Well, they were never the children of a President so of course it is much less likely we would know them.
For the record she’s 28 (had to look it up, 25 seemed low to me). At that age I would think that if her parents are “grooming” her for anything (for some reason the expression always makes me think of a troop of baboons) it would have her complete consent.
To return to the original topic for a second - not to give short shrift to Jenna and Barbara Bush, Mary Cheney, or Cate, Jack and Emma Claire Edwards and the kids Walter Mondale had with that Thai hooker - I don’t see any evidence Chelsea’s been groomed for any political future. Her parents were extremely protective while she was First Daughter, and that protection lasted (or else she remained a very private person) prior to Hillary’s campaign. Even if she does go into politics at some point, it’s not proof that she was groomed* for anything. She’s grown up in a political family, after all. She’s almost old enough to run for the Senate and can make her own career choices. I can’t remember hearing her speak at any length, but as far as I know she’s intelligent enough.
*Imagine what Rush Limbaugh would be doing with this word choice.
Well, that’s the thing…I’m unconvinced that SHE is interested in politics, but no doubt her mother still is.
HELLO! I gave you Beau first, with his legal name, and a brother.
Feel free to donate my $0.10 to the Obama/Biden campaign.
*Grooming *their daughter? Unfortunate phrasing there!
Bill Clinton and Barack Obama share some events in their upbringing:
[ul]Biological Father died in a auto accident[/ul]
[ul]Raised for a time by a Single Mother[/ul]
[ul]Raised for a time by Grandparents[/ul]
[ul]Mother re-married[/ul]
Since the Clinton’s provided none of these advantages to Chelsea, I would say they are doing a poor job of grooming her for a White House run.
I sure like Chelsea. But I bet she’ll never go into politics. After what happened to her family during BlowjobGate, she’s probably thinking about the drawbacks of public life.
And let’s not forget all the nasty crap she got about her looks when she was thirteen frigging years old. Thirteen. Jesus wept.
[ul]Had half-siblings they never met until they were adults.[/ul]
[ul]Attended Ivy League schools on merit (not legacy or “papa pay”)[/ul]
[ul]Smoked pot as teenagers[/ul]
[ul]Neither has shared a bed with Hillary since the Monica Lewinsky scandal[/ul]
[ul]Were amazingly well traveled (in terms of international travel) for young men with no family money[/ul]
[ul]Became Dem. nominee in their mid-40s only 4 years after most people couldn’t pick them from a lineup[/ul]
Also “Bill Clinton” and “Barack Obama” both have eleven letters!!!
Both have two nostrils apiece!!
With nose hairs!
Man, it must suck to go through life as thoroughly cynical as you.
Bill is long gone and can never run again, and we’ve got at least four years before we have to face the threat of Hillary, and yet pseudotriton ruber ruber has found a way to bring up the dreaded name of Clinton in this election year.
Way to go, PRR.
You’re damn right dude. I wretch at the thought of a President propping up his vacuous kids so they can parlay the family fame and fortune into political opportunity. Where will this end? The governor’s mansion? The White House? What if one of these dodos blunders into a war that kills untold thousands of people? Ok, that was a little far-fetched, but we need to keep an eye on that Chelsea character nonetheless.
I can’t imagine why Hillary would want a position on the Supreme Court, unless perhaps it was as Chief Justice. It’s a commitment of many years and would seriously impede her ability to serve in private industries and organizaitions and would probably cost her millions in income.
Eleanor Mondale is the daughter of a Thai hooker?
(No, I didn’t have to google that)
Breck girl.
Any poster from the SDMB may do whatever they wish on any other board,
WITH THIS CAVEAT:
no one is authorized to speak “for” the SDMB (Ed Zotti excepted) and anyone making a point of announcing an “SDMB” presence on another board will jeopardize their posting privileges, here. We really do not like board wars and, while you have not urged anyone to vandalize the other board, I want to make it really clear what the SDMB position is on that topic.
(In addition, if one or more Dopers do decide to join that board, they will NOT come back to the SDMB and post about their experiences unless their experiences were all fluffy and warm.)
[ /Modding ]
Because absent his/her post, no one would have heard from the Clintons this election year, this Convention?
They are basically private citizens, shunning the political limelight, at this point, is what it amounts to?
and neither one of them have been in my kitchen.
Chelsea Clinton is more well-known than many other presidential children because of the kerfuffle about her appearance that started when Bill was running.
For those of you who don’t know the story:
Chelsea was 12 when Bill was running for president. And she was in that famous “awkward stage” that hits some girls really hard. Unkind comments about her appearance were rampant.
As a result, people developed a ton of sympathy for her. Many women, including myself, were appalled at the negative commentary. We remember being at that awkward stage ourselves, and can’t imagine the indignity of having to appear in the public eye (and be found wanting) at that point in our lives. Bearing the scrutiny of our 7th grade classmates was bad enough. Bearing the scrutiny of the world would have been sheer torture.
She got past the awkward stage and grew into a lovely, intelligent, accomplished, and poised young woman. This didn’t stop the negative comments, however. The poor girl had been branded a “dog.” One of the most famous illustrations of this was the “joke” told by John McCainat a Republican fund-raiser in 1998:
“Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly?
Because her father is Janet Reno.”
Remember, this joke was made when she was 18, and hadn’t been in that unattractive stage for years.
Many women, again including myself, admire Chelsea Clinton greatly. She didn’t let it get her down. She didn’t hide herself from the world. She chose to define herself by her deeds, not her looks. She’s a symbol of the ways in which looks-ism pervades society and affects women in particular. And she’s a role model for all of us who aren’t necessarily raving beauties. Her lesson–Don’t let the turkeys get you down. Just make the most of what you’ve got and concentrate on more important stuff.
So, it all has made her interesting to us. We relate to her. We admire her. And we cheer her on. My feeling towards her can be summed up as a resounding “You go, girl!”
As for what she’s being groomed for–Well, what she has been groomed into already is a person who is comfortable in the public eye and knows how to handle a variety of situations. I’ll bet Bill and Hillary would like her to go into politics, but it’s Chelsea’s choice, and I’d also bet that they respect that fact.