The accomplishments of our presidential candidates

In a National Post editorial, Rex Murphy sums up Hillary Clinton's rise perfectly:

There are some who see the prospect of Hillary Clinton winning the U.S. presidency as a milestone for modern feminism and women in general. Yet Clinton’s decades-long march to the White House owes much of its success to her rapscallion, silver-tongued husband, Bill Clinton. She did not storm the citadel of male power and privilege from the outside; she was escorted in under the banner of one of its most flamboyant high achievers. She came into politics by the back door of her mate’s male prowess. She may be the first female presidential nominee for a major party, but it’s hard to say she shattered glass ceilings. She has always had Bill’s key to the penthouse.

Bill Clinton was everywhere before her — always in front, opening every door, setting up the machinery for her advance and enabling her to reach a standing that she could never have achieved without him. The Hillary Clinton story is, in this case, A Handmaid’s Tale.

The true feminist icons were not enabled by men — they rose to the top on their merits and prowess alone. Consider the example of Golda Meir, who was elected prime minister of Israel nearly 50 years ago — before the advances of progressive thinking, before the societal push to get more women into public life. Meir was a pioneer, at a time when female heads of government were virtually unheard of.

On the other hand, Donald Trump is given far too much credit for his wealth, which he inherited from his father, Fred Trump. If Donald has any self-made virtue, it is as a shill for himself.

Ironically, both of the third party candidates, Libertarian Gary Johnson and the Green Party's Jill Stein, were self-made. Before entering politics, Johnson started his own mechanical contracting business and grew it into a multi-million dollar success story. As for Stein, she was a practicing physician for two decades before entering politics.

For personal accomplishments, the presidential choice is pretty clear: We have the silver spoon-fed elitists of the major parties versus the self-made candidates of the third parties.

This reminds me of the Grail choice in Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade, where the Grail Knight said, "But choose wisely, for while the true Grail will bring you life, the false Grail will take it from you." Amazing how it was the "poor" cup which was the actual Grail, and not the golden cup? I suspect the "golden" candidates of the major parties are similar false Grails.


"But choose wisely" - Indiana Jones and the... by WondaSouthard