New attack – gender biased?
NEW YORK — Donald Trump and his Republican allies say Hillary Clinton is weak, lacks stamina and doesn’t look presidential.
Intent on undermining his Democratic rival, Trump and GOP backers are increasingly relying on rhetoric that academics and even some Republican strategists say has an undeniable edge focused on gender. Trump notably belittled his primary rivals. His criticism of Clinton goes beyond “Crooked Hillary,” and complaints about her use of a private e-mail server as secretary of state and her foreign policy decisions.
Clinton, Trump said in a speech last week, “lacks the mental and physical stamina to take on ISIS and all the many adversaries we face.”
He has repeatedly called attention to Clinton’s voice, saying listening to her gives him a headache. Last December, he mocked her wardrobe. “She puts on her pantsuit in the morning,” he told a Las Vegas audience. At rallies and in speeches, the billionaire mogul also has used stereotypes about women to demean Clinton, who stands to become America’s first female president if she wins in November.
A frequent point of criticism: Clinton doesn’t look like a typical president.
“Now you tell me she looks presidential, folks,” he said at a recent rally in New Hampshire. “I look presidential,” he insisted.
Trump’s allies have piled on. Running mate Mike Pence often uses the word “broad-shouldered” to describe Trump’s leadership and foreign policy style, a tacit swipe at Clinton. Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani argued that all of the miles Clinton logged during as secretary of state resulted in more harm than benefit. “Maybe it would’ve been better if she had stayed home,” said Giuliani, who more recently questioned Clinton’s health, suggesting an Internet search of the words “Hillary Clinton illness.”
“She is the first woman from a major party running for president, so gender is always at play,” said Dianne Bystrom, the director of the Carrie Chapman Catt Center for Women and Politics at Iowa State University.
Gender has always been tricky for Clinton. Throughout her career, she has struggled with how to confront gender norms, ranging from the extent to which to embrace the historic potential of her candidacy to whether she should be referred to by her married name.
Trump, meanwhile, has accused Clinton of “using the woman card” to boost her appeal.
