Sunday, November 05, 2006
The Prom Queen/Cheerleader/Sorority Girl Senator
Whether it's completely accurate in every case, few would argue that popularity is a key trait in young women who are prom queens, cheerleaders and sorority girls. And in the case of a woman who was all three, like Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, there's certainly a common personality thread worth examining.
Think for a moment of a fictitious young woman, just graduated from the University of Texas, who has had all three titles. She was prom queen in high school, and a cheerleader at UT, and a member of Pi Beta Phi. After graduation, she's about to start a job as a TV news reporter. Now ask yourself: is this the type of person you would envision being a U.S. Senator?
If she did become a Senator, how do you imagine she'd act? Would she be strong and independent, or would she go along with everyone else? If she had an old buddy in the White House, would she blindly support everything he wants? Can you imagine her coming up with very many bold or innovative ideas? For that matter, do you figure she'd make much of a splash at all? Or would she quietly blend in with and file behind all the smart people, trying not to make a fool of herself? Socially, on the other hand, she's no dummy - she'd make some good, powerful friends, and she'd be sure to be nice to everybody. She'd cover the whole state with little pork-barrel presents. And she'd probably even be so nice to members of the other party, to ensure her popularity, that they'd be hard-pressed to criticize her.
Of course you can picture it, because that's what we have in Kay. You can hardly read anything about her in the press that doesn't rave about how she's gotten the highest number of actual votes ever cast in Texas for one candidate (never mind that it was against that damned idiot, perennial non-candidate Gene Kelly). And no article would be complete without naming her "one of Texas' most popular statewide officeholders".
And that's my point: she's still running a popularity contest. She still wants to be crowned with a tiara, voted Most Likely To, and have the party at her house. She isn't a leader. She isn't a Senator. She's Miss Popular.
The U.S. Senate is the deliberative chamber of Congress. It doesn't decide whether to have a DJ or a band at prom; it decides whether to send American soldiers to fight, kill and die in far-off lands. It doesn't argue which cheer will get the Longhorn fans pumped; it sets federal budgets that affect every man, woman and child in this country. It doesn't debate whether two kegs will be enough for the Spring Fling; it works to protect our national interests from every threat imaginable, from hurricanes, to terrorists, to greedy corporations, to a power-hungry Executive Branch.
Here's a telling quote from a typical Hutchison love-letter article:
It's all fine and good to get Texans the federal money and help they need; that's certainly part of our Congressional delegation's job. But it's only part of their job. There's a heck of a lot more to it than favors and little bribes to "all of our cities and counties".
So here we are, two days before the election. If the polls are right by half, then Kay's going to be one of Texas' Senators for another six years. I've been writing this blog and this site since April, and I'm just now getting it. This is it - this is the lens that makes Kay make sense.
This is why she broke her own strident term-limit promises: she can't bear to walk away from a popularity contest, especially when she's expected to win easily again. This is why, even though she's a "senior Senator", she's never heard of nationally. This is why she votes so badly on all the issues: because all the other kids in her clique do. And this is why everyone likes her - because her full-time job is making everyone like her.
Well, not to get to eloquent here or anything, but that sucks. I want a Senator who knows her stuff, and is smart, and tough, and will work for the interests of all Texans. She should get along with people, sure; that's great, too. But it's not enough by itself, not for a U.S. Senator. What I want, really, is a Senator very much like Barabara Ann Radnofsky.
Semi-interesting and slightly ironic postscript: The very first post on the No Kay blog inadvertently nailed this. I even called it a "tenuous connection", but now I see it's the perfect symbol of Senator Hutchison.
Think for a moment of a fictitious young woman, just graduated from the University of Texas, who has had all three titles. She was prom queen in high school, and a cheerleader at UT, and a member of Pi Beta Phi. After graduation, she's about to start a job as a TV news reporter. Now ask yourself: is this the type of person you would envision being a U.S. Senator?
If she did become a Senator, how do you imagine she'd act? Would she be strong and independent, or would she go along with everyone else? If she had an old buddy in the White House, would she blindly support everything he wants? Can you imagine her coming up with very many bold or innovative ideas? For that matter, do you figure she'd make much of a splash at all? Or would she quietly blend in with and file behind all the smart people, trying not to make a fool of herself? Socially, on the other hand, she's no dummy - she'd make some good, powerful friends, and she'd be sure to be nice to everybody. She'd cover the whole state with little pork-barrel presents. And she'd probably even be so nice to members of the other party, to ensure her popularity, that they'd be hard-pressed to criticize her.
Of course you can picture it, because that's what we have in Kay. You can hardly read anything about her in the press that doesn't rave about how she's gotten the highest number of actual votes ever cast in Texas for one candidate (never mind that it was against that damned idiot, perennial non-candidate Gene Kelly). And no article would be complete without naming her "one of Texas' most popular statewide officeholders".
And that's my point: she's still running a popularity contest. She still wants to be crowned with a tiara, voted Most Likely To, and have the party at her house. She isn't a leader. She isn't a Senator. She's Miss Popular.
The U.S. Senate is the deliberative chamber of Congress. It doesn't decide whether to have a DJ or a band at prom; it decides whether to send American soldiers to fight, kill and die in far-off lands. It doesn't argue which cheer will get the Longhorn fans pumped; it sets federal budgets that affect every man, woman and child in this country. It doesn't debate whether two kegs will be enough for the Spring Fling; it works to protect our national interests from every threat imaginable, from hurricanes, to terrorists, to greedy corporations, to a power-hungry Executive Branch.
Here's a telling quote from a typical Hutchison love-letter article:
"I've been able to help all of our cities and counties get the help they need in whatever is their highest priority," Hutchison said. "Sometimes that's drought relief or wildfire relief or hurricane relief. Sometimes it's a major public works project that's important for their particular area."
It's all fine and good to get Texans the federal money and help they need; that's certainly part of our Congressional delegation's job. But it's only part of their job. There's a heck of a lot more to it than favors and little bribes to "all of our cities and counties".
So here we are, two days before the election. If the polls are right by half, then Kay's going to be one of Texas' Senators for another six years. I've been writing this blog and this site since April, and I'm just now getting it. This is it - this is the lens that makes Kay make sense.
This is why she broke her own strident term-limit promises: she can't bear to walk away from a popularity contest, especially when she's expected to win easily again. This is why, even though she's a "senior Senator", she's never heard of nationally. This is why she votes so badly on all the issues: because all the other kids in her clique do. And this is why everyone likes her - because her full-time job is making everyone like her.
Well, not to get to eloquent here or anything, but that sucks. I want a Senator who knows her stuff, and is smart, and tough, and will work for the interests of all Texans. She should get along with people, sure; that's great, too. But it's not enough by itself, not for a U.S. Senator. What I want, really, is a Senator very much like Barabara Ann Radnofsky.
Semi-interesting and slightly ironic postscript: The very first post on the No Kay blog inadvertently nailed this. I even called it a "tenuous connection", but now I see it's the perfect symbol of Senator Hutchison.
