McCain: "Like a rented mule"

A CBSNews story today is about Obama's response to a lady who asked the question in a rally, "How are you going to beat Hillary?"

When I saw that headline, it reminded me of asking U.S. Senator John McCain the same question several months ago at a small meeting of conservatives in Chicago -- you know the meeting that created such a stir as to who was invited, who wasn't invited, who attended, who didn't attend? 

Well, at that meeting, I listened intently as several veteran conservatives deliberated with McCain. It was a very interesting and surprisingly frank dialogue.  I won't report anything anyone else said that day, but it's fair to discuss what he, a presidential contender, said in answer to the question I raised that day, which became the key reason I can't vote for John McCain.

After all the others in the room made their comments, I -- one of the few women in the room -- raised my hand.  The senator looked over and acknowledged me.  "Yes?" he said. 

"Senator, I have just a quick question that you haven't addressed today:  Just how do you intend to beat Hillary Clinton?"

I expected a quick rundown of grassroots operations, how he planned to win the primaries, how he was going to build on his experience in the U.S. Senate, how he'd get out the vote, something like that.  But he didn't.  His response?

"We're going to beat her like a rented mule in the debates," he said, enjoying his own cleverness.  He and several other men in the room chuckled, and he gave me a brief glance to see my response.

I tried very hard not to indicate my shock and embarrassment with his condescending reply.  It was obvious he was trying to be funny and lighten up the discussion.  But to me his comment wasn't funny at all. 

With all due respect to his military heroism, Senator McCain is an arrogant fool if he thinks he could ever out-talk Hillary Clinton.  Except for her blunder over the illegal drivers' license debate question last week, she's masterful at skating around incriminating topics.   Secondly, McCain is naive to think or say the nation would vote based on debate performances.  Thirdly, if he thought that answer would pacify me, he was sadly mistaken.

I'll be honest.  I wasn't sure what the term "beat it like a rented mule" meant at the time, but it was easy to figure out he meant to disrespect and degrade Senator Clinton.  I am guilty myself of doing that among friends, don't get me wrong, but for a U.S. Senator to say something like that about a colleague and a female to boot -- no matter how private the meeting, even among strangers -- was appalling.

I was thinking about the term "beat her like a rented mule" again today when I saw the Obama story.  Urban Dictionary has three definitions for the term.  Read them for yourself HERE, I'm too embarrassed to copy and paste them on Illinois Review. 

You tell me which one YOU think the good Senator McCain meant when he answered my question "How do you intend to beat Hillary Clinton?"

It may be how the "big boys" talk behind closed panel doors, but McCain revealed that day how out of touch he is and how he has no chance of gaining the support of the conservative movement's female half, and thus, the GOP nomination.

Because guess what, boys?  Those pesky "rented mules" -- Republican or Democrat -- can be very, very stubborn.