Crushes

by digby

I honestly don't know what to make of all these men in the political establishment who insist on using their mancrushes as some sort of guideline for who is and is not "presidential." Honestly, even Kathryn Jean Lopez's famous drooling over Mitt Romney isn't as embarrassing. Other than her predictable true confessions I've not seen a lot of females (except Margaret Carlson) going on about the candidates as if they are romance novel heroes. No, this particular form of dreamy prose is oddly confined to ostensibly straight, middle aged men who are so taken with certain alpha leaders that turgid descriptives just come pouring out of them.

Here's Roger Simon in the Politico, via Media Matters:



From Simon's June 6 column:

Here are the winners and losers of Tuesday night's Republican presidential debate, accurate to three decimal places.

FIRST PLACE: Mitt Romney

Analysis: Strong, clear, gives good soundbite and has shoulders you could land a 737 on. Not only knows how to answer a question, but how to duck one.


This is on top of his earlier embarrassment from a few months back:

But Romney is so polished and looks so much like a president would look if television picked our presidents (and it does) that sometimes you have to ask yourself if you are watching the real deal or a careful construction.

Romney has chiseled-out-of-granite features, a full, dark head of hair going a distinguished gray at the temples, and a barrel chest. On the morning that he announced for president, I bumped into him in the lounge of the Marriott and up close he is almost overpowering. He radiates vigor.


But, hey, at least Romney actually is a handsome, chiseled fellow. When they start going on and on about the babe magnet Fred Thompson or the hunky Giuliani I have to shake my head in wonder. There's something wrong with them and it has nothing to do with being gay or straight. This is way deeper than that --- so deep, in fact, that someone should do their psychology thesis on the subject. Why do so many male Washington courtiers have giggling mancrushes on phony Republican politicians? A question for the ages if there ever was one.


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