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Sure ... we DUers support Dr. Steinberg's right to stick to her medical practice and not follow Howard around like Laura follows George. WE support her right to maintain her practice if Dean gets into the White House. WE'RE willing to say their marriage is their business. But WE are already voting for the Democratic candidate. Much as we (and Dr. Steinberg) may not like it, a lot of the voting public is not going to accept a candidate whose spouse is completely invisible in the campaign. A lot of people got totally sick of Bill and Hill, and don't want to vote for anyone who's marriage smacks of "something weird." That's just politics.
A lot of people will not vote for someone unless they get a clearer picture of their character, which includes how they relate to their spouse and family. There will be people who wonder whether Dean is fit to be president if his wife won't even support him. Dean can lecture the electorate till he's blue in the face about his wife's right never to show her face on the campaign trail. But this is NOT the year for that lecture. And a lot of voters are going to be turned off by the lecture, anyway.
This may be the most important presidential election in America's history. Because if George gets four more years, we're not going to have a country for ANYONE to run -- no jobs, no economy, no environment, no health insurance, no patients in Judy Steinberg's waiting room. Whether or not Dean is the nominee this year, it's going to be a hard, nasty, uphill battle for the Democratic nominee.
Last night, on another thread, I was excoriated for suggesting it shouldn't be too much to ask for Judy to do a HANDFUL of photo ops, to throw those less-evolved voters a bone. Just take a DAY away from her practice now and then. I was accused of perpetuating the problem (of political spouses not being allowed to stick to their careers and ignore their political spouses' campaigns). Well, bitch at me all you want. But the fact remains that idealism about allowing a political spouse to go her own way is a luxury we CANNOT afford in THIS PARTICULAR election. It's too close, and it's too important. Dr. Steinberg could be the first First Spouse with a completely separate career (and be a kick-ass role model in the bargain). But she won't get to do ANYTHING of the KIND if Dean doesn't get elected. And he's not going to get elected ... no matter how much you guys want to live in some naive political fantasyland ... if she doesn't pitch in a little bit.
Four more years of Laura Freaking Bush is what's going to "perpetuate the problem!"
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