by Ann Bibby
An interesting article on MSNBC today discusses the need John McCain and Barack Obama have for women these days. Neither of them having captured the hearts and souls of the all important “woman (of a certain age) vote”. Although the Obama campaign expresses confidence that come the fall Democratic women who supported Clinton will be over her defeat in the primaries and ready to oust the Republicans, McCain sees these same voters as up for grabs to the man best in touch with his feminine side.
As a registered Independent, I have always voted Democratic in presidential elections, and this has meant working up enthusiasm for several lackluster nominees over the last 24 years. Is anyone old enough to recall Dukakis in the tank? But even if Obama fell into the camp of “I suck it up and vote Demo for the sake of my country” - and he does not - I had made up my mind months ago that putting a Democrat back in the White House is really the only hope the United States has left.
John McCain is not a women friendly (or even women’s issues interested in my opinion) candidate, and it makes me a bit ashamed of my gender to hear women profess that they will stay home in November or vote for McCain simply because Barack Obama was not the woman of their choice.
This kind of strategy is best left back in middle school where it wasn’t all that effective the first time around.
In terms of voting on women’s issues, Obama has a record nearly identical to that of Sen. Clinton whereas McCain is in favor of rolling back Roe V. Wade (which regardless of your feelings about abortion can’t happen because when it does there will be no end to legislation aimed at reducing women’s rights - if we haven’t say over our own bodies then what does our freedom really come down to?), and he is in no way concerned about the lack of access to affordable health insurance which is a problem that affects women and children the most.
Frankly, when I read that McCain’s campaign is trying to put him in touch with his feminine side, I laughed out loud. No man has less chance of that than he does.
Funnily enough I don’t feel any great love being directed at me as both candidates are supposedly vying for my affection. Perhaps because they both know that Obama has already won?
No matter, it will still very be interesting to hear what Obama and McCain have to say as they state their cases over the coming months.
