The Nation , John Nichols: She won the night, and she might well have won a great deal more.

[SaveElmer]

A little snarky but essentially correct...

Clinton Plays the Gender Card for a Win

Hillary Clinton, who joked about taking the stage wearing "an asbestos pantsuit" Thursday night, won what could turn out to be the critical debate of the race for the Democratic presidential nomination.

To suggest otherwise would be to underestimate the power, the authority and, yes, the intangibly presidential quality of Clinton's response to a question posed mid-way through the Las Vegas debate by CNN's Campbell Brown.

Brown asked about a speech the New York senator recently gave at her alma mater, Wellesley College in Massachusetts. Clinton had told the Wellesley crowd, " so many ways, this all women's college prepared me compete in the all boys' club of presidential politics."

"What did you mean at Wellesley when you referred to the boy's club?" asked Brown.

Clinton paused. She smiled like the Cheshire cat.

"Campbell!" the Democratic frontrunner declared in mock exasperation.

Clinton's point was made. Everyone got it. Of course, there is a boy's club -- in politics and in media -- and that cannot come as news to Campbell Brown.

...

Clinton was playing the gender card -- even if she denied doing so.

"I'm not playing, as some people say, the gender card here in Las Vegas, I'm just trying to play the winning card," the candidate chirped. "I understand very well that people are not attacking me because I'm a woman. They're attacking me because I'm ahead."

The senator was having it both ways. Even as she cashed in on the fact that she is mounting a historic campaign for the presidency -- not the first by a woman, but the first in which a woman might prevail -- Clinton said she was not "running because I'm a woman." Rather, she said, "I'm running because I think I'm the best qualified and experienced person to hit the ground running."

Clinton left her most aggressive challengers, both of whom had been gaining ground on her going into Thursday night's debate, no space.

When former North Carolina Senator John Edwards followed Clinton's "not-playing-the-gender-card" soliloquy with a mild criticism of the frontrunner, he was roundly booed by the crowd.

Not long afterward, when Illinois Senator Barack Obama took a swing at Clinton, he was booed just as loudly.

Clinton had cornered them. They had no room for movement.

She won the night, and she might well have won a great deal more.

http://www.thenation.com/blogs/thebeat?pid=252196

[William769]

1. Vegas is where the prize fighters go to win.

[DemocratSinceBirth]

5. Viva Las Vegas

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SUiojxJxBj0

[William769]

6. Thanks for the link!

I love Elvis!

[incapsulated]

2. lol, if the Nation says she won

She must have.

[BootinUp]

7. Yep, she did.

:hi:

[gaiilonfong]

3. John Nichols should learn what REAL journalism is?

Obviously he didn't get it from his mothers talent.

[CTyankee]

8. Who was his mother? Are you confusing him with Nancy Dickerson's son?

Just wondering...

[MethuenProgressive]

4. *The Nation* ran a story that wasn't trashing Clinton? Did Hell freeze over too??

Wow... expect John Nichols to get fired by the end of the day.

[KoKo]

9. Here's what a Commenter on Nichol's "Nation"Blog says that nails it....

You, and the journal that employs you, purport to be progressive/leftist. Your manifest bias towards Clinton belies this claim. How can you, as a progressive, in good conscience favor Clinton after her debate performance tonight? On issue after issue, notably Iraq/Iran and Social Security, she took positions far to the right of the rest of the field. She argued in favor of her ill-conceived vote to grant terrorist status to the Iranian National Guard--a vote that clearly gives a pretext to President Bush to open hostilities with that nation. She opposed funding Social Security by increasing the payroll tax ceiling, arguing instead for the establishment of a bipartisan commission whose recommendations could include major curtailments of benefits. Her comments concerning appointment of Supreme Court justices were far less substantive and reassuring than those of Dodd, Biden, or Richardson. Clinton distinguished herself from the rest of the field tonight not by the quality of her debating (Biden and Richardson were far more impressive tonight) but by her consistent slant "triangulation" to the right." Her brand of DLC politics is grossly out of place following the national wreckage wrought by President Bush. Most seriously, among all the Democratic candidates, Clinton is by far the least likely to bring the Iraq War to a close. Clinton is favored by the mainstream media precisely because she is indistinguishable from a moderate Republican. Her gender politics is a clever ploy to disguise this fact among many Democratic (especially women) voters. You, and your journal, should be insightful enough to realize all of this.

