Policies, positions, and history should matter more than alleged "appearance and demeanor"..

[tokenlib]

Reagan "looked" presidential. and look at what he did for us... Who will stand with the 99%?
Who will stop the excesses of Wall Street and the big banks without being bankrolled by them?
Weasel words on Social Security when most people have no retirement savings? Take your "looking presidential" with "Third Way" approval and shove it....

Defend Hillary's positions and the track records of her and her friends... Appearances and demeanor??

[marym625]

1. third-way is a third party

It's based on not excepting the Democratic platform in economics.

[1StrongBlackMan]

2. Agreed; but, we live in a social and superficial world. n/t

[Snotcicles]

12. Doesn't mean you have to succumb to it.

Antonio Porchia: Among the superficial, if you are not one of them, one of them has to lead you by the hand.
And another of his.
Antonio Porchia: When the superficial wearies me, it wearies me so much that I need an abyss in order to rest.

[JaneyVee]

3. Reagan looked presidential??

Reagan looked like a bumbling idiot. And acted like one.

[tokenlib]

9. I agree with you, but the legend perpetuated is otherwise...n/t

[MohRokTah]

4. Perception is reality

It's what gets people elected, and if you're not elected, your policy positions mean precisely nothing.

[Smarmie Doofus]

5. To vote for her is tantamount to saying: "It doesn't matter."

>>>>Who will stop the excesses of Wall Street and the big banks without being bankrolled by them? >>>>>

[upaloopa]

10. To vote for her is tantamount to saying: "It doesn't matter."

In your world
In your mind
In your opinion
You speak for you nobody else.

[PowerToThePeople]

15. I agree Smarmie.

eom

[Scuba]

6. Hey, you're not suggesting that Hillary's supporters are so shallow as to care about looks, are you?

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10026507869

[tokenlib]

7. They apparently think it sells..So many "she looked so presidential" threads and comments....

..while ignoring positions and track record. Follow the money...

[Scuba]

8. I believe they said that about McKinley too, that he looked the part. Lousy President.

[tokenlib]

13. But if it wasn't for McKinley, we wouldn't have had Pres Teddy Roosevelt...

And he wanted to break the power of the trusts.. just as we need to break the power of the big banks and the 1%

[randome]

11. Despite the total absence of wrong-doing, we heard that the email 'scandal' did not look good.

If that's not superficial hand-wringing, what is?
[hr][font color="blue"][center]"If you're bored then you're boring." -Harvey Danger[/center][/font][hr]

[Boomer]

14. Cannot agree with the OP

"Appearance and demeanor" are part of the job description for president, added on to their policy position. The president's role is to inspire confidence, to lead, to represent us both here and abroad.

This isn't a superficial quality, but neither should it be the ONLY quality of a president. The ideal candidate would be someone with integrity, admirable policies, and the appearance and demeanor to convey that vision to the world. In reality no one person easily encompasses all these qualities. To my mind, FDR was the last president to nail it on all counts.

Until we get another FDR, and I don't see one on the horizon, we just have to accept that most candidates are a bit weak on one point or another.

[NurseJackie]

16. +1 (Excellent post.)

"This isn't a superficial quality, but neither should it be the ONLY quality of a president. The ideal candidate would be someone with integrity, admirable policies, and the appearance and demeanor to convey that vision to the world."

Perfect summary.

[Boomer]

18. Thanks, Nurse Jackie (love that show too!)

In terms of our current crop of Democrats running for the presidential nomination, Sanders most closely matches my policy desires, but Clinton is outstanding in "looks presidential". She has the most depth of experience, especially in foreign policy and relationships with global leaders.

So I'm torn, but ultimately Sanders is my first choice because HRC (to my mind) falls too far short of consistent policy commitments.

If HRC does win the nomination (as is expected), then that's who I'll vote for in the general election and I'll take some comfort in her ability to perform the role in a distinguished manner.

[NurseJackie]

19. I took an online quiz the other day,

... and Bernie matched me at 97%, Hillary matched me with 95%. She's still my first choice, and you explained my feelings perfectly ... but if necessary, I'll feel better about casting my vote for him.

[HereSince1628]

17. People make their own minds up using -whatever-...

Been that way as long as I've been paying attention... and that goes back to Kennedy vs Brown, Smathers, McClain (sp?), and good ol' Adlai -I walked a hole in my shoes campaigning and all it got me was sore feet-Stephenson

Some people only vote for people they are told can 'win'. Wouldn't want a precious vote wasted on 'a loser'.

Some people apparently are willing to vote on ethnicity and gender.

Some people may pay attention to policy but have litmus tests/hair triggers re specific issues.

It's millions of singularities drifting along with the milieu, a chaos with candidates attempting to establish functions that make them strange attractors.