Teresa, you forgot your apron!
Reported by Marie Therese - July 28, 2004 -
The all-male commentary after Teresa Heinz Kerry's speech was fascinating. PBS's Jim Lehrer, Mark Shields and David Brooks (and later Carl Cameron and Bill Kristol at FOX) sounded like they were in an echo chamber. They unanimously agreed that Mrs. Kerry missed her chance to "humanize" her husband by telling cute little stories about how she met him, their first dance, their first picnic, etc. The men denigrated her speech, claiming that she spoke only about herself. They all agreed that the audience reception was not as good as it might have been.
Balderdash!
It's clear these guys don't have a clue.
I understood, as did most of the women in that Convention Hall, that John Kerry doesn't need his wife to shill for him. They are equal partners. Most of the people cheering during her speech were women. The men looked disinterested.
It's clear to me that John Kerry is a man who is comfortable in his own skin. He knows who he is. And because of this, he doesn't need a Stepford wife dressed in a frilly apron (even a metaphorical frilly apron) to run interference for him.
My mother, a nurse, once told me: "If someone's going to cut me open, I want a technician. I don't care if he's got a good bedside manner. Bedside manner doesn't mean a thing when you're out cold on an operating table. Experience, technique and skill do. They increase your chances of coming out of it alive."
I guess I feel somewhat the same way about the Presidency.
What good is a Teddy Bear, all warm and fuzzy, cute and cuddly, if he can't make decisions at a moment's notice?
On that Swift Boat on the Mekong River, John Kerry had to make life-and-death decisions every day. On September 11th so did Rudi Giuliani.
By contrast, George Bush read a kiddie book to a class of 2nd graders for 7 minutes while the country was under attack. I'm sure George is just great at BBQ's, duck hunting, golfing and shootin' the breeze.
To paraphrase my mother, if you're under attack, you want experience, technique and skill, not a glad hand and a toothy "Howdy, pardner!"
And, Teresa, don't you EVER wear an apron in public!
