The Carly Trap

 

carly-fiorina6Carly Fiorina is an intellectual. She’s a business-minded, seemingly street-smart political candidate, and doggone it, people like her.

I met her at an election event in 2010 when she ran against the vile Barbara Boxer. I was pleasantly surprised how she actively listened to my enthusiastic diatribe about business leaving California for friendlier environs. Her lower-regulation response tickled my free-market sensibilities.

While there is currently no smart money on Fiorina winning anything other than witty zingers on a GOP debate dais, what she represents as a person, candidate, female and voice of the conservative cause should not be underestimated.

In reality, she is/will become the de facto conservative counterweight to the Hillary 2016 gender war. But her response to identity politics will face tremendous scrutiny. Every word she says will be picked clean by partisans and a Leftist media.

Conservatives must be careful: we are always eager to show the world that the Left does not have a monopoly on enlightenment. To prove we are not racists, sexists, homophobes, or haters of puppies and rainbows, we publicly show our support of those we think are not only viable candidates, but who allow us to counter Leftist propaganda of conservative intolerance.

Carly knows this. She cherishes being in this role, and will maximize it to full effect.

THIS is where she will fall into the trap. She will gain followers, raise money, and attract voters for the same reason Carly says we shouldn’t vote for Hillary: her gender. If she is to play the “gender shouldn’t count” card against Hillary, then she must thread the needle delicately.

If she responds to every reporter’s question with “would you ever ask a man running for President that question?” then her act will get tired quickly. (The linked article is from TechCrunch,  which one would think would be supportive due to her Silicon Valley/HP bona fides).

She needs to rise above her gender while pointing out Hillary has support simply because of hers. It must be done at opportune moments, sparingly.

If she can do this successfully, then maybe we could see her in the next cabinet or, best-case scenario, following the VP nominee footsteps of Ferraro and Palin.

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  1. DocJay Inactive
    DocJay
    @DocJay

    Carly will easily rise above her gender(issues, I meant gender issues…please baby  please).  She is a smart classy person.

    • #1
  2. raycon and lindacon Inactive
    raycon and lindacon
    @rayconandlindacon

    Carly can overcome the gender trap the way Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas overcame the race trap.  He does not address race and political policy issues in the same breath.  To deal with policy issues unrelated to one’s sex, and that is most issues, Carly must stay out of the Hillary swamp.

    • #2
  3. kelsurprise Member
    kelsurprise
    @kelsurprise

    DocJay:Carly will easily rise above her gender. She is a smart classy person.

    Rise above her gender“????   Just what is THAT supposed to mean?!!!

    (Wow, that was supposed to be a joke but  . . . this sense of righteous outrage is downright intoxicating.   I gotta go find some more stuff that offends me . . . )

    • #3
  4. DocJay Inactive
    DocJay
    @DocJay

    kelsurprise:

    DocJay:Carly will easily rise above her gender. She is a smart classy person.

    Rise above her gender“???? Just what is THAT supposed to mean?!!!

    (Wow, that was supposed to be a joke but . . . this sense of righteous outrage is downright intoxicating. I gotta go find some more stuff that

    offends me . . .

    Rise above gender issues is what I meant.  But if it feels better to stay angry I’m here to be pimp slapped by the ovaries of righteous indignation.

    • #4
  5. user_1065645 Member
    user_1065645
    @DaveSussman

    kelsurprise:

    DocJay:Carly will easily rise above her gender. She is a smart classy person.

    Rise above her gender“???? Just what is THAT supposed to mean?!!!

    (Wow, that was supposed to be a joke but . . . this sense of righteous outrage is downright intoxicating. I gotta go find some more stuff that offends me . . . )

    Walk around Disneyland for a day… you’ll find a lifetimes worth of disdain.

    • #5
  6. EThompson Member
    EThompson
    @

    I like Fiorina very much despite the fact she will not go down in HP history as a success, but I thoroughly admired her campaign against Boxer in 2010.

    David, this is a true switch for me- I’m admitting to liking a good pol who was a mediocre business person. :)

    She lost the 2010 election but impressed me with her willingness to speak for the Central Valley and fight against the EPA’s destructive effects upon this country’s most productive agricultural region.

    I’d love to see her run on Rubio’s ticket.

    • #6
  7. user_1065645 Member
    user_1065645
    @DaveSussman

    EThompson:I like Fiorina very much despite the fact she will not go down in HP history as a success, but I thoroughly admired her campaign against Boxer in 2010.

    David, this is a true switch for me- I admit to liking a good pol who was a mediocre business person. :)

    She lost the 2010 election but impressed me with her willingness to speak for the Central Valley and fight against the EPA’s destructive effects upon this country’s most productive agricultural region.

    I’d love to see her run on Rubio’s ticket.

