La última vez que cubrí una entrevista "exclusiva" con Hillary Clinton en los medios hispanos la encontré tan aduladora que bien podría haber sido un “…aviso comercial de la campaña de Hillary.” Sin embargo, después de haber visto el romance de Arantxa Loizaga de Univisión difundido hace poco desde San Antonio, me parece que hablé demasiado pronto.
Toda la entrevista de Loizaga fue increíblemente breve (menos de 5 minutos) y esencialmente vacía de sustancia. En ningún momento durante la entrevista se hicieron preguntas que contuvieran las palabras "correo electrónico" (aparte de reproducir la expresión de Bernie Sanders de "malditos mensajes de correo electrónico" durante el debate), "Benghazi", "servidor" o "Rusia"... pero eso es lo habitual.
A Clinton ni siquiera se la pudo molestar para que diera una respuesta directa a la más rudimentaria de las preguntas simples, como quedó en evidencia por su blanda respuesta a una pregunta sobre comida. Mexicana, tejano-mex... cualquier cosa. Sin embargo, esta entrevista bajó a niveles más bajos que nunca, siendo tan floja que ni siquiera incluyó pregunta alguna sobre inmigración, lo cual es difícil de creer dada la importancia central del tema en la cobertura noticiosa de Univisión.
El propósito de la entrevista blanda de Loizaga parece haber tenido tres puntos. Evidentemente el primero fue vender la idea de que Clinton había ganado por más de un kilómetro el debate inicial entre los aspirantes demócratas a la candidatura presidencial. Segundo, vender la idea de que Clinton es la defensora de los hispanos, con todas las simpatías y causas comunes requeridas. Y tercero, y claramente el más importante, usar el respaldo del secretario del HUD (Departamento de Vivienda y desarrollo Urbano) Julián Castro a su candidatuta como (a): un medio de crear la noción de que Clinton puede, en efecto, reconstituir la coalición de Obama, y (b): frenar potencialmente al vicepresidente Joe Biden.
Jorge Ramos fue clave para ayudar a vender el tercer punto. Una entrevista con un aspirante presidencial para transmitir en el programa semanal de Ramos Al Punto caería normalmente dentro del campo del presentador estrella de Univisión y principal demagogo racial, pero una revelación reciente de un conflicto de intereses potencial lo ha sacado un poco de la cobertura de Hillary Clinton.
Sin embargo, eso no impidió que Ramos armara sutilmente el marco de la entrevista. Recuerden la entrevista de Ramos con la presidenta del Comité Nacional Demócrata Debbie Wasserman-Schultz después del debate y su conclusión incongruente sobre "diversidad" y consideren su oportunidad con el evento de Castro. Ramos todavía encontrará una manera de atizar el fuego, conflicto o no.
La entrevista no generó noticia alguna, pero sirvió su propósito, que era vender la fórmula Clinton-Castro 2016 a los televidentes.
Una cosa más: lo más difícil de tratar de quedar bien con todo el mundo es mantener las historias honestas. Comparen la respuesta de Clinton diciendo que tuvo amigos hispanos con lo que de que acababa de decir a Telemundo unas pocas semanas antes.
(En Telemundo) HILLARY CLINTON: Quiero defender a la comunidad hispana y luchar por ella en todo nuestro país porque yo conozco... yo... yo... yo he conocido a gente que estaba... trabajando en los campos cerca de donde yo me crié en Chicago y a sus hijos a través de mi iglesia cuando yo era una niña pequeña".
*(En Al Punto) HILLARY CLINTON: Bueno, pienso que la mayoría de mis amigos son latinos. Y algunos de ellos, yo diría, lo son desde hace 43 años...
¿Cuál respuesta es cierta? ¿Conoció hispanos desde que era niña o desde que ella tenía casi 30 años? Coloquen este asunto en la categoría de "si ella fuese republicana".
A continuación la trascripción de segmentos pertinentes de la entrevista mencionada, que se transmitió por Al Punto en Univisión el 17 de octubre de 2015.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA, ANCHOR: Back in San Antonio.
HILLARY CLINTON: I love being in San Antonio. I first visited this city so long ago when it was a much smaller, sleepier place. But I’ve always loved the atmosphere, the culture, the food, you know, the music, everything about it. And I’ve made friends that have lasted a lifetime from here.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Talking about food, what’s your favorite food here in San Antonio?
HILLARY CLINTON: Oh listen, anything that I can get that has, you know, both Mexican and Tex-Mex, and you know, you just put me down and I’m ready.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Do you still get nervous when a lot of people are here waiting for you, expecting to hear your speech?
