What Makes Carol Run?--Washington Post

[gottaB]

Ann Gerhart of the Washington Post asked this question in a recent article. The question itself and the way Gerhart answers it is revealing of a certain level of bias in the media establishment. What I mean is, there is like a layer of opinion among journalists that has been consciously arrived at, and once accepted tends not to be interrogated further, so that it becomes functionally equivalent to sedimentary prejudices which typically avoid conscious scrutiny through disavowal, rationalization, or other means of repression. The layer of opinion remains retrievable, however, and in cases of extreme cognitive dissonance open to re-evaluation. Case in point: The candidacy of Carol Moseley Braun.

Allowing for Gerhart's driving concerns, the piece itself comes across as generally balanced, which in itself is something of a corrective.

On the lighter side, Gerhart does a fair job of capturing the persona of candidate Braun, provides some uncommon insights, and illustrative narrative episodes. A sample:

Scheduled to speak at the dinner gala of the Global Alliance for Democracy and Peace, a group dedicated to keeping Taiwan autonomous, she actually arrives 15 minutes early. Well-to-do Taiwanese Americans approach her, beaming. They bow slightly and shake her hands, nod their heads, smiling. No one seems quite sure what to say. Lots of snapshots are taken. There are speeches, and more speeches. Braun makes a speech in which she talks about the "democratization of democracy," but still doesn't ask for the crowd's support, even after a young woman calls out, "We love you, senator!"

She catches the eye of Patrick Botterman, her acting campaign manager, then manages to say, "We would love for you to visit us online and increase the hits on the Web site." Then there is a dancer, and a singer, and a young boy plays the trumpet for her, the honored guest. Braun sits through it all.

"You can never get her out of a room," says Botterman, who has managed campaigns for other female politicians. "You can't hit and run. Part of it is politeness and diplomatic training. Mostly, it is that women are held to a different standard. People expect a woman candidate to be Mother Earth. She has to not just listen to you but to give you your milk and cookies."

Even though she can be gracious to a fault, there is an anger that propels her, anger over having her credentials as a candidate questioned, anger over being dismissed prematurely and anger over the Bush administration's leadership.

Do read it.

[Ediacara]

1. what makes Carol run?

I know this isn't the asnwer to the exact question asked, but an answer to the same sentance would probably be: she's tied with Kerry in the latest polls.

[gottaB]

3. That was one thing Carol told Gerhart

And Gerhart inserted this jibe: "Like all hopefuls, she resolutely ignores the margin of error."

My first thought was, duh, but if the margin of error applies to her competitors, what's the point of the criticism? Then I wondered if she weren't trying to dismiss Newsweek and Zogby for their sample sizes. Scratch that. Upon reflection it seems to me that the media are not even-handed in the way they report polls, and intellectually dishonest in the way they use polls to justify their narratives.

From my perspective, the obvious rejoinder would have been that Braun is only looking at the most favorable polls, but even that opens up other issues. So in the end I don't see what's wrong with sticking to the facts: Braun has never polled well in New Hampshire or Iowa, but she polls in the middle of the pack in many other states and in many national polls.

So besides the polemic (media are justified in dismissing Braun) I think the reason Gerhart chose to make that aside hinges on the word "resolutely" which sets the tone for the counter-narrative: Braun will not be dismissed.

Again, within Gerhart's limited scope, it's something of a corrective, but if you're coming at it from the pespective of knowing the facts on the ground and basically understanding what makes people tick, it's kind of, well, odd.

[Feanorcurufinwe]

2. Question asked, article read, and I'm still wondering.

[gottaB]

4. Because Braun believes she is the best alternative to GWB

It's that simple.

You know, when it comes to argumentation, you're something of a pit bull. Does it surprise you that others should be equally tenacious about their convictions?