By Irin Carmon
I have no idea if Ashley Judd would win if she runs against Mitch McConnell, a prospect looking likelier by the day. I would bet, however, that a lot of Republican men are going to make themselves look like misogynist bullies in the process. For Democrats, a Judd candidacy might be a win-win — if not in Kentucky, then on the national stage.
A couple of weeks ago, Karl Rove went on the O’Reilly Factor to explain why he’d decided to run a campaign video attacking a woman who has not yet declared she’s running. “She’s going to get to know that she is not going to be able to wait until, you know, the screen writers from California and the producers could make her look good, and prepare the ads and give her lots of lines to memorize so that she can handle these things,” he said.
O’Reilly had one question: “If you make her cry, will you feel bad?”
“No, I wouldn’t,” Rove responded. “O’Reilly, only you could be concerned with making a political figure cry. I mean, please.”
I’ll give Rove this much: There is no reason Judd should be protected from attacks on her positions and her potential status as a “political figure,” just because Bill O’Reilly is in the mood for some unsolicited chivalry. And Rove’s attack ad was studiously disciplined, sticking to tying Judd with President Obama and out-of-state values, with only the slightest hint at Hollywood glamour. But Rove didn’t show anywhere near that restraint with O’Reilly, unless restraint means not coming right out and calling Judd a dumb, pretty face. Judging by history, the rest of the right just won’t be able to help themselves either.
Rand Paul has already jumped right in. “Ashley Judd is a famous actress, she’s an attractive woman, and presents herself well, and from what I understand is articulate,” Paul told CNN on Feb. 10. “But the thing is, she doesn’t really represent Kentucky.” (If you weren’t already rooting for Judd, perhaps the image of the slimily condescending Paul having to someday partner with her in representing Kentucky will be enough.) And it’s only the beginning.
For the record, Judd is more than an “attractive woman.” She has a masters in public administration from Harvard’s Kennedy School of Government — the same one, incidentally, achieved by O’Reilly — and has spent years committed to political activism. It also seems oddly beside the point to argue about intellectual gravitas in an institution where another member once suggested that women who can’t afford birth control just Google it, to name one example of exceptional acuity. For his part, Paul once complained in a hearing that it was unfair that women could get abortions when his toilet didn’t flush to his satisfaction.
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