Hillary Clinton's Tears

by Nichola Gutgold

I was feeling smug about my book Paving the Way for Madam President  because Hillary Clinton's "femaleness" wasn't getting much attention in the press all summer long and into the fall. UNTIL IOWA. It was her nomination to lose and it looks like she could be losing it.  CNN just featured a segment titled The Woman Question. And now, the former front runner Hillary Clinton has been cast as the aging, exhausted female who has worked harder and longer than anyone else for this promotion, only to see the rug pulled from under her by the young upstart male who seemed to come from nowhere with a message -– both visual and verbal -- that resonates better than hers.

When she was asked "how do you do it" at cafe in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, she choked and teared up when she explained:

"It's not easy, and I couldn't do it if I didn't passionately believe it was the right thing to do. You know, I have so many opportunities from this country just don't want to see us fall backwards," she said. Her voice breaking and tears in her eyes, she said, "You know, this is very personal for me. It's not just political it's not just public. I see what's happening, and we have to reverse it." "Some people think elections are a game, lot's of who's up or who's down, [but] it's about our country, it's about our kids' futures, and it's really about all of us together," she said.

Do Clinton's tears help or hurt her? Pat Schroeder was railed in the press in 1988 for shedding tears when she withdrew from the presidential race. Before her, Ed Muskie's steady image crumbled when he cried in New Hampshire in 1972 after mean spirited remarks were made about his family. Hillary's crying humanized her and can only help her in this emotionally charged race for the White House. Already, she won the first primary, when all the polls predicted she wouldn’t win.

For eight years as first lady, as a candidate for senate and in her presidential election race so far, Hillary Clinton was comfortable communicating in her usual masculine style. It is a style that I thought would work well for her because America is a surprisingly masculine country. Dutch communication scholar Geert Hofstede’s observation of feminine and masculine cultures is especially important to the prospects of a woman American president. Hofstede notes that “femininity stands for a society in which social gender roles overlap: both men and women are supposed to be modest, tender, and concerned with the quality of life.” Masculinity, on the other hand, “stands for a society in which social gender roles are clearly distinct: men are supposed to be assertive, tough and focused on material success.”

Then Barack Obama brought in Oprah Winfrey to endorse him and all bets were off. The nation became swept up with the pathos of a young, smart visual of everything American should be. And Hillary Clinton changed her communication style. Her emotional response to the woman in the diner showed that she is human--a working woman--ike so many of us. Before that, she responded very naturally in a debate that the impression of her that she isn’t likable, “hurts my feelings.” A peevish Barack Obama muttered, almost under his breath, “You’re likable enough.”

This is an emotional race. America needs a leader with heart and brains. Looks like Hillary Clinton is coming into her own to express why she wants to be president. It is her emotional communication style, tempered with her usual cerebral plan for the country that combined, may win her the prize.