Predictably, CNN on Monday night featured the cry of sexism in reaction to Hillary Clinton’s virtual tie with an elderly socialist senator. After long-time CNN veteran David Gergen called Clinton “angry” in her speech, the cable channel went to former Philadelphia mayor Michael Nutter to complain, “Let us not slip into some gender bias here. A man raises his voice, he's enthusiastic.”
Nutter lectured, “A woman raises her voice, she's angry. Let's be very careful about how we characterize some of these things.” He compared, “You've been in big crowds. You have a tendency to talk a little louder. No one shouts louder than Senator Sanders.”
Peter Beinart, a former editor of The New Republic, also appeared to spin the bad news “ That Iowa's always been a bad state for the Clintons. Remember, she finished third there in 2008. Bill Clinton didn't even compete in 1992, so this is not as bad a night for her as it might appear."
A partial transcript is below:
CNN’s America’s Choice 2016: The Iowa Caucuses
02/02/16
01:11:21 a.m.
3 minutes and 19 secondsFORMER PHILADELPHIA DEMOCRATIC MAYOR MICHAEL NUTTER: Let's go back to some of that analysis earlier. First of all, I don't think we've mentioned the fact that 45-plus percent of Iowa Democrats identify themselves as socialists and so, you start with that kind of base in Iowa and what does Senator Sanders talk about? Let's break up the banks, we have a corrupt campaign finance system and we're against millionaires and billionaires. All, I mean — wherever you are. Okay. Let's tap into anger and Senator Clinton talked about taking action. Now, one might be a little more exciting and you have folks who want to be against all of those things, but ultimately you have to talk about solutions, how are you going to make change. So you see these age differences where older constituency supporting Senator Clinton because they want to get stuff done and maybe younger folks hearing all these exciting dynamic things, we're going to take on all these great challenges, fight the establishment, very, very exciting. What's the solution to any of these issues? And you rarely hear a solution from Senator Sanders on these particular issues.
PETER BEINART: I think Mayor Nutter's making an important point. You know, Bernie Sanders' base is white liberals. Iowa and New Hampshire are states with an extraordinarily high percentage of white liberals. In fact, there's only one state in the country that has a higher percentage of white liberals than Iowa and New Hampshire. It's Vermont, so although this — it looks kind of remarkable that Hillary Clinton couldn't beat him more decisively and she's behind in New Hampshire, when you look further out at states with a higher percentage of African-Americans and Latinos and where the white population is a little more conservative you see in fact the terrain looks pretty good for Hillary Clinton. That Iowa's always been a bad state for the Clintons. Remember, she finished third there in 2008. Bill Clinton didn't even compete in 1992, so this is not as bad a night for her as it might appear.
DAVID GERGEN: I know, but what it will do is bring in a lot more money in and we've all agreed on that to Sanders. And now I think he can look toward can he take California? That may not be out of the question for him. He may have a hard time in the southern states. She'll lose New Hampshire. She'll win Nevada. She'll win South Carolina, so Nevada's got a lot of Latinos voting. South Carolina's got a lot of African-Americans. She'll win those two states. Then, it heads to Super Tuesday. She'll do very well on super Tuesday, but there are these other states in play where Sanders conceivably could win.
FORMER REPUBLICAN CONGRESSMAN MIKE ROGERS: Remember, she has an enthusiasm gap. It’s very clear.
GERGEN: Exactly.
ROGERS: And I tell you what, we ran into this as Republicans in the last go-around and it is real and it is concrete and it will drag this campaign. That's why I think the big loss for Hillary Clinton tonight was exactly that. It showed that this enthusiasm gap was there and it will follow her even into the south. I think the South, but I think she —
NUTTER: You reran some of Senator Clinton's — Secretary Clinton's speech tonight. You've been in big crowds. You have a tendency to talk a little louder. No one shouts louder than Senator Sanders. All night long. He is shouting. He is literally almost the Howard Peal of this campaign.
GERGEN: But Hillary was so angry compared to Sanders. There — I thought she was pointed.
NUTTER: But I don't know if she was angry. But again, let us not slip into some gender bias here. A man raises his voice, he's enthusiastic.
AMANDA CARPENTER: She could smile.
NUTTER: A woman raises her voice, she's angry. Let's be very careful about how we characterize some of these things.
