Living Hillary's History
I just got through listening to a book on tape called "Living History." It was written by Hillary Rodham Clinton a few years back, and I got it for only $5 from a store called Books-A-Million.
And I'm really glad I did.
She is now a front-running candidate for the Democratic nomination for President. As such, voters should all gain as much information about her as we can, in order to determine whether she deserves our vote. At all events, she's now best positioned to become our first female President.
My bias should be disclosed first. I'm not a registered Democrat or Republican; I've preferred to think of myself as an independent. An earlier posting here discloses that I lean toward Democrats, though, and I'm not ashamed of that.
In 1992 and 1996, I voted for Bill Clinton, and I'm not at all ashamed of that, either. I felt that we attained more global stability during his presidency, and, of course, since it was "the economy, stupid," we also enjoyed a considerable economic run-up. Honestly, though some labelled him "slick Willie," I liked having a really smart, agile President - even at the expense of having him mince words (like, "I did not have sex with that woman").
Now, there's Hillary. Some see her as "the wronged woman" and even admire her having stuck with Bill after the Lewsinsky scandal. To me, this can mean a lot of things, not the least of which is a decision based on political expediency as much as personal commitment or feeling. She would not get my vote for that.
"Living History" was heavily promoted in its time as providing Hillary's full reaction to accusations made against her and Bill, too - her commodities-trading profits, her failed health care reform initiative, and more. Well, she does react to those things in the book, for sure.
It is the unintended revelations that interested me most, though. And I listened to her read the book herself - that added a lot. A recurring theme that would cause me not to vote for her was this: she repeatedly cites Bill as having a more generous, forgiving nature than she does. She wants to stay and fight until her enemies are completely discredited and beaten. Bill, by contrast, would be just as pleased to "forgive and forget."
Bill Clinton was as politically beseiged as any 20th century president was - more so than any other, save perhaps Richard Nixon. And yet he somehow was able to retain a generosity of spirit which I came to admire more than I realized at the time. He exemplified what Steven Covey called a mentality of abundance rather than scarcity; looking for the "win-win" potential of conflict, rather than accepting a conflict as a zero-sum game.
Her own words, in this book, give little evidence of Hillary's equivalent capacity. She needs to win, and needs to see her opponents lose - and this is by her own admission. If you listen carefully to her perspectives on the conflicts and trials of the Clinton presidency, you could understand how she reasonably could come to feel that way.
My biggest concern in voting for her now is whether, with the perspective of age, a greater wisdom has come to her. Forgiving your enemies is a crucial quality of any president. Not naivete, mind you, but a "with malice toward none" sentiment. This exemplifies the best of American leadership, domestically and internationally, and is a "must-have" attribute of anyone I'd vote for as president.
I will be watching her campaign closely for this, because it is not demonstrated in her own book. Take a read or a listen to it and tell me whether you agree...
And I'm really glad I did.
She is now a front-running candidate for the Democratic nomination for President. As such, voters should all gain as much information about her as we can, in order to determine whether she deserves our vote. At all events, she's now best positioned to become our first female President.
My bias should be disclosed first. I'm not a registered Democrat or Republican; I've preferred to think of myself as an independent. An earlier posting here discloses that I lean toward Democrats, though, and I'm not ashamed of that.
In 1992 and 1996, I voted for Bill Clinton, and I'm not at all ashamed of that, either. I felt that we attained more global stability during his presidency, and, of course, since it was "the economy, stupid," we also enjoyed a considerable economic run-up. Honestly, though some labelled him "slick Willie," I liked having a really smart, agile President - even at the expense of having him mince words (like, "I did not have sex with that woman").
Now, there's Hillary. Some see her as "the wronged woman" and even admire her having stuck with Bill after the Lewsinsky scandal. To me, this can mean a lot of things, not the least of which is a decision based on political expediency as much as personal commitment or feeling. She would not get my vote for that.
"Living History" was heavily promoted in its time as providing Hillary's full reaction to accusations made against her and Bill, too - her commodities-trading profits, her failed health care reform initiative, and more. Well, she does react to those things in the book, for sure.
It is the unintended revelations that interested me most, though. And I listened to her read the book herself - that added a lot. A recurring theme that would cause me not to vote for her was this: she repeatedly cites Bill as having a more generous, forgiving nature than she does. She wants to stay and fight until her enemies are completely discredited and beaten. Bill, by contrast, would be just as pleased to "forgive and forget."
Bill Clinton was as politically beseiged as any 20th century president was - more so than any other, save perhaps Richard Nixon. And yet he somehow was able to retain a generosity of spirit which I came to admire more than I realized at the time. He exemplified what Steven Covey called a mentality of abundance rather than scarcity; looking for the "win-win" potential of conflict, rather than accepting a conflict as a zero-sum game.
Her own words, in this book, give little evidence of Hillary's equivalent capacity. She needs to win, and needs to see her opponents lose - and this is by her own admission. If you listen carefully to her perspectives on the conflicts and trials of the Clinton presidency, you could understand how she reasonably could come to feel that way.
My biggest concern in voting for her now is whether, with the perspective of age, a greater wisdom has come to her. Forgiving your enemies is a crucial quality of any president. Not naivete, mind you, but a "with malice toward none" sentiment. This exemplifies the best of American leadership, domestically and internationally, and is a "must-have" attribute of anyone I'd vote for as president.
I will be watching her campaign closely for this, because it is not demonstrated in her own book. Take a read or a listen to it and tell me whether you agree...
posted by John Bernat @ 10:39 AM
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