Friday, January 11, 2008

Hillary, You Know

Hillary Clinton has found her voice.

It includes "you know."

Again and again, Hillary punctuates her remarks with "you know."

For example, look at this excerpt from an interview Hillary did with Katie Couric on January 9, 2008.


(CBS) In an interview conducted this afternoon at her home in Chappaqua, N.Y., following last night’s victory in the New Hampshire primary, Sen. Hillary Clinton spoke with CBS News anchor Katie Couric about her remarkable win, her message, and what's ahead.



COURIC: Some observers believe that moment when you got emotional on Monday when your voice cracked and your eyes welled up that that humanized you and made you much more attractive to women voters.

CLINTON: That moment, which obviously I've heard a lot about since, gave people maybe some insight into the fact that I don't see politics as a game. You know, I don't see it as some kind of a traveling entertainment show where, you know, you get up and you perform and you go on to the next venue. You know, for me it is a way of figuring out what we stand for, what our values are, and getting in a position to actually help people.

COURIC: Will you be willing now to reveal more of yourself and be less reserved?

CLINTON: Well, you know, one of my young friends said well, that was like Hillary unplugged. I thought, "OK, I can't sing, I can't play an instrument. But, you know, I will try to let people know enough about me to know that, you know, I don't need to go back and live in the White House. That's not why I'm doing this. I certainly don't need anymore name recognition. And, I mean, I just want to try to convey that we're going to have to make some big decisions in this country." This is the toughest job in the world. I was laughing because you know in that debate, obviously Sen. Edwards and Sen. Obama were kind of in the buddy system on the stage. And I was thinking whoever's up against the Republican nominee in the election debates come the fall is not gonna have a buddy to fall back on. You know, you're all by yourself. When you're president, you're there all by yourself.

COURIC: How can you be a real change agent when you were involved in a two-term administration in the '90s. You're yesterday's news, they think in a way?

CLINTON: Well I really didn't alter my message, you know. I've been saying for many months if you're ready for change, I'm ready to lead, because I think it does go hand in hand. If people really want change - and I agree we've got to after this administration, and the problems we see in the world - then let's be sure we're electing someone who is not just talking about change but has a history of acting to make change.

COURIC: When we last spoke you said with certitude, "I will be the Democratic nominee." Unwavering certitude. Are you sorry you said that with such confidence? Do you think that perhaps turned some people off?

CLINTON: Well it might have. I was laughing about it afterwards because I can remember when I first met Jimmy Carter in 1975 and I introduced myself to him and he said, "I'm Jimmy Carter and I'm going to be president." I said, "well, you know, Gov. Carter, well, maybe you shouldn't say that." And so I was laughing because I thought well, if you really believe you'd be the best president, you can't get up everyday and do this job that we're doing running for president - which is really a full time job - unless you really believe you are the person that can best serve our country at this time.

In this brief exchange, Hillary managed to say "you know" TEN times.


You know, she doesn't sound like a slick politician in the interview. She speaks like, you know, she and Katie are good friends. There's a softness and an openness in the way Hillary is talking, very down to earth.


Where's the shrill, you know, icy Hillary?


You know, what happened to that bitchy Hillary, the "I'm not sitting here as some little woman standing by my man like Tammy Wynette"?



I think she left that persona back in New Hampshire, you know, where she found the voice that appeals to women.


Any woman who voted for Hillary simply because she let her exhaustion get the best of her for a moment on the campaign trail is an absolute disgrace.


That's not solidarity. It's sexist.


Vote for the damsel in distress?



I don't think so.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

For Chris Matthews to debate during the day, and sell Obama on Leno Late Night threatens to undermine his objectivity so much as to erase his "Hardball" reputation as willing to see and tell things as they are, despite his good heart.

His references to hope and heart are not lost on the public, and frankly, someone might question whether he should be registered as a candidate lobbyist, not a talk show host.

It was shocking, given his reputation.

Mary said...

Matthews is a partisan hack. I don't mean that as an insult, just stating the obvious.

Of course, he apologized for saying that Hillary owes her entire political career to Bill's infidelity.

MSNBC has such low ratings to begin with, Matthews no doubt was forced to admit that his remarks were out of line, too anti-Hillary.

After his late night TV gushing over Obama, I don't see how he can be taken seriously as a journalist.

He should work for Obama. There's nothing wrong with that. He's worked for Democrats before.