First of all, I am forced to make the usual disclaimer that I intend to vote for Bernie Sanders in my Illinois primary. I hope he is still in the primary race by then, but I intend to vote for him even if he is not. I feel he is owed my vote as a thank you for this race he is running, for bringing so many crucial issues into the national discourse. So, even if he has been mathematically eliminated by then, or has voluntarily dropped out of the race, he gets my vote, and my husband has said he will do the same.
Now, you may ask why I wrote that I am "forced" to do this? It's because some people think criticisms of a campaign can only be made by the opposing side. If you raise an objection to a tactic or issue, you can't possibly be a true supporter. Maybe you're secretly trolling for the other side. No negativity allowed, don't harsh our buzz! Woot!
I can't tell you how much this irritates me. We are all adults, and if we want to make an observation, we should not have to have our candidate preference in our (soon to be gone) sig lines--particularly for those of us who have been here many years. I, personally, have never been accused of concern trolling, but I've seen others who have, and it should stop. If you've been a Kossacks for a decent amount of time, I trust what you're saying, even if I don't agree with it. You, me, everybody is allowed discourse on the campaigns, without suspicion.
Anyway, sorry for that lengthy introduction, but I wanted to get that out of the way.
So, that brings me to another irritating topic (I'm beginning to feel like The Woman Who Is Easily Irritated, hat tip to Sylvia). And, as you've probably discerned from my title, that is the sneering accusation that Hillary Clinton was in her youth a "Goldwater Girl." She cheered on the 1964 Republican candidate Barry Goldwater, who was decimated by Lyndon Johnson in the general election. Goldwater was considered a very hard right candidate at the time. I'm old enough to remember, because even though I was in grade school, politics was a big topic in my house. We thoroughly discussed every election (my parents were Kennedy Democrats) and I have been fascinated by politics ever since.
I have never read HRC's own description of her Goldwater Girl days, only excerpts here and there. I don't have to. If she was a Goldwater Girl back then, good for her. It shows that she was engaged in politics and issues, undoubtedly influenced by her parents' viewpoints.
When this is raised in DailyKos diaries, as some sort of disqualification for HRC's 2016 presidential run, it is like scratching nails on a blackboard. So stupid that I barely know what to say, how to respond. I fully understand objections to HRC and her politics. I don't agree with all of the objections, just some. But again, that is perfectly acceptable discourse.
But her stint as a Goldwater Girl? If you bring that up as some sort disqualification for a Democratic presidency, I must tell you that you sound, frankly, inane. And to be clear, I'm not saying Bernie Sanders or anyone from his campaign is bringing up the Goldwater Girl--just some misguided supporters.
A week or so ago I actually read a comment by someone who said that, even though he was a teenager in 1964, he knew all about Goldwater's politics, and HRC should have, too. And because he was discerning as a teen, and she wasn't, that reflected poorly on her in 2015.
I don't doubt that some who bring up "The Goldwater Girl" do not have children. I do, so, suffer in silence for a moment while I whip out the mother card.
Kids start out thinking as their parents do, adopting their opinions. Then they start to think for themselves, more influenced by their peers. It's a nerve wracking time for
parents because obviously you have less control over your kids.
Our kids, ages 23 and 16, seem to have (knock on wood) stayed with our firmly liberal sensibility. Even though my son voted Obama, he occasionally spouts some mildly libertarian views, and that's fine. Chalk it up to youth.
My 16 year old daughter seems to be solidly Democratic. I've told the story about how she and her friends were talking about a cute boy. One of the girls said "Yeah, I thought he was cute, then I found out he was a Republican." All the girls shrieked "Eeew!" And that was that. My daughter does not think cute, cool boys are Republican, and at this point I'm satisfied. I have no control over their future or who they marry, but for now, I'm good.
Anyway, back to Hillary. She obviously at some point broke with her parents and became a Democrat, when she was still fairly young. People who sniff at her Goldwater Girl days need to be reminded--and usually are, in various diaries--that Elizabeth Warren was a Republican into the 1990s. I rarely see any eyebrows raised about Warren's much longer GOP affiliation. Or our own Markos, who freely admits to being a Republican when he was younger. It doesn't matter, it matters what you are now. But it matters even less when it happened 50 years ago.
So, please, object to HRC on anything else but her Goldwater Girl days. If you bring that up you disqualify yourself for serious discourse--as usual, in my opinion.