A citizen and a voter
by Tom Sullivan
Digby linked yesterday to a video about Alicia Machado, the former Miss Universe whose treatment by Donald Trump became an issue late in Monday's debate. Clinton unnerved Trump when she brought up how he had called Machado "Miss Piggy" after she gained weight after the 1996 pageant, and "Miss Housekeeping" in reference to her being a Latina.
Clinton's mention of Alicia Machado got so under his Trump's skin that on Fox and Friends Tuesday Trump doubled down on the decades-old weight-shaming smears that led to years of anorexia and bulimia for Machado.
The Guardian profiles how Machado and her struggles figure into the presidential campaign:
But it isn’t 1996 any more; Machado, far from being a girl, is a 39-year-old woman, and if body-shaming constituted good press for Trump’s fledgling beauty pageant business then, it seems less of a good look for his presidential campaign today. It’s a similar case with his continued insistence on how right he is to call women out for their weight. Machado understands this, perhaps even more acutely than Clinton, because she’s lived it; and she is willing to relive and keep reliving this painful episode if it means shedding light on a man she feels has no business anywhere near the Oval Office.For a man so focused on appearances and weight, Trump is in no position to criticize. There are lots of less than good looks to his candidacy:
On a call organized by the Clinton campaign on Tuesday afternoon billed as a chance to let Machado respond to Trump’s most recent attacks, the former beauty queen was much more interested in talking about his Democratic rival, whose mention of her story in the debate the night before had moved her to tears. She “never imagined it would matter to someone so powerful”, she said.
But as someone who straddles two powerful voting blocs this election cycle, Machado is a double threat to Trump, and she feels that her celebrity means she has a responsibility to speak up about her experiences when they can help people. “If I can be a voice for my Latino community in this moment, I will do it,” she told the Guardian.