Jessica

Vozel

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December 3, 2007

Hillary Clinton Aced Hostage Situation, But the Real Lesson Is That the Stakes are Serious

In the aftermath of the fortunately injury-free hostage situation that took place at Sen. Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign office in New Hampshire on Friday, pundits are analyzing Clinton’s response and deeming her either a capable leader or a capitalizing politician, depending on their previous opinion of her. Some, not surprisingly, are even remarking that the hostage situation was awfully convenient for the Clinton campaign. 

Away from subjective opinion, however, one thing is certain: The situation was an apt indicator of how a perspective politician handles a crisis situation. Amidst the carefully crafted campaign speeches and photo-ops, sometimes the real world intervenes and reminds us that politics don’t happen in a vacuum. 

In this elongated presidential campaign, ideological issues have taken a front-burner position (values voters, anyone?) and the minutiae of campaigning – haircuts, cleavage, subtle digs made by and about the candidates’ spouses – has become as newsworthy as concrete politics. In fact, such details might be even more newsworthy. During the development of the crisis, The New York Times relegated the hostage story to its Caucus blog. 

Hopefully this situation will open us up to the fact that this campaign is not the Super Bowl, propagated for our entertainment, but an election to determine who will lead our country for the next four to eight years, for better or worse, through tragedies like hostage situations, war, natural disasters and other situations that we can’t even foresee. In the American news media, where drama is often manufactured, the hostage situation in New Hampshire is a reminder that our world is full of organic, messy drama that often plays out when we least expect it. 

As far as Clinton’s response goes, she kept in touch with police forces for updates throughout the ordeal and afterward met with the hostages. She calmly addressed the press with a succinct statement that touched on her motherly concern for the hostages, her relief at their safety and the appreciation she has for campaigners across the political spectrum, who work tirelessly for their candidate and for the country.   

Was this a perfect opportunity for Clinton to display her capabilities? Sure. Did she take full advantage of that opportunity? Of course. Yet, any words out of Clinton’s mouth would have garnered the same skeptical “she’s-capitalizing-on-a-crisis” reactions from her detractors. 

And for those who conspiratorially suggest that the whole incident was manufactured by the Clinton campaign, they should take into consideration that the man who entered the campaign office with road flares duct-taped around his waist and demanded to speak to Sen. Clinton was a man with a documented history of criminal activity and mental illness. No one, even a crazy liberal, would take that chance. If she were to mastermind a hostage situation for a campaign boost, I’d hope someone as educated as Clinton would choose a reasonable person without a criminal record to carry out the plot. 

But I, like anyone else who chooses to comment on anything a politician does, must recognize my own subjectivity. While I’m not a staunch Clinton supporter, I am a liberal, and thus have to acknowledge that my opinion is infused with bias, even if unconsciously. As a liberal, I briefly entertained the thought that with all of the demonizing of Hillary Clinton that goes on in right-wing circles, it’s no wonder someone chose to get violent. However, I refrained from further exploring that thought because the president has been similarly demonized by liberals and if someone were to commit violence against him or his staff, I would not appreciate if the liberals were blamed because they exercised their right to free speech. 

It also must be acknowledged that Leeland Eisenberg, the hostage-taker, gave no indication of his political affiliation and was not specifically lashing out against Clinton. He wanted reform in the way mental illness is treated in America. We have all become so wrapped up in our partisan worlds in this election that we forget that tragedy does not discriminate. We would be wise to acknowledge that politics are not a game with winners and losers, but a process with real consequences.

© 2007 North Star Writers Group. May not be republished without permission.

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