    ET, I agree with your ticket, although the HP challenges she faced (not a result of her decisions, but happened on her watch) will be tirelessly used against her. Imagine if Baine Capital had problems under Romney!

    BTW: The Delta Smelt debate has gotten worse. In the worst drought in a generation, EPA still are channeling freshwater to save the bait causing farmers to go bankrupt.

    • #7
  8. Leigh Inactive
    Leigh
    @Leigh

    My general view is that I respect people with no remotely credible chance at the office more if they don’t seek it.  But I can’t help thinking it’s probably good for the party to have Carly Fiorina on stage.  She represents the party and conservatism well.

    • #8
  9. EThompson Member
    EThompson
    @

    David Sussman

    BTW: The Delta Smelt debate has gotten worse. In the worst drought in a generation, EPA still are channeling freshwater to save the bait causing farmers to go bankrupt.

    Quelle surprise!

    BTW, Bain C would never have suffered problems under Romney; he was assigned to save the mother company – Bain. You don’t know me well enough yet but I think the sun rises and sets according to this man. :)

    FYI, an excellent Carly quote from NR print today:

    “What Hillary Clinton desperately wants to talk about is that she gets to be the first woman president. What she desperately wants to talk about is there’s a war on women. What she desperately wants to talk about is playing the gender card…

    If I am standing next to her on a general election debate stage, she can’t talk about those any of those things. You know what she’s going to have to talk about? Her record. “

    • #9
  10. Ryan M Inactive
    Ryan M
    @RyanM

    Totally agree.  No conservative should ever give that answer to a question.  Even if it is 100% appropriate.  If you want to call out a reporter on asking one thing to one woman and another to a different woman, that’s one thing – but even there, attacking liberal bias is something for pundits to do or maybe to do in writing or on twitter.  She should have just answered the question.  Horrible move in my opinion.

    • #10
  11. user_105642 Member
    user_105642
    @DavidFoster

    I don’t think that’s the issue with Carly.  The perception that she didn’t do very well at HP…and that she was arrogant (reportedly replacing the lobby pictures of the founders with her own) would need to be overcome.

    • #11
  12. EThompson Member
    EThompson
    @

    david foster:I don’t think that’s the issue with Carly. The perception that she didn’t do very well at HP…and that she was arrogant (reportedly replacing the lobby pictures of the founders with her own) would need to be overcome.

    I’m over it. My hero did exceptionally well at Bain and where did that get him?

    • #12
  13. Frozen Chosen Inactive
    Frozen Chosen
    @FrozenChosen

    I dismissed Carly until I heard her on the podcast.  I thought she answered the questions she was given instead of just spouting talking points.  She impressed me – the GOP could do a lot worse!

    • #13
  14. Barfly Member
    Barfly
    @Barfly

    Carly’s all talk and feminine symbolism. Her shallowness and incompetence sank a premier company. I’m alarmed at the readiness of sensible people to take her at face value. You’d think with the depth of this year’s bench we wouldn’t be so needy.

    • #14
  15. Fake John Galt Coolidge
    Fake John Galt
    @FakeJohnJaneGalt

    Barfly:Carly’s all talk and feminine symbolism. Her shallowness and incompetence sank a premier company. I’m alarmed at the readiness of sensible people to take her at face value. You’d think with the depth of this year’s bench we wouldn’t be so needy.

    I am not a Carly fan but to say she sunk HP after she took its helm is a little like saying the captain of the Titanic sank the ship AFTER it hit the iceberg.  HP was already sinking when she took the helm she was not able to save it.  That is damning enough since her whole purpose of being hired, her job was to save it.

    • #15
  16. Barfly Member
    Barfly
    @Barfly

    Fake John Galt:I am not a Carly fan but to say she sunk HP after she took its helm is a little like saying the captain of the Titanic sank the ship AFTER it hit the iceberg. HP was already sinking when she took the helm she was not able to save it. That is damning enough since her whole purpose of being hired, her job was to save it.

    Not my understanding. It wasn’t doing well, but it wasn’t dying. The misguided Compaq deal was the bullet.

    • #16
  17. Al Kennedy Inactive
    Al Kennedy
    @AlKennedy

    David Sussman:She needs to rise above her gender while pointing out Hillary has support simply because of hers. It must be done at opportune moments, sparingly.

    I think Carly will be able to do that.  Generally, when she talks about Hilary, she is contrasting her accomplishments with Hilary’s lack of accomplishments.  The way she talks about leadership and some of its components like integrity, honesty, and decision making are also effective genderless criticism of Hilary.  I second Doc Jay: she is a smart, classy person.  She is also a great communicator.  Right now, she is not my top pick for president, but don’t underestimate her.  If she won the nomination, I would enthusiastically support her.

    • #17
  18. Nanda Panjandrum Member
    Nanda Panjandrum
    @

    Would like to hear and see more…Thanks for this, DS!

