Women have negative reaction to McCain's treatment of Cindy after debate

[FlyingSquirrel]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_zCMCZP4CY

McCain, rather than helping his wife down the stairs, instead walked (fairly rudely) in front of her, went down the stairs in front of her and walked off to the left without a backward glance at her. It was like she was a prop on stage and then he was through with her.

I didn't even notice (probably 'cause I was watching Obama) but apparently a lot of women did who had been either leaning toward McCain or were undecided.

Interesting... simple manners can sometimes make all the difference I guess!

[madaboutharry]

1. You can see from far away

the coldness in that marriage. I just don't understand why she hasn't left him.

[THUNDER HANDS]

4. because he's a senator

and he gets to hobnob with important people and she gets to tag along.

[malta blue]

15. I think she has all the power in that relationship.

She is the one who got him where he is, it was her money and her connections.

Now, why hasn't she dropped him - hell if I know...

[yardwork]

32. I don't think that she has the power in the relationship at all.

She acts like an abused spouse, and he acts like an abuser.

[JoePhilly]

54. But she won't tell him how many houses they have.

[sickinohio]

5. I noticed that. I also noticed

the difference in how Obama sincerely hugged and gave Michelle a kiss, but it was just the opposite for McLame. He coldly gave Cindy just a peck on the cheek. There didn't seem to be the warmth between them compared to that between Michelle and Barack. You could see the genuine caring between Michelle and Barack. That was my impression. McLame just makes me ill. Especially after the "health of the woman" comment!!

[ejpoeta]

51. it looked to me like he realized he better show some affection towards cindy

almost like, oh yeah, cindy... and then gave her an, what appeared to me to be, obligitory hug. quick and not desired kind. you could see the stark difference between the mccains and the obamas. i did not see the going down the stairs, but i have the impression that mccain does not have much respect for women in general. more in his actions than actual words, though the air quotes was striking to me.

[City Lights]

14. I don't get it either.

Without her and her family's money and connections, where would John be? When out in public, the least he could do is pretend he likes and respects her.

[kswheels]

2. Of all the things to hate McTwitchy for...

This one is pretty lame.

[nc4bo]

6. My gramma always said that manners make the man. The lack of manners speaks volumes. nt

[Mira]

7. Not lame to me. It's a symptom of he empathy and capacity to feel.

There she stands, day after day, listening to the same stuff, probably paying all the bills to boot, and has no appreciation. As a matter of fact, I bet he is cruel and dismissing at home.
If using her like a potted plant is all he can muster in public, her home life is surely awful.
Another thing to be grateful for: not to be Cindy McCain.

[GalleryGod]

11. Sorry,but,I think you are responding to a previously dormant Troll.

[Mira]

28. Hmmmmm. I am so clueless sometimes. But what they hey. I feel strongly about this.

I hate it when men diss women and treat them like chopped liver the second they don't need them as flowers in their lapel, and it's worth piping up about it.

[bowens43]

9. It says a lot about his charecter.

[Name removed]

10. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[kswheels]

16. What exactly are you alerting on me for?

For disagreeing with you in the SNL thread? For being too active? For not posting for 3 years? All of the above?

Well, I alerted on you for harassing me. Works both ways.

[FlyingSquirrel]

21. I just put him on ignore, didn't think it was worth an alert. n/t

[Kind of Blue]

17. Not lame at all. It adds to the list of things to hate him for. You can

make the connections: his choice of Palin, his voting against equal wages for women, voting against funding for children's healthcare, and his statement about women's health during the debate, not to mention offering Cincontin up for a wet tee shirt contest and calling her a cunt, shutting out his own mother from the press, now shutting Palin off from the press during her campaign rallies, are among just a few things I can think of off the top of my head. They're all directly related to how he treats his wife and how he votes in Congress. It seems minor to you but speaks volumes to others that there's no doubt McAsshole has no regard nor respect for women.

[youthere]

18. Not lame at all...It's a window into his character...

You can tell a LOT about a person by the way they treat their spouse/partner.

[mwb970]

26. What are you talking about?

Nothing shows the character of a man like the way he treats others, especially his frackin' wife, for God's sake! McCain comes across as cold, heartless, and narcissistic. Not what we want in a president!

[yardwork]

33. It's not what we think here on DU - it's what all those people out there think.

Sorry 'bout that.

[hlthe2b]

36. Actually, it may be among the most revealing aspects of

his character-- he's a 'user' and this reflects a pattern of his narcissism. Do you really think he would have any more regard for the American people?

