S.C. women are torn between two historic quests playing out in Saturday’s Democratic presidential primary.
The race between U.S. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton of New York, who would be her party’s first female nominee, and U.S. Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois, who would be his party’s first black nominee, has divided women along generational and racial lines.
It has split households and forced women to ponder racial and gender allegiances.
“I don’t like that because I’m looking for who would be the best candidate ”” period,” said Natasha Guess of Spartanburg, who has been teetering between Clinton, Obama and former U.S. Sen. John Edwards of North Carolina. “I’m thinking about the issues. And it doesn’t matter if it’s a woman, an African-American or whoever.”
Guess knows that not everyone feels the same way. “My sister says the men have had their show. She’d like to see what a woman can do.”
How S.C. women vote Saturday will be a key to who wins. While much has been made of the power of South Carolina’s black vote ”” expected to account for about half of the Democratic primary turnout ”” women hold even more clout. They are expected to cast about 58 percent of Democratic primary votes.
RE: “S.C. women are torn between two historic quests playing out in Saturday’s Democratic presidential primary.”
We are? ; > )
If a white, middle aged male of European extraction, such as myself, declared that he was going to vote for one candidate over another on the basis of race or gender, he would be attacked by just about everyone as being racist, sexist, narrow-minded, etc. Isn’t it interesting that the deomocrats have made race and gender foundational in this election. It’s really good for both Senator Obama and Senator Clinton because no matter who wins on the basis on actual votes, both candidates can declare victory as well as preserving their victimhood.
Will,
and the loser can just as easily claim vicitimization on the basis of whatever ‘discrimination’ exists in their minds.
Right you are , Libraryjim, and that’s the genius , albeit a very twisted genius, of the current state of the democratic party: race and gender are the foundation of the candidacy of the front runners, and it does not matter who wins or loses because each gets to claim victory and defeat, along with being a victim. And either Mr Obama or Mrs Clinton can, on the basis of their “victimhood”, claim NOT to be part of the cultural elite, thus bamboozaling any number of Americans who are sick of business as usual. But all this spin-doctoring is one of the main reasons that, for the first time in my life, I will be voting republican in 2008!