General Discussion
In reply to the discussion: Who should lead the Democratic Party in 2016 [View all]JDPriestly
(57,936 posts)but I think he has a problem for national elections. This is very hard for me to say, but he would have to explain why his voice always sounds so hoarse. He has a problem projecting strength because of his voice.
As one who has a certain understanding of the human voice, I have to say that Hillary's voice would also work against her just as Sarah Palin's voice and accent made her sound silly.
Grayson has a great voice. Elizabeth Warren can have a pretty good voice.
No one has a voice like Obama.
So why is this important? Because we do judge people by their voices more than most of us are willing to admit.
Obama's voice has gotten him very far in life.
The voice, most of us seem to believe on a subconscious level, is the mirror of the soul. The voice betrays us. It can reveal our impatience, our arrogance, our subservience, our fear, our love, our anger, just about everything we think or feel or are shows in our voice.
I could go on and on about this. But don't ever underestimate the importance of a good voice in politics. Makes all the difference in close races.
I should remind everyone of Al Gore's voice. I liked it, but his pronunciation sounded constrained like someone trying to sound better than he really thought he was. People picked up on it. On the other hand, phony though it was, GWBush had mastered the "I'm just a down-home kinda' guy" voice and had everyone who voted for him fooled -- especially the proud to be from the country folks.