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Oh dear, it looks like Jesse Watters’ mother needs to give him a good talking to again. The Fox News host regularly spouts so much deliberately provocative nonsense that his mum, a liberal, has called into his show to ask him to use his voice “responsibly”. Instead of listening to her, however, he’s told his audience of millions that men shouldn’t eat soup in public because it’s effeminate, shared his creepy fantasies about Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez’s sex life, and urged America to bomb or “maybe gas” the United Nations headquarters. This week, as Donald Trump (a man) presides over a disastrous, immoral, and unpopular war, Watters has been busy informing the world that women just aren’t cut out to be president.
What prompted this latest rant? The usual pathological desire to be noticed, I presume. And also a recent MS NOW interview with Nancy Pelosi, in which the former speaker of the House, 86, said a female US president is inevitable, but likely won’t happen in her lifetime.
“Nancy says there will not be a female president in her lifetime, and I say thank God,” said Watters said on his show. “I hope there’s not a female president in my lifetime.” After being asked by his co-host Jessica Tarlov why he’d say that, he explained that “many people” have said women just aren’t good leaders.
“Many people are saying … do women have the emotional maturity to be president? Many people are saying: do they have the personal contacts in the business world to manage the economy? Many people are saying … do women have the respect of the generals? Many people are saying women don’t have the sense of humor to be president.”
After running through the list of things “many people” were saying, he added: “None of those things I believe.” Watters is obviously an attention-seeking troll who will say anything to try to look edgy, and in an ideal world we could just ignore him and move on with our lives. Alas, the problem is that Watters isn’t just another loser with a microphone, he has an audience of 3 million people for his primetime show. When he peddles these sorts of misogynistic ideas, he helps normalize them.
And, unfortunately, the broader idea that the US isn’t ready for a female president is already depressingly normalized. Michelle Obama said last year that she thinks the US has “a lot of growing up to do” before it elects a female Potus: “There’s still, sadly, a lot of men who do not feel like they can be led by a woman.” Axios similarly reported last week that top Democrats think their “best bet” to win the next election is to ensure the 2028 nominee is a straight, white, Christian man.
Obama is right that the US has a lot of growing up to do; look at the anchors on Fox News as exhibit one. But the problem with repeating the idea that the US isn’t ready for a female president is that it becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy. Stanford research from 2022 found that, in a primary election, if voters think it’s too hard for a woman to win a general election they’ll vote for a male candidate instead – even if they preferred the woman. The researchers also found that if voters are given evidence that women candidates will get as much support as men, their intention to support women presidential candidates increases. In other words: the more the media makes arguments about how women can win, and highlights how many people will show up to the polls to vote for a woman, the more likely it is that a woman will end up winning.
Speaking of winning, I think we should all probably pause and give thanks for the fact that the US, in the words of our dear leader, is “winning bigger than ever”. Indeed many people are saying that nobody in the history of humanity has ever been as emotionally mature or strategically brilliant as the man spending all our taxpayer money on bombs. It’s “not possible” for the federal government to fund healthcare and childcare costs, Trump argued this week, because “we’re fighting wars.” I don’t know about you, but many people are grateful there’s a big strong man in charge to keep our priorities in check.
Trump accused of running ‘misogynistic administration’ after firing Pam Bondi
The Trump administration, which is dominated by men, is full of bumbling idiots. Interestingly, however, the only cabinet members to be fired during this term have both been women. And both Kristi Noem (the dog-shooting enthusiast and former homeland security secretary) and Pam Bondi (the Dow-Jones-devotee and former attorney general) have both been replaced with men. Many people are saying Trump seems to hold women to a very different standard.
Is JD Vance a secret bell hooks fan?
It looks like being VP isn’t keeping JD too busy, because he’s just written a new book all about how he went from identifying as an atheist to becoming a Catholic at a very convenient time for his political career. The book is called Communion: Finding My Way Back to Faith, which, funnily enough, is similar to the title of a 2002 book by the feminist writer bell hooks: Communion: The Female Search For Love. This wouldn’t be particularly notable were it not for the fact that hooks also has a poetry collection called Appalachian Elegy, which came out a few years before Vance wrote Hillbilly Elegy. Watch out for Vance’s next book: Ain’t I a Woman.
Why are Google searches for ‘bimbofication’ rising?
According to the Daily Mail, the Department of Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem’s husband, Bryon Noem, has a very active private life.
No safe place for women and girls in Darfur
Systematic sexual violence is a defining feature of the war in Sudan, says a harrowing new report from Doctors Without Borders. “This war is being fought on the backs and bodies of women and girls,” said Ruth Kauffman, MSF emergency health manager. “Displacement, collapsing community support systems, lack of access to health care, and deep-rooted gender inequalities are allowing these abuses to continue across Sudan.”
The runaway nuns are a ‘step closer’ to being able to stay in their convent
Back in 2023, Sisters Bernadette, Regina and Rita were forced into a care home because the powers that be thought their convent in Austria was no longer safe for them to navigate. Last year they busted out of the care home, moved back into their convent, and started social media accounts to show the world that they were very capable of looking after themselves, thank you very much. Now it’s looking increasingly like they’re going to get granted a right to remain in the convent.
Israeli troops warn Christians in Lebanon not to shelter Muslims
Israel is currently occupying southern Lebanon and has said it will destroy the homes along the border to prevent the return of about 600,000 residents. The New York Times reports: “Israeli military officials have assured several Christian and Druse communities that they could remain in the evacuation zone [but] have pressed them … to force out any Lebanese from neighboring Shiite Muslim communities who have sought refuge among them as Israeli bombardments flatten Shiite towns.” Anyone know a handy phrase to describe the process of trying to force one particular group out of an area?
Gaza family says toddler released from Israeli custody found with torture marks
Israeli forces have rejected allegations of abuse while activists have called for an independent international inquiry.
Senegal enacts law doubling prison term for same-sex relations
“Homosexuals will no longer breathe in this country,” the Senegalese lawmaker Diaraye Ba declared last month during a parliamentary session in which politicians voted to make same-sex relations punishable by up to 10 years in prison. The new legislation also punishes those guilty of “promoting” same-sex relationships and was formally signed into law this week.
The week in pawtriarchy
Rumours of Jonathan the giant tortoise’s death have been greatly exaggerated. This week, various news outlets reported that the world’s oldest tortoise, who is a sprightly 194 years old, had shuffled off this mortal coil. As it turns out, he’d just been caught up in a viral crypto scam. (Truly, we live in the worst of times.) Still all’s well that’s ends well: Jonathan was given a double helping of bananas “in celebration of his resurrection”. He may be blissfully unaware of crypto markets but I have heard allegations that the tortoise is keeping all his assets in a shell company.
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Arwa Mahdawi is a Guardian columnist
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