In Praise of the Powerful Men Who Stood by Candidate Hillary Clinton
I type this and the polls remain open across the country. We do not know who will be President-elect. Not yet. But we do know that something remarkable has already happened. We have witnessed a country’s most powerful statesmen stand in support of a woman candidate. They have used their voices, their resources, their reputations in service of her candidacy. This, alone, is profound for our nation. And, truly, our species.
I’m still struck by Wednesday, July 27th, 2016. The Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, night #3. The speakers included Vice President Biden, Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Senator Tim Kaine, and President Barack Obama. Every one of those statesmen gave compelling speeches in support of Secretary Hillary Clinton. That alone shouldn’t surprise — she was the nominee. But I sat in front of my TV thinking, I’ve never seen this before. All of these powerful men, lifting up a woman, saying she was the best, that not only we support her, but you should, too. The feeling was heady. An energy rush. More proof that no matter how grim this campaign got, change was in the making. Good change.
But I must save my strongest praise for Secretary Clinton’s husband, President Bill Clinton. He has supported her candidacies without hesitation, and from this outside gaze, has helped as asked. He has also dialed down his own brilliance in the public eye to let her shine. Can you imagine being in his position? From some perspectives, he is being replaced. Can you imagine the grace it takes to accept this? To help her as he has? To make my point more vivid, imagine Donald Trump in this position. Could a man like Donald Trump ever accept being eclipsed one iota — for a woman? Even if the woman is the mother of (one of) his children, and supposed to be the love of his life?
No matter what happens tonight, we will always have the example of powerful men allowing the spotlight to shine on a mighty woman. We will always have the imagery of a husband, who despite all of their difficulties, stayed at his wife’s side, and helped her complete her life’s work.
Thank you, gentleman.
