Sometimes I have to compare politics to sex. Politics can be confusing and scary, but when I look at it from a biological point of view, somehow everything seems to fall into place. Therefore, if this ongoing debate between Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama is one romp in the sack, then Thursday’s Democratic debate was when my hormones began pumping for the final goal: a woman to get on top and win.

Politics can be very confusing for a small-town girl like me: healthcare, women’s health issues, the economy, immigration…the list goes on forever and only confuses me more and more. All I do know is that when I entangle myself emotionally with a politician, I want to make sure of some things: that I am safe, covered, and satisfied. Right now, there are two Democratic Senators wining and dining me with their plans, ideas, dreams, and goals. It seems, on the surface that both Clinton and Obama have similar ideas for America’s future; but, in the words of Carole King, “Will you still love me tomorrow?” Just like on any second or third date, as these politicians’ words begin to make more sense to me (and they reveal in more detail exactly what they can give me,) it has become clear to me who will be there the next morning, proverbially speaking.
After doing extensive research, I wanted to share my thoughts on who I think should be the Democratic nominee for President of the United States of America. I will be going out on Tuesday to vote in the primary election to determine the nominee for President, and I’ll be voting for Hillary Clinton because I know, after the wining and dining, after all the kind words have been said, she will still be there to follow through way into my future.
I will admit that Thursday’s Democratic debate was the first time that I paid much attention to the recent political debates. Don’t get me wrong – I have watched portions of the other debates, and read extensively about the candidates, but this past debate was different. I sat down with coffee and a big bowl of grapes and watched my eyes out. Not only was I intently listening to what the nominees can give me (flowers, chocolates, lingerie?), but the sociologist in me paid close attention to body language.
When Obama was speaking, Clinton was obviously listening, head nodding, writing down notes, paying attention, and getting ready to speak her part. However, when she was speaking, Obama was in another world. His body was stiff, and not only were his eyes not on her (which I took as not respecting her or her words) but, twice his eyes shut ever so slowly and lightly, indicating he was falling asleep. I don’t know about you, but if a man fell asleep on the “job” I would be pretty upset. The issue of body language is studied by gender sociologists who claim that men don’t nod because they don’t feel the need to express themselves in that way; women, on the other hand, nod to express that they are paying attention. Perhaps we are so used to male political figures that we tend to overlook the differences in body language. Yet, we want a president that doesn’t just listen to all Americans, but shows it, and in this case he wasn’t paying attention to her one bit; he was thinking too much in his head about himself. No pun intended.
Now, domination may be fun in the bedroom, but I have a real issue with this whole concept that Hillary should be “controlling Bill Clinton.” Let’s turn the tables here for a second and look at it this way: if people asked Obama why he wasn’t “controlling” Michelle Obama, we would never hear the end of it! Women aren’t allowed to be controlled, but men are? It isn’t her job to control her husband; as I think we’ve all seen, he knows what he’s doing and he’s pretty good at being a strong and influential leader. I thought Clinton and Obama were both strong in their answers and are both very intellectual human beings; yet there was one issue that nagged me. The issue of pulling out of Iraq (and I didn’t even have to make up that analogy!).
Here’s my take on it: Clinton says she wants to start getting troops out of Iraq within sixty days of being in office with the plan to get everyone out of Iraq within a year. Obama claims that this is too vague and gives exact goal-dates to get everyone out of Iraq. It sounds simple, right? Well, telling someone you’re going to call them the day after is very different than telling them that you will call at 3:00 the day after. Saying you’ll call during the day gives you a wide opportunity to call and therefore, when you do call, whether it is at noon or 3:00, no one is disappointed because there was no deadline set. But, by saying you’ll call at 3:00 and then calling at 4:00 makes you untrustworthy, a liar. You said you’d call at 3:00 and you called at 4:00. You didn’t follow through. Doesn’t set a good precedent for the relationship, does it?
Another issue that needs to be discussed is protection: what about health insurance? In the bedroom it’s the question of contraception. We’ve been reminded over and over that condoms protect against STD’s and pregnancy, but, what about coverage for our life? I was thoroughly confused about the nominees’ views on health insurance because on the surface they look so similar (it’s all just latex!). Yet, after watching CNN’s Dr. Gupta discuss it today, it was clear just how different they were. Clinton’s plan for universal healthcare is truly universal, requiring all Americans to have health insurance in the same way they have car insurance – and providing the financial assistance to make that possible. By having this mandate, healthcare premiums for all Americans will go down. Obama’s plan, however, does not require healthcare but guarantees it (the difference between “I love you” and “I like you”). However, this guarantee could leave up 15 million Americans uncovered because invariably, when you don’t require people to have insurance, some won’t (and nine months later, ta-da!)
Gupta reminded that health care costs are the number one cause of personal bankruptcy in America. Clinton’s plan creates a healthcare catastrophe fund to pay for the costs of serious illnesses, in order to prevent financial hardships (to say the least). Her plan will “ensure coverage of catastrophic costs and would guarantee insurance premiums would never rise above a certain percentage of income” (Gupta, CNN, 2/1/08). Rather than provide the insured with the direct assistance Clinton wants to give, Obama’s plan gives a portion of the costs to the employer running your company plan and trusts them to assist with your hardship.
Therefore, her universal health-care plan is two-fold; not only will she require Americans’ have healthcare, but by having this universal healthcare it will ensure that Americans’ will not go into bankruptcy due to their outrageous healthcare costs (especially when it comes to catastrophes). I don’t know about you—but I think that’s a good means of protection. I feel very safe with the thought that I wouldn’t have to worry about healthcare the way I do now or go bankrupt due to the current high costs of healthcare.
I don’t know about you, but as I said before, I like to be safe, covered, and satisfied. It seems to me that the person that can meet all of these needs is Hillary Clinton. I’ve heard all the problems people have with her, and I know a lot of people are wary of a woman President. But, she’s not any different than any man I know. In fact, she’s tougher, she’s stronger, and she knows what she’s doing. She was the leading force behind the Clinton Administration adoption bill that created a $5000 tax credit for people adopting disabled children. After that bill was passed, the number of disabled children in permanent adoptive homes doubled. It’s “change” versus “real change” that’s made people’s lives better.
But it was at the last and final moment of the debate that finally got my body into high gear and ready to go. After they were saying their last words, Obama reached over and did not “hold” (as the New York Times reported in “One on One in Debate, Democrats Set Aim at G.O.P.” from 2/1/08) but he pulled out Clinton’s chair. I understood this to be a direct message to the American public that Obama thinks that he is stronger and better because he is a man. Extreme words, I know, but it did seem as though by that action (“actions speak louder…”) he was talking down to her, he was patronizing her—not, as the New York Times said, respecting her. They are equal human beings vying for this position of power. We don’t want to see that one of them needs their chair pulled out for them. They should have shook hands and stood up at the same time. Just because she is a woman doesn’t mean she needs help getting up.
I know that getting out of the house means putting pants on and perhaps brushing your teeth, but on this Tuesday, February 5th, it’s a day to put on those pants, zipper that fly, and go out and vote for Clinton. She will call you the day after; she will keep you safe, covered, and satisfied. She’s not a choice, she’s the choice, and the choice is yours.
Article written by Olivia March, © 2008 butyoudontlooksick.com
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*please note that the opinions in this post are that of the guest writer and not necessarily that of ButYouDontLookSick.com or Christine Miserandino.
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Who are you supporting in this year’s election? Why? What policical topics are you interested in?
Whoever you may be voting for, just get out there and vote! Make your voice heard!