Hillary: Turning a Tragedy into Victory. At least in the opinion of some.
Hillary Clinton is riding high following the Benghazi hearings. Despite many admissions — like she told her daughter and others that the embassy was attacked but told the public another story — her confidence is soaring.
Keep in mind that on her watch, four Americans including an ambassador were killed despite their numerous pleas to step up security at the embassy.
How did Hillary Clinton in the minds of many come out smelling like a rose?
Lessons from Hillary
- Keep your cool despite tough questions.
- Show tremendous confidence.
- Make it appear that your enemies are out to get you — like a “Right Wing Conspiracy.”
- Shift the discussion away from you, when possible, like trying to honor the lives of people your critics claimed you wrote off.
- Avoid answering questions that make you responsible for major mistakes.
- If you must answer those questions, show how you delegated decisions to others — the “experts” or “professionals”, so you escape blame.
- Use your charism to charm the media so they see your performance as a victory over those out to get you.
- Take a position that’s consistent with your leader’s position since he’s likely to support you. Maybe even pardon you if you’re indicted.
- Continue to make claims that you’re transparent and cooperative even if that doesn’t square with what your critics say.
My Take
I share the above lessons as an expert in persuasive speaking, having coached politicians and executives for more than three decades. That said, I’m not advocating you apply these tactics. From my perspective, they’re not ethical. They’re not what you’d want from a leader.
Besides, if critics are correct, Hillary lied to grieving families of the slain Americans, claiming a video was at fault. It fit the narrative that the president should be re-elected because the enemy was on the run.
In addition to ethical consideration, some people see through the tactics,. See below comments on a YouTube video showing Hillary Clinton speaking at women’s leadership forum the morning after the Benghazi committee hearing.
She says: “As I said at the start, I wanted to rise above partisanship and reach for statesmanship and that is what I tried to do.”
As you watch the video, notice how she caters to her audience, connecting with them to win their votes, and celebrating what she sees as a huge victory over the committee investigating her.
A Few YouTube Video Comments:
