When speaking of Hillary Clinton, anyone who ever bought or sold the line: “I’d vote for any woman just not THAT woman” can now put that twaddle in the dustbin where it belongs. This week, we saw accomplished career prosecutor, former California AG, US Senator and Democratic rising star Kamala Harris shushed by several of her male colleagues when questioning both AG Jeff Sessions and Deputy AG Rod Rosenstein at the Senate Intelligence hearings. Yes, she hit them with rapid fire questions – the kind you use when you know you are getting deflective, circuitous B.S. in response. Da Senate Boyz didn’t like that and shut her down. Senator Harris is now being referred to as “hysterical.” She was not. Yet branding powerful women as shrieking harpies is a time worn technique to get the populace to reject them.
For Sessions, the Attorney General of the United States, our nation’s top law enforcement officer, to carry on like a flustered naïf while saying Senator Harris made him “nervous” was one of the most pathetic, manipulative displays I have yet seen. How many times did he say he could “not recall”. Nor could he name the policy upon which he relied to refuse to answer questions. Imagine any woman snaking away with this behavior. Furthermore, if Jeff Session is incapable of reciting the policy upon which he relied to refuse to answer Senate questions and cannot “recall” events that happened in the last year, he has no business having the job of AG and needs to resign forthwith.
By the way, if you are telling the truth, it should not make you nervous, but flow out of you effortlessly – unless you know telling that truth would land you in federal prison. AG Sessions’ behavior, therefore, did little to alleviate Senator Harris’ suspicions.
Remember Hillary Clinton being rudely grilled at the farcical Benghazi hearings for 11 hours straight by Rep. Gowdy and company? Not once did she say “I cannot recall.” Not once did she say she was nervous. Not once was she “hysterical.” At the end of 11 hours, she was fresh as a daisy. Committee Chairman Gowdy, however, was covered in flop sweat and sputtering – or should I say, hysterical.
Tell me if these words sound familiar to you: “strident,” “shrill,” “unhinged,” “harping,” “flawed,” “inauthentic,” “untrustworthy,” “ego-driven,” “power-hungry.”
Likewise popular to delegitimize powerful women, such terminology is not ever used to describe male politicians, yet women’s voices have been marginalized for eons with sexist dog whistles.
I don’t know what it’s going to take until all women as well as men figure out that the way Hillary Clinton has been demonized by the press and GOP for the past 25 years is not peculiar to her for any reason – not personality, not record, not behavior – other than her proximity to power. The closer she got to becoming our President, the louder her opponents and corporate owned media shrieked her alleged “negatives” in an effort to run down her poll numbers.
Ms. Harris, a bright light on the Democrat’s side, is now getting a taste of being Hillary’d.
As well stated by Sady Doyle in Elle Magazine:
“Sexists refer to every female political opinion as “hysterical,” just like they refer to every word a woman says when she opens her mouth as “shouting,” and for the same reasons — not because the women are actually being loud or unreasonable, but because women are not supposed to have opinions or voices at all. They don’t just want women to be more genial or hushed. They want women to leave the room.”
“Which is to say, there is actually no way for Kamala Harris to do her job, let alone be good at her job, without being called aggressive, loud, and “hysterical.” There’s no way out for Sheila Jackson Lee, or Elizabeth Warren, or any other woman, either. The only thing they can do is keep soldiering on, regardless. One hopes, at least, they can occasionally pause to savor all the old white dude “nervousness” and very male, very real “hysteria” they manage to inspire.”
One of the rules of political engagement is to define your opponent early. Sexists on the right and left (Senator Harris is currently being attacked by both) see her as a threat to take the reins of power, so they are working to demonize her before she even gets started.
Like any woman standing up to be heard, she is entitled to be judged on her merits.
Don’t let those with an agenda convince you otherwise.
13 Comments
Kamala, To start I think you are beautiful.You show great posture in your job. Your attitude of never backing down is what we need in the democrat party. Keep up the great work. You never know whats next but I suspect great things from you.
Somehow I don’t think her beauty and posture are attributes she needs mentioned first as a light of the “Democrat party” but …
I couldn’t agree with you more.
She is a Neoliberal clown.
And you, as you say, are trppn
@Trippn – and you’re a total ASSHOLE! Another male who can’t stand an intelligent, well-prepared, articulate woman who won’t be cowed by disgusting old white boys who think because they have a dick, it gives them the right to act like dicks. Drop dead, loser, you’re jealous and incompetent and it shows. Real men aren’t afraid of intelligent women, so we know what that makes you – a F***ing LOSER!
I couldn’t agree with you more
I’m not sure what you mean to include under “neoliberal”. She is a classic liberal thinker with emphasis on “thinker” as she has shown in every office she has held! You might back a candidate with that quality sometime, or one that has a proven record of effectiveness like hers as an officeholder!
Kamala Harris didn’t notice her close aide was sexaually abusing women. Harris also didn’t notice that there was a homeless man down outside her window. If she can’t notice what’s under her nose, she aint gonna do shite for this country. And, she’s put more black men in prison than most white prosecutors. And she’s not black american. Shes half Jamaican.
I couldn’t agree with you more
Yes! We need more women to stand up and take on the male dominant political arena BIGLY!
It struck me as they mentioned understanding your opponent that women will keep the integrity and focus on issues and policies that differentiate them from their opponents or party male or female while men go right on the appearance etc attack CRYING LIKE LUTTLE GIRLS!! LOLZZ
YES! MEN ARE AFRAID BY STRING WOMEN WHY??
BECAUSE THEY KNOW WOMEN ARE SMARTER IN POLITICS THATS WHY!
IT IS EXACTLY A FIELD THAT WOMEN ARE BIOLOGICALLY BUILT FOR, A OERFECT MATCH AND I COULD NAME 10 REASONS AS OTHERS COULD IF TRUTHFUL!!
THE DAYS OF ACCUSING WOMEN OF NOT HAVING THE STRENGTH OR EMOTIONAL OR HORMONAL TEMPERMENT IS DEAD!
INFERIORIITY COMPLEX IS DEFINED BY THOSE THAT FALL SHORT OF THE ATTRIBUTES THRY KNOW THEY LACK AND LIKE ALL GOOD BULLIES RESORT TO PERSONAL SLANDER LIKE HIGH SCHOOL DRAMA QUEENS AND WE JUST GOT A TASTE OF THE MALE ENTITLEMENT PICKING THE WORST REPRESENTATION OF A LOSER CANDIDATE THEY THOUGHT THEY COULD SELL TO THE COUNTRY AS LEGITIMATE TO GET THEIR GREEDY MITTS ON THE POWER HINGRY AGENDA AND STOOPED TO TREASON TO SHOW HOW LOW THEY WOULD GO AND WHO THRY REALLY ARE!!
MISOGNY AND MALE DOMINANCE ENTITLEMENT ISSUES KILLED THE ELECTION – HAD NOTHING TO FO WITH HILLARY AT ALL!!! THATS THE REAL TRUTH!!
BUT THOSE TYPE MEN CANT HANDLE THE TRUTH !!!
WHO’S “YOUR MOMMA!!”
WAKE UP AND DIE RIGHT!!
#IMWITHHER
Not once was Hillary hysterical or nervous? LOL! Classic signs of a sociopath under fire. Hilarious. Thank you for confirming.
I know what you are trying to imply and your purpose does make sense however
that I can not say I completely agree with you.
You see, there might be some issues when it comes to the problems you have
said. But I appreciate the time you spent in describing your opinion. I’m interested in this topic and
will certainly dig deeper into the issue, although
it is going to require me to spend some time searching for
current data and reading scholar posts.