One of my staffers dared to ask a personal question today. “Senator, what’s on your iPod?”
Our country has serious problems in domestic and foreign policy issues, and I’m paying someone with a college degree and a desire to help shape America’s future to ask questions like that.
I’m trying to be more spontaneous and quickly responded with, “Beatles, Stones, Aretha, Fleetwood Mac, Eagles, U2. Why do you ask?” Following up with a question of my own makes the whole conversation seem spontaneous, but I’m back on top. I like to be on top.
“It’s a question we get from reporters all the time. I just wanted to hear it from you, rather than after it’s been filtered by the press,” she said.
I thought, “Good girl, but there’s so much you don’t know about politics.“ It isn’t what I listen to that matters, it’s what’s on my iPod that people assume I will listen to that matters. It may seem subtle, but the difference is huge.
So I said, “Oh, Grasshopper. Why is it that you do not know already the answer to your question?”
There’s a broad spectrum of voters out there; old, young, savvy, idiots. My choice of music says something about me and my tastes and background and pesonal habits. These are all things people want to know because, Lord knows, this is how mainstream Americans pick a president. Voting record, knowledge of government, ability shape the hearts and minds of the masses– means nothing when all voters want to know about is your choice of music.
Bill had the same thing about personal issues, including questions people shouldn’t even be allowed to ask, but do so anyway. For example, “Boxers or briefs?” Not for me. For Bill. He said, “Usually briefs.”
See? Perfectly honest, yet broad enough not to offend anyone. What kind of music do I like? The kind voters want to hear that I like.
I finished off my staffer’s response with another question. “Why did we name our daughter ‘Chelsea?‘”
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