Dick Morris Psychoanalyzes Hillary Clinton’s Tears
Reported by Ellen - January 8, 2008 -
FOX News and Dick Morris deliberately exploited Hillary Clinton’s tearfulness on both editions of Hannity & Colmes last night (1/7/08) in an obvious effort to wreak maximum damage on her campaign. Mitt Romney has choked up twice, and the show ignored it, but Hannity & Colmes devoted two entire segments to this “issue” about Hillary with a guest guaranteed to make her look as bad as possible. Sure enough, Morris, who, as far as I can tell has no credentials in the field of psychotherapy or social work, deemed Romney's tears unremarkable while Hillary’s were symptomatic of a control freak who might well fall apart and be incapacitated if Congress didn’t pass her bill. With video.
There were two live shows of Hannity & Colmes last night and the topic of Hillary’s tears, with Morris as the sole guest for each segment, was featured prominently on both. As usual, Morris was disingenuously identified as a “former Clinton advisor.”
The first segment started off with a plug for Morris' “Swift Boat” movie about Hillary which, he gloated, “will really make her cry.”
Dr. Morris diagnosed Clinton’s tears as genuine. “That is a breakdown,” Morris told Hannity. “You have to understand the sense of arrogant entitlement that she brought into this race… When that sense of entitlement breaks down, the emotions just come flooding out of her.” It was a vast overstatement of the episode in which Clinton briefly choked up while speaking to a group of undecided voters about some of the personal challenges she has faced while campaigning.
Colmes, of course, disagreed with the analysis. He told Morris, “I see a great deal of sexism here.” Then he played a clip of Bush 41 crying. Morris claimed that was different because Bush is not running for president. “Everybody felt that after (former presidential candidate) Muskie cried, that he was not fit to be president. And I believe that there could well come a time when there is such a serious threat to the United States that (Clinton) breaks down like that.”
So Colmes brought up Mitt Romney's tearful appearance on Meet The Press. “Should he not be president because he cried with Tim Russert? Emotional about how civil rights was recognized by his church?” Colmes asked.
Dr. Morris had a ready distinction. “No, but I’m not sure (Romney) cried in sympathy for himself. Hillary’s crying and Muskie’s crying is ‘I’m being victimized.’” I’m sure it was just a coincidence that Morris found only Democratic tears symptomatic of a psychological failing.
Colmes started to argue with Morris by saying, “That’s your interpretation.” But Hannity interrupted and ended the segment.
Before the second segment with Morris, Hannity provided the promo. “Now Hillary may really have something to cry about after today’s primary. We’re going to ask Dick Morris what another Obama victory will mean for her chances.” The banner on the screen read, “Is it the beginning of the end for Hillary?”
When he returned for his follow-up visit, Morris provided more details of Clinton’s neurosis. “Hillary is a control freak. She really believes in controlling everything… What she’s really saying is, ‘I’ve been a good girl. I’ve done what I’m supposed to do… Why isn’t (my plan) working?’ It’s an out of control feeling by someone who has to be in control all the time.”
Not surprisingly, Morris' prognosis is not good for Clinton. He told Colmes, “I can imagine a situation where the congress doesn’t pass her programs or where Iran rejects her initiative or the war isn’t going well and that sense of ‘I tried to do it all right and now all of a sudden it’s screwing up and I don’t know what to do about it’ could incapacitate her as Commander-in-Chief.”