[RichGirl]

38. Lame?

Disrespecting your own wife is no big deal???? McCain has never once voted in favor of women regarding women's health issues. He has never voted for equal pay for women. This VIDEO...IS WORTH A THOUSAND WORDS!

[madaboutharry]

43. I think the way a man treats his wife and his

family says a good deal about his character and personality.

[LaurenG]

3. I noticed it

When you compare him to the way Barack treats Michelle, it's striking.

[BridgeTheGap]

8. Come on now...where's the compassion for a grumpy, mean, old, used up, senile, confused

ex-p.o.w.?

[SmileyRose]

12. I've been saying for months I kinda feel sorry for her.

Her husband is clearly rude and dismissive. With all the pics on the internet tubes of Cindy in crutches, casts, eye patches, etc, I have wondered if he gets physical too. No one really knows what goes on in a relationship. It's not at all possible to make any sort of judgement from a few fleeting moments on a debate stage. I dunno, I hope she's getting what she needs and that the marriage is healthy for them. THANK GAWD, my relationship with my husband is much more like that of Obama and Michelle, clearly and publically tender and gracious and appreciative rather than the McCain model of physically cold, distant and publically dismissive. No man I could ever respect would call his wife, or any other woman, the "C" word, even in jest.

[youthere]

20. No man I could ever respect...

would use that word to describe ANY woman. To me, that's the worst of the worst and I can proudly say that in 20 years of marriage my husband has never used it.

[Kind of Blue]

22. Absolutely! Let's give kudos to loving husbands who we know

love us for just the women we are and not afraid to show it anywhere and anytime. I love it! Come to think of it, I don't even see the Palins show any kind of deep affection as the Obamas do

[Mira]

30. I have the same underlying suspicions of potential violence in the home(s).

[Demit]

13. They are both living a lie. Just think of when this is over.

Everything they both sacrificed for ambition, and they didn't get the prize anyway. How empty it all will seem then.

[mucifer]

19. Of all the reasons to not vote for mcstupid, and I am a woman.

I just think about wars, the economy, healthcare etc. Walking in front of his wife wouldn't sway me one bit. But, if it gets us a few votes I'm happy.

[seabeyond]

23. interaction with ones mate and children, behavior to opposite gender reflects character

of a person.

it says somethng about who the person is.

another factor in seeing a person and that is an important factor in voting for a person. regardless of bush lack of smarts, if he had integrity, character he would not have damaged this country as he had. he has done the damage because of lack in character

[Kind of Blue]

24. Well, the OP said "Women have negative reaction to McCain's treatment

of Cindy after debate," not whether to vote for him or not. But I agree with you that if more votes are gained because people make the connection between his voting record against women and the treatment of Cindycontin, then more power to us.

[Essene]

25. ... petty...

what i see is him rushing down to greet somebody in the audience.

the left needs to stop obsessing about petty stuff like this, seriously... o.0

[LaurenG]

29. "the left" needs to stop? I think that WOMEN noticed his lack of respect

not "the left." :eyes:

[yellowcanine]

39. "the left"???? Why are you using Right Wing meme language?

The Right Wing loves to label things as "leftist" and then they can dismiss it as not worthy of any consideration by "thinking" people. Why are you adopting their methods for shutting down discussion? The fact that John McCain may have been "rushing to greet someone in the audience" does not excuse him from treating his wife or any other person with respect. By that logic you could excuse him ignoring someone waiting politely to talk to him - "Oh he was just rushing to greet someone." I did not see it but if he did that it is pretty much the definition of rude.

[RichGirl]

40. Are you serious????

Rushing down to greet someone???? He couldn't have shown some manners and taken his wife's arm and maybe greet that person with her???? That would have made him two seconds late in greeting this person???? Wouldn't you think that he would have taken her arm out of sheer HABIT??? Obviously, it is not his habit to be respectful of her.

[Mira]

45. I looked up your gender - something I have never done before...is this you?

[olegramps]

47. Is this the way that you would treat your spouse?

Yes I have to agree with you. That is just what I see, a man so consumed with his lust for power that he can't wait to rush off to kiss the ass of some promising prospect. He reminds my of "precious" in the Lord of the Rings in his quest for power. A person who would use anybody to obtain their goal.

[Zuiderelle]

52. The left?! LOL! I WISH all women were on the left. Well, maybe these women are now. Good!

[Spritz57]

27. That pesky broadened tv shot. . .

Obama excorted Michelle off the stage to the right with his arm across her back, McCain rushed down the stairs to Lieberman and left Cindy to fend for herself down the carpeted non-railed stairs in pumps. I commented on this as it happened and couldn't believe he lacked the discipline (and decency) to, at the very least, appear supportive of his wife.