HILLARY CLINTON: I do. I mean today the crowd so big and so enthusiastic. And I get a little nervous because everybody’s there. Because they want to cheer me on, but they also want to hear what I say, because they want to make sure that, you know, as President I’m going to really listen to them. And I’m going to try to help them with their problems. I do get a little nervous. Because I want people to know how hard I’ll work, and how I’ll do anything I possibly can as President to meet the needs they face as family members, as employees, and employers. And then you get out there and it’s just so overwhelming, you just can’t believe the energy that’s coming at you.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Secretary, we noticed that while you were talking we had some protestors outside. How do you deal with that? Because it must be very difficult as well.
HILLARY CLINTON: Not anymore. I just ignore them. Because they have a right to protest. They don’t have a right to disrupt an event that thousands of people have been looking forward to, and working on, and who are now listening to me. So I mostly just keep talking, because usually I’ve got a stronger microphone. And I just keep talking. And what happens most times as it did here, is the people who are there in the audience to hear what I have to say to decide, you know, what I’m going to do as President, you know, they just basically shut the folks down. Because, you know, it doesn’t make any difference to them. They want to know what I’m saying, so that they can, you know, form their own opinions.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Reflecting upon the debate. A lot of media, the standard media were able to say, you were the winner. When Bernie Sanders said, enough about the e-mails, enough about the controversy, and you smiled. What did you feel?
HILLARY CLINTON: Well, I felt, thank you Bernie. And I told him that. Because that’s what people have been telling me for weeks. And what he said so well, enough about that. Let’s talk about how we make college affordable. How we get wages to rise. How we get equal pay for equal work for women. All of the issues that people in the crowd today asked me about. So I thought it was great, because he was reflecting what he’s hearing out there, and it’s exactly what I’ve been hearing.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: In one of the reviews about the debate, they were saying you are the winner. You were the winner in her eyes though, a reporter from the Washington Post. She tried to compliment you by saying, you are the man amongst boys. But then I thought, that’s contradicting everything that you stand for, which is female equality.
HILLARY CLINTON: Right. Well, but I think, unfortunately there still are stereotypes. And even smart people can get perhaps, caught up in them. And what I want to do is represent to women and girls, as well as men and boys, that a woman, a mother, a wife, a grandmother can be standing on that same stage, and be judged on what I have to say as a woman. So I think it’s great that people have written so positively about my performance at the debate. But I want them to say, this is what a woman running for President of the United States looks like, sounds like. That’s what I want to hear.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Have you thought about former President Bill Clinton’s role if you get elected as the first female President? Because you’re going to be making history twice. By being the first elected female President, and of course, having the first gentleman I guess.
HILLARY CLINTON: Yeah, the first gentleman. I am so grateful for all the help and advice that my husband gives me. And I know that his knowledge of how the economy works. He did such a great job as President. 23 million new jobs, incomes going up for everybody, it would be a huge benefit to me as President. Because who better to say, will this work? People in Congress want this. Or, you know, I’m hearing from some business leaders, what do you think? I have my opinion, but what do you think? And I just can’t wait to have him, you know, offering his ideas. Because I think it’ll be for the good of the country.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Latinos. Today was a very important event, it was Latinos for Hillary, a grassroots event. How can Latinos relate to you?
HILLARY CLINTON: Well, I think most of my friends who are Latinos. And some of them, as I say go back 43 years, they know that I have fought for the same principles, the same opportunities for everybody for as long as I’ve been in public life. They know I care about family, which I know is critically important to the Latino community. They know that I fight to bring more opportunities for young people, particularly our youngest children. So they can get the best education possible. They know where I am on issues, but more than that, they know where my heart is. And that’s why I think I have so much support in the Latino community already. And as we kick off Latinos for Hillary, we’re getting more and more support. Because I think people are saying to themselves, we want a fighter, a fighter for our families, a fighter for our future. And this is the person. And I’m proud and honored to have that kind of support and endorsement.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: And talking precisely about Latinos, we have a Latino in the rising. The DNC keynote speaker for 2012, former Mayor of San Antonio, and finally (U.S. Hispanic Chamber) President Palomares was able to ask you directly.
HILLARY CLINTON: Yes.
ARANTXA LOIZAGA: Are you considering him as a running mate, possibly for a VP?
HILLARY CLINTON: Well, I can’t really do that yet, because I haven’t gotten the nomination. I don’t want to jinx it. And I don’t want to be presumptuous. But I think you could see again today why Julian Castro has such a well-deserved reputation as a young American leader who happens to be a Latino. He’s a leader pure and simple. And you saw that today. But I’ve seen it on numerous occasions. He is someone who likes to dig deep into issues, who likes to figure out what will work. He’s a man after my own heart, because I think the way you should judge somebody in public life is: are you better off when they finish serving you than you were when they started serving you. And there’s no doubt in my mind that when he was Mayor of San Antonio, and then was elevated by the President to be in the cabinet, San Antonio was better off because of his service.
