Monday, February 11, 2008

More Clinton Controversy

News anchor David Shuster of MSNBC has been temporarily suspended after making controversial remarks about Chelsea Clinton. Chelsea has been rallying for her mom on the campaign trail and has invited the media to interview her and youth nationwide on why Hillary Clinton should be the next president. Shuster stated this was not the Chelsea we knew when her father was President; the quiet, withdrawn girl is now a young woman making her voice heard on her mother’s behalf. He then proceeded to ask, "Doesn't it seem like Chelsea's sort of being pimped out in some weird sort of way.” Afterwards, Clinton’s press secretary and Shuster exchanged e-mail messages in which Shuster initially defended his statement and got a mouthful. Shuster apologized for using inappropriate language and for offending the Clintons, the campaign, and anyone else.

At a press conference at the University of Maine, Senator Clinton addressed the issue by stating: “the comments were part of a troubling pattern of demeaning treatment. There has been a troubling pattern of comments and behaviors that has to be held accountable.”
Senator Clinton also wrote a letter to Steve Capus, president of NBC, which stated,
"I became Chelsea's mother long before I ran for any office, and I will always be a mom first and a public official second. Nothing justifies the kind of debasing language that David Shuster used, and no temporary suspension or half-hearted apology is sufficient."
It seems that the Clintons can’t seem to catch a break during the Presidential Campaign.
Chelsea should not have to be demoralized for growing into a mature, young woman capable of having a voice and bringing support to her mom’s campaign. This seems like another attack on the Clinton campaign just because Hillary Clinton is a woman. Therefore, Senator Clinton is right when she states these comments fit a pattern that need to be held accountable.

1 comment:

bsalimova said...

Ashley, I agree with you that the comments made by Dave Shuster were very disrespectful and demeaning. Now he claims that he was referring to the fact that Chelsea was placing calls on her mom's behalf to the Democratic superdelegates when he used the phrase "pimped out". Does Mr. Shuster mean that the hundreds of people working on political campaigns as a part of their professional careers are being pimped out? Or we should use this kind of insulting references only towards politically engaged women? I also think that there is a huge problem with people accepting young women as more vocal and active members of society. Becoming more "mature" or vocal is good thing to happen to every person and is a natural process of everyone's evolution, is not it? So, why is it that when young women make more assertive steps and educated decisions it seems unusual? Why is it bad to be campaigning on your mom's or dad's behalf?

Bahar