[NewJeffCT]

31. If it was a pattern, I'd be more concerned...

However, one time of him not helping his wife and/or walking in front of her can just be a one time thing. Maybe he was pissed about how something in the debate went and had his mind elsewhere. Maybe he and his wife had just had an argument before the debate, or she mentioned something about how his hair is thinning out?

That said, I did notice him pushing his wife out in front of himself after the second debate so she could shake Obama's hand and he could avoid it. So, it may be a pattern?

But, there are tons of reasons to vote against McCain on strictly political grounds and I'm not going to lose sleep over this additional reason.

[yardwork]

34. It is a pattern, and it's obviously not the main reason we're supporting Obama here.

The OP noted that a lot of undecided and Republican women reacted negatively to McCain's behavior.

[polichick]

35. He always leaves the stage ahead of her like that.

[mainer]

37. McCain's history with women -- check out ROLLING STONE!

It has a devastating, devastating article about McCain's disgusting treatment of women over his lifetime. While he was married to Carole, he went down to Rio to "get laid." He verbally abused women who turned him down for dates. He screwed everything in sight.

[KsStorm]

53. No big surprise

considering how he offered her up at that stripper contest at the Sturgis biker rally! Oh what class!! :eyes:

[gabby garcia]

41. manners are another form

of body language. from his debate manners to the manner in which he treats his wife, McCain's scream dismissive, condescending, callous, uncaring, unrefined and egocentric. not exactly qualities I'm looking for in our next commander-in-chief.

[DeschutesRiver]

42. It happens

I know a wealthy couple - she has the trust fund, but low self esteem, and he is a complete McCain in attitude. If she dumped him, his position and the sway he holds over people and groups in his circle would evaporate almost overnight. He emotionaly abuses his wife on a daily basis, and she sucks it up repeatedly.

It is unbelievable to watch, but in my case, this couple has acted like the McCains for the entire 8 years I've known them.

[olegramps]

44. I am serious

I have thought that she acts like a wife who has been abused by her husband. She seems to be a reluctant companion to his thirst for power. She seems to be a person with buyer's remorse. I will bet that she never wanted to be put in this position. From what I have read, they spend very little time together. She refuses to live in Washington and sees him only a few times a month.

[RUMMYisFROSTED]

46. Walk behind a woman going up, in front of going down. In case of a fall.

Now, if he completely bailed on her it's a different story.

[Zuiderelle]

50. He should have held her hand while preceding her, instead of running two steps ahead.

[lunatica]

48. Like many abusers he probably tells her how much he needs her

in private. I've seen so many run after their wives the first time they leave begging and groveling about how much they can't live without her etc., etc.

She needs something in that relationship. Maybe being an heiress wasn't all wonderful. Maybe her parents were cold and mean people. Maybe she's scared to be alone and knows she's hanging on to whatever good looks she has by a mere thread. Maybe it's her job to make sure someone literally wipes his ass after he shits because from what I see he's incapable of using his arms that way. Just like it's probably impossible for him to comb his own hair. He probably has her convinced he can't function without her.

The cold treatment is probably something she's had all her life. She herself is pretty cold.

[Zuiderelle]

49. Even I, as a lesbian would help my partner down the steps, especially if she wore high heels.

It's not about gender roles, it's about common courtesy. It DOES show his character that he left her stranded on her own to navigate the steps with no railing.

I'm not someone who needs doors held open for me by men, but it's common courtesy to have deference to the person you are with, male or female, partner or not, especially in such a situation, and especially with her wearing shoes like that.

He's a pure asshole. I'm glad someone noticed this little tidbit.

[lunatica]

55. My ex father in law was like that with his mother and his wife

He thought nothing of yelling at them in public, but we never dared do it in private because they would stand up to him. I once asked my mother in law why she didn't just yell back at him and embarrass him into not doing it again and her response was "he never yells at me in private". I asked her why not and she said "He wouldn't dare because I would get angry"

She made my point but never got it. He could treat her like crap in public because she was too intimidated to stop him out of fear or whatever other people would think, but in private he behaved. Family dynamics get into ruts and it's very hard to change the patterns. It's very common to see couples be completely different in public than they are in private. Especially when they're in the spotlight in public. They put on a show of being a solid couple. It reminds me of the time DICK Morris' shoe sipping affair with a hooker was balsted into the public awareness. He had his wife come out and act as if she was supporting him in front of the flashing cameras. He tried to hold her hand but she managed to avoid it. Very soon thereafter she divorced him. It's all a show sometimes.