2016 Postmortem
In reply to the discussion: Clinton used race as a campaign tactic in 2008 - she's doing worse now [View all]loyalsister
(13,390 posts)I see that ruthlessness in her hawkish language and a policy leanings.
It creeped me out when she said she was proud to have "the Iranians" as her personal enemy. It sounded paranoid and self centered, and disgustingly Islamophobic.
Your Darwinian analysis reminds me of the fact that Obama has siblings living in other parts of the world. He spent a lot of time getting to know them and other family members in Kenya. I think having such a personal connections outside of one's own country could easily carry a lot of meaning for a world leader. I bet we will have an opportunity to read about it someday.
From what I understand Bernie and O'Malley both have relatively recent immigration stories. Bernie, no doubt has a rare connection to other parts of the world.
From what I have read, O'Malley wears his Irish loud and proud. I bet both of their understandings of persecution are very different from us white folks whose families arrived here in the 17th or less centuries.
I agree that it is smart and natural that protection of one's lineage would be more locally focused for someone who has less awareness of heritage outside the US. It doesn't mean we have to support and implicitly endorse it, though.