the owners and all the stockholders have stock in everything that sells in this country.you know their children aren't anywhere near iraq, nor were they near vietnam.it's all about money, power, and oil you know it but can't admit it.you know that this country needs change and i welcome a woman if she is what we need.what are the rest of you afraid of? maybe she'll do a good job?the brits,tried it,israel tried it,india tried it. what are you folks afraid of? because it's never been done before?
charles...I am a Repub and I can actually see why people would vote for Hillary. ... She is the most knowledgeable of the Democrats. If I knew a Republican had no chance of winning.
This paper gives us the opportunity to vent our frustrations. Thank you AC.
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