I don't think any of us can be sure that Mrs. Clinton is not or has not experienced any sexism especially during this campaigning process. However, from the information that I do get from the various media outlets, I don't honestly believe her experiences with sexism have been validated. With the exception of the individual with the "iron my shirt" t-shirt and the comment of her having "testicular fortitude" I don't hear much about gender to the degree that I hear race being brought during this campaign. Honestly, I have alway sympathized with her because since Mr. Clinton was in office she has always been cast as the "witch." The one thing about these comments and perceptions of Hillary is that she has never seemed to be the type of women that would allow sexist statements to hold her back or tear down her confidence. It is unfortunate that a woman who is strong, decisive, and capable of accomplishing work within an environment in which men are the majority, must be cast as the "witch" whereas a competent male would not have a negative connotation associated with him. I think Hillary has a dilemma, no different from Obama's race. She just can win for losing. Either she looks weak for playing the sexist card and would inadvertently prove that she may not be "emotionally" capable of running the country because she can't take any criticism or she has to quietly deal with the misogynistic undertones of much of our societies perceptions and language. Unfortunately, because she has never seemed to me as the feminist type, I only see her as being an opportunist. She seems to be playing the gender card now because it may be convenient. The funny thing is that she has been playing the political game very well. She has used race in her campaign frequently and now wants to complain about sexism towards her. I am a woman. However, I don't believe Hillary has genuine feminine concerns.

Sent by Arelis | 4:49 PM ET | 05-21-2008

Thanks for the stellar panel of women that brought such diverse points of view on the topic of sexism & H.R.C.
I loved that the women brought such nuance to the whole subject !

Sent by Robert H. | 5:51 PM ET | 05-21-2008

I loved your roundtable, I think any objective observer of the coverage of this campaign can see sexism at play. The case that sexism has ruined Sen. Clinton's run for the Presidency is harder to quantify. She starts off the race with the highest name recognition of anyone in the race, she begins with status few others can touch, that of former First Lady and Senator. I contend that Sen. Clinton's sex may have played a part in her feeling as though she needed to show just how tough she was to the exclusion of all the other qualities that have made women the extraordinary leaders they continue to be. Sen. Clinton will lose because she chose to separate herself from her progress roots and run as a mainstream do anything, promise a gas holiday politician. I would further assert that even though there have been some outrageous things said about Sen Clinton none of them come close to the Rev. Wright circus. If anyone thinks that whole thing wasn't about racial panic they are just not paying attention. It seems to me that most of the problems the Clinton campaign ran into are self inflicted wounds. We who care about these issues should work to create greater equity and not wait until we need to use the "issue" as blandishments to explain our defeats.

Sent by Raul | 8:04 PM ET | 05-21-2008

I think it's a shame that HRC chose to play the sex card this late in the game. I have no doubt that sexism does persist around her campaign, but to shade her campaign as a woman's right issue does a dis-service to her supporters who are feminist. Ultimately her actions will do more harm than good to the feminist cause.

Sent by Richard J. | 5:07 AM ET | 05-23-2008

I think that it is unrealistic to say that sexism has played no role in HRC's declining numbers, but for me all confidence in her was lost on one appearance on the Sunday show "Meet the Press". Her deft skill at repeatedly NOT answering some tough questions showed me that the only thing we could count on with this person was effective politics as usual. As a 40-ish white man who is leaning heavily towards Obama, I can honestly say that I have a hard time telling the difference in the policies of McCain and Clinton, but at least with Obama I feel that there may be some real changes.

Sent by A. Response | 4:13 PM ET | 05-23-2008

I am sure that sexism has been used to to get her off the campaign trail. Yet i don't think it's what is causing her to lose. Her campaign has made some bad decisions that have cost her and Obama's campaign has made some great decisions that has gained him more voters or delegates.

let's be real, she was the front runner up until Super Tuesday. She had a bigger name and yes, she had more experience and more money. She had every advantage that any candidate would give their arm for.

if anything, racism plays a bigger part.

Sent by Dan Tres OMi | 7:46 PM ET | 05-23-2008