    • #18
  19. captainpower Inactive
    captainpower
    @captainpower

    Ryan M:Totally agree. No conservative should ever give that answer to a question. Even if it is 100% appropriate. If you want to call out a reporter on asking one thing to one woman and another to a different woman, that’s one thing – but even there, attacking liberal bias is something for pundits to do or maybe to do in writing or on twitter. She should have just answered the question. Horrible move in my opinion.

    Holy cow. I went back and read the article. Apparently SHE ACTUALLY ANSWERED THIS WAY.

    http://techcrunch.com/2015/05/05/carly-fiorina-just-played-the-gender-card-all-wrong/

    • #19
  20. captainpower Inactive
    captainpower
    @captainpower

    BTW, for those who want a bit more background on Carly Fiorina, see prior thread.

    http://ricochet.com/keep-eye-carly/

    Here is a comment I made:

    http://ricochet.com/keep-eye-carly/comment-page-1/#comment-2770308

    And yet, I wan to believe! I’m even willing to bygones be bygones and excuse her possible failure as a businessperson if she is a good politician. So far, I haven’t seen anyone bring HP up though in a real grilling way. So no idea how she will handle that from someone who isn’t already on her side.

    • #20
  21. Al Kennedy Inactive
    Al Kennedy
    @AlKennedy

    Leigh: But I can’t help thinking it’s probably good for the party to have Carly Fiorina on stage. She represents the party and conservatism well.

    I agree Leigh.  I hope she ends up on the ticket.  She is a truly accomplished woman as opposed to Hilary.  A constant contrast between Carly and Hilary shouts out to the voter: If a female president is your primary concern, backing Hilary is putting your money on the wrong horse.  You should be supporting Carly.

    • #21
  22. Guruforhire Inactive
    Guruforhire
    @Guruforhire

    EThompson:

    David Sussman:

    BTW: The Delta Smelt debate has gotten worse. In the worst drought in a generation, EPA still are channeling freshwater to save the bait causing farmers to go bankrupt.

    Quelle surprise!

    BTW, Bain C would never have suffered problems under Romney; he was assigned to save the mother company – Bain. You don’t know me well enough yet but I think the sun rises and sets according to this man. :)

    Does your husband know that? ;)

    • #22
  23. Guruforhire Inactive
    Guruforhire
    @Guruforhire

    Personally, I like it when conservative women start throwing grenades like its a bad action film.

    I may make the second political donation of my life.

    Some leftwing douche that got linked to on my wifes facebook feed said “Carly Fiorina is like ayn rand without the empathy.”  I said “Are they trying to make me fall in love?”

    • #23
  24. Ricochet Inactive
    Ricochet
    @KermitHoffpauir

    Pretty bad of her to leave campaign staff hanging with unpaid bills from end of 2010 until she finally dumped some money into that campaign account the first of this year, FINALLY paid her bills, and then filed to terminate her Senate campaign account THIS YEAR.

    I must question her conservative values of leaving others holding the bag.

    • #24
  25. captainpower Inactive
    captainpower
    @captainpower

    Kermit Hoffpauir:Pretty bad of her to leave campaign staff hanging with unpaid bills from end of 2010 until she finally dumped some money into that campaign account the first of this year, FINALLY paid her bills, and then filed to terminate her Senate campaign account THIS YEAR.

    I must question her conservative values of leaving others holding the bag.

    source?

    • #25
  26. user_1065645 Member
    user_1065645
    @DaveSussman

    Good video from Carly. “People who come across me don’t underestimate me for long”.

    • #26
  27. Nanda Panjandrum Member
    Nanda Panjandrum
    @

    Very much appreciate the clip, DS!  (Enjoy Cavuto a lot, too.)

    • #27
  28. captainpower Inactive
    captainpower
    @captainpower

    Kermit Hoffpauir:Pretty bad of her to leave campaign staff hanging with unpaid bills from end of 2010 until she finally dumped some money into that campaign account the first of this year, FINALLY paid her bills, and then filed to terminate her Senate campaign account THIS YEAR.

    I must question her conservative values of leaving others holding the bag.

    if you are still reading this thread, I am unable to Private Message you to follow up on this.

    • #28
  29. user_1065645 Member
    user_1065645
    @DaveSussman

    captainpower:

    Kermit Hoffpauir:Pretty bad of her to leave campaign staff hanging with unpaid bills from end of 2010 until she finally dumped some money into that campaign account the first of this year, FINALLY paid her bills, and then filed to terminate her Senate campaign account THIS YEAR.

    I must question her conservative values of leaving others holding the bag.

    if you are still reading this thread, I am unable to Private Message you to follow up on this.

    I did a search on this at it was news to me too. Apparently KH is correct. Here is the link.

    • #29
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