There is a sad irony that the Clinton legacy will likely end in a controversy over their status as "elites." For months now, the Clintons have been defending $750,000.00 speaking fees, secret email servers, and a charitable foundation that appears to be little more than a well-feathered nest. There once was a time, when her husband was running for Governor of Arkansas, that she routinely, and perhaps even skillfully, rubbed elbows with the working class. Now, a blue collar moment for Mrs. Clinton is a Burrito Bowl at Chipotle, by herself, with only Secret Service around. No one even bothered to tell her that the "working poor," as she refers to them, don't eat at Chipotle, or drink their morning coffee at Starbucks. She now conflates "Yuppie" and "blue collar."
It is a shame. It's a shame because her husband, the man from Hope, Arkansas, had true humble beginnings. Bill Clinton came from a very humble home, the son of an alcoholic father who worked as a traveling salesman. Bill Clinton spent his early years working in a small family grocery store in town. He was in the thicket of segregation and racial divide and saw it first hand. But this store sold to Blacks as well as whites, an uncommon sight in the South in those days.
He went on to educate himself, excelling in school. He earned accolades, was involved in student government, and went on to become a Rhodes Scholar. As a politician, Bill Clinton had the common touch. He ate ribs on picnic benches with regular people and drank sweet tea. Even as President, Clinton could be found in the same places ordinary Americans went, and it was authentic. Unlike Hillary's Burrito Bowl, when Bill Clinton rolled up to the McDonald's, you knew it was because he was still that guy from Hope.
These days, we are surrounded by politicians who either come from great wealth, or have made careers out of living on the public dime as professional politicians. The vast majority of these men and women have no idea what it is to work in a factory, or have to meet payroll, or struggle to provide for tuition or childcare. They've lost touch with basic American values, like doing your job, sacrifice, overcoming adversity, being a good neighbor, and forging a way ahead for the next generation. Instead, they sell us "new American values," like "paying your fair share," common core, soul crushing debt, and slogans like "you didn't build that."
And therein lies the problem. These professional politicians fancy themselves the "builders of America." They seek to regulate every aspect of every American life because, after all, the law does not apply to them. They are either so rich or so politically powerful that they cannot be touched. They usurp the mantle of "nation builder" from the factory workers, small business owners, and professionals that constitute the foundation of our society. They take what isn't theirs and pretend to give it to those in need. Instead, like the Clinton Foundation, they keep 90% of it for themselves and only a pittance actually makes it to the needy.
Hillary Clinton lost her first presidential primary to a man who promised "Hope and Change." She lost because she couldn't convince her party that she was authentic. She was not going to be the engine of change. She was no longer the symbol of "hope," that her husband had once been. Fast forward eight years and things are even worse for her. She has now become truly elite and even the man from Hope can no longer effectively vouch for her.
With each cringe-worthy appearance at a diner, or a picnic, Hillary Clinton moves the family's legacy further away from Hope. It is not a fitting end, but it is the end the Clinton's chose.
No comments:
Post a Comment