Why is Hillary Clinton such a divisive figure among even Democrats?

Question

This is one of those weird anomalies I've never really understood. Hillary is like the Dallas Cowboys of politics. You either love her or hate her. There is nothing in between. It doesn't make any sense to me because she's a centrist politically, just like her husband. She doesn't have some radical, ultra-left wing agenda. She talks about wanting universal healthcare for all Americans, but everybody talks about universal healthcare. Even Republicans hammer that point. She voted for Iraq, but virtually everybody voted for Iraq because of inept intelligence. The only thing I can figure is there is some perception that she's some radical feminist. Where that comes from is another mystery. If anything I would think the opposite because she "stood by her man" when a lot of women wouldn't have after Bill's indiscretions. Is it simply a matter of some guys being unable to cope with a strong, independent woman? Very interested in opinions from both the Left and Right.

Answer 1

I am not a liberal by any means but I am a Democrat and you could call me ever-so-slightly left leaning if I had to fall on one side of the political fence.

I am not a big Hillary Clinton fan. I knew as soon as she began to run for the Senate in 2000 that, if she kept winning in NY, she would run for the White House in '08. I know many pols are hyper-ambitious but her ambition just seems so naked and so raw. Her positions are rather centrist, like her husband, so I should like her but I can’t seem to bring myself to that proposition. To me she seems like a liberal who is try to use meaningless things like that stupid flag-burning bill or Joe Liberman-style rants on violent video games to seem centrist. Maybe I’m wrong, or maybe Former President Clinton just had all that southern-friend charisma that he could smooth over such doubts.

It’s not just that she’s a woman and I'm a man. Florida Democratic congresswoman Debbie Wasserman-Schultz is liberal as almost anyone in Washington and yet I like her a lot. South Dakota Democratic congresswoman Stephanie Herseth is very conservative yet I like her too. I guess its part a sense of overall insincerity I feel from Sen. Clinton, that and perhaps a fear that she can’t win a general election race against a good GOP candidate.

Answer 2

I think she will get the nomination because of her clout. She may even win because she is a master triangulator and will divide and conquer the voting demographic. Being a woman will help her with that.

In addition to universal healthcare, she has recently made several statements regarding taking portions of profits from high-profit industries in order to re-distibute to earmarked government accounts. In other words, she is positioning herself to the left as the primaries near. However, this does make her a more polarizing figure b/c conservatives like me squint hard at any rhetoric that smells of socialism. Some guys may have difficulty with a strong independent woman, but others just don't like her record and how she rose to power. I happen to be married to a strong, independent woman who would nail my gonads to the roof if I did what her husband did. My wife also has no associates nor friends who have ever been murdered. My point is that, like her or not, you have to admit that she is shrewd and coldly calculating in addition to her strength and independence.

Her counter part, in my opinion, is Newt Gingrich. He is also divisive, but believes in small government more so than his competitors. But, he will never get the nomination for the GOP. It's wierd but it seems to be a difference between the parties. In the GOP, surround yourself in controversy, find yourself unemployed (eventually, cause I know you're thinking GWB). On the flip side, it appears that many Democrats actually are vaulted to prominance the more contorversial a figure they become. Look at the fates of Nixon v B. Clinton. Foley v T. Kennedy. And, again, Gingrich v H. Clinton, to name just a few.

Answer 3

First, I applaud your informative question because you saved me having to type a lot of things that most ppl are not aware of about her. IE, being a centrist, inept intelligence, etc...

The simple answer is unfortunately ignorance and really it is that simple.

Most ppl, if you hear them say, "HECK NO NOT HILLARY", then start asking them if they knew this or if they knew that... they say, "OH". They stop and start thinking.

The problem for Hillary, unlike Obama or even Edwards, is that because of this pre-determined negativity, she is at the starting line with a handicap.

You gotta remember and give credit, the R party was absolutely brilliant in slandering Bill. They spent Billions to bring him down and what was it, 5 years of investigations... only to come up with him not being 'forthcoming' about what most men don't call sex...

At first I wanted her to use Bill more... ppl love him with a feeling of nostalgia... BUT I am watching and realizing, she shouldn't. She is doing an awesome job of defining herself for her.