Posted by EQUIFOX 11/16/2007 @ 12:54am

[BootinUp]

10. Why doesn't equifox and all the DU'ers

who know better how to achieve progressive goals and win elections, cough!, get the Fuck off their asses and run for office or at least become official advisers or something, show us mere mortals who think politics still works like it has in the past that we are full of doo doo. Show that Nevada audience they are stupid losers!

[zulchzulu]

11. Saying "she won" is like saying a shoplifter was successful when they stole

She indeed used the Gender Card while saying she didn't. That's pathetic enough for me.

The rest of her record, words, plants and the fact that the Republicans want her to be the one they can finally empower their base and kick Democrats ass in 2008 doesn't even have to be factored in.

Britney sounds great when she lip syncs too...

[RichGirl]

14. She's a WOMAN!

Fergodsake...is she suppose to deny that. Her experience as a woman has brought her where she is. Just like all the other candidates. Whoever, whatever they are...brought them to this point. Have you accused Edwards of playing the "son of a mill worker" card? The men can be African-American, Hispanic, Southern, whatever...but the woman has to be generic????

[mourningdove92]

12. Time to weigh in on the gender thing.

For Senator Clinton to make a comment about the "boys club" is not, in my opinion, "playing" the gender card. Unless my history is faulty in some way, we have never had a woman serve as president or even vice president. She was simply stating a fact. Yes, she is taking on the boys club and doing so quite well. As someone who has always liked John Edwards, when he speaks of his roots I don't think he is playing the "born with a silver spoon in their mouths" card. He is simply stating a fact. So when Senator Clinton acknowledges that she is taking on a totally dominated mens field, she is simply calling it as it is.

Playing the gender card? Only if stating the facts is something wrong.


Oh, by the way, I am Woman, Hear me Roar!

[mrfixit]

13. I must have watched a different debate.

HRC got to catch lob after pathetic lob from Blitzen ALL NIGHT, and she still managed to sound confused on Health Care, which is supposed to be her strong suit. The "asbestos pantsuit" and "Pearls AND Diamonds" responses were so embarrassingly over-contrived, I quite seriously almost barfed. About 1/3 of all the questions asked of her were merely re-phrased questions she messed up during the previous debate. It was a do-over, plain and simple...

There were some bright spots...Biden was very witty, Dodd was really on the ball with his responses en Espanol, Kucinich got the most and loudest ovations (and kicked the most ass!)...I thought the others (the big 3) actually looked a little anaemic, in comprison...

The spotlight was on HRC, all night. It was the Blitzen-HRC show, and it wasn't even THINLY disguised...what seemed to be HRC Audience plants, HRC hecklers / boo-birds, etc. Still, she didn't manage to screw up quite as badly or sound as vapidly underprepared as she did in the last debate, and she DID actually manage to coherently defend herself (although not her positions) in a whiney, flat, kind-of over-rehearsed way (especially during the "boys' club segments - did Blitzen really HAVE to ask her about it TWICE??? Unreal.). Overall I think she came out of it better than Obama and slightly ahead of Edwards, although this does not really say too much in her favour...Richardson's grocery lists unfortunately did not win him any converts (but I appreciated his standing up for his positions), but Biden, Dodd and Kucinich seemed (at least to me) to be the real stars, however, and Kucinich literally kicked EVERYBODY'S ass..."IMPEACH!!!"

[Cameron27]

15. Yep, sounds like you did watch the wrong debate.

[mourningdove92]

16. The spotlight was on Senator Clinton?

Tell me something new. How about the last two debates where Russert aimed shot after shot directly at her and when he wasn't shooting at her he was tossing questions ABOUT her to the other candidates.

But hey, I guess thats what happens to the person who is AHEAD.

[yellowcanine]

17. Have any of Clinton's opponents condemned John "that's a great question" McCain

for his gratuitus praise of the woman who referred to Hillary as a bitch? If not, I don't think they can turn around and complain about Hillary playing the gender card. Clearly the gender card has already been played by McCain and it likely will continue to be played.

[DeaconBlues]

18. Just another HillShill rant from a known corporatist rag

How many Hillary plants now work for the Nation?

:sarcasm: of course

[BenDavid]

19. It was outstanding the way she chopped the knees of both

Obama and Edwards. I have said many times if you going to be a bear, then be a grizzley. HRC did win the night, and she will go forward to the nomination.

Ben David