I often cringe when Britain makes it into the American 24-hour news cycle; the analysis is usually over-simplified, inapposite parallels are made, and as Americans, we make everything intrinsically all about us. Brexit became all about Donald Trump and racism, never mind Britain’s complex and tortured relationship with the undemocratic EU institutions and their refusal to reform.
So, as a women ascends to 10 Downing St., only the second in the country’s history, Theresa May will inevitably be compared to Hillary Clinton. Yet the parallels between the two women are undeniable: A competent yet hawkish woman, who isn’t known for charismatic speeches, watched her fair-haired, bombastic, anti-immigrant opponent implode, setting her up to become the head of her country.
In one sense, the narrative is so simple it’s too tempting to resist. The forthcoming comparisons won’t be lost on Clinton or her advisers, particularly if she flies to London to meet with May this summer. And as May grows into the role of deputy leader of the free world, Clinton would presumably hope that Americans will conclude that experience trumps good stump speeches, and that in times of global uncertainty, it’s best to stick with someone who can do the job, even if she wasn’t your first or second choice.
Like Clinton, May has left many in Britain curious as to how she will actually govern now that she’s in charge. Her positions on social issues have evolved over the years. May entered politics nearly 20 years ago. The daughter of an Anglican vicar, she opposed gay marriage and gay adoption because of her religious beliefs. Despite this opposition, she then garnered national applause when she told members of the British Conservative party that the public viewed them as “nasty’’ and that the party needed to be more inclusive of women and ethnic minorities.
But in a strange turn of fate, in her stint as David Cameron’s home secretary, May was tasked with reducing the number of immigrants coming to Britain and pushing gay marriage through Parliament. Reportedly, she was privately hesitant about the latter, in part because gays in Britain already had civil partnerships, but she did the job with vigor in public. One of May’s harshest criticisms came from a publicity stunt where she tried to get illegal immigrants to “self-deport’’ by hiring vans to drive around and display unwelcome messages, which inevitably were branded racist.
Like Clinton, May has not only struggled with navigating controversial social issues but also has a reputation for being hawkish on national security. To her credit, she deported radical Muslim hate preachers, but she also proposed the “snooper’s charter’’ whereby Internet service providers are forced to keep tabs on customers in the name of stopping terrorism. Early indications point to May being less fiscally conservative than Cameron. She has promised to give workers and consumers positions on corporate boards. “It’s not antibusiness to suggest that big business needs to change,’’ May said, stressing that she would govern for the many and “not just the privileged few.’’ Like Clinton, May was happy to adopt elements of economic populism, a la Bernie Sanders, in order to bolster her campaign to be leader of Britain’s Conservative Party.
Nonetheless, the ascent of both women reveals the dangers that beset women who dare to strive for high office. Clinton is criticized most vociferously when she is perceived as openly ambitious and angling for a job, although such criticisms subside once she is in a post diligently working away. In the wake of Brexit, all of the male candidates were destroyed, leaving May as the last woman standing, sparing her from being branded with the scarlet letter of “A’’ for ambition. But May was attacked by her primary opponent — another woman — for not having children. Her opponent speculated that May’s lack of children might not give her a strong stake in the country’s future. The backlash from this gaffe caused the opponent to drop out, handing May the keys to Downing Street, but it reveals that the road to the top job in politics is always more complicated for women.
On both sides of the pond, women can’t just campaign on the issues. They also have to answer questions regarding their status as a mother while carefully avoiding the perception of being “too ambitious.’’ To paraphrase a popular aphorism, women have to navigate this dance like Ginger Rogers did with Fred Astaire, in heels and backward. Theresa May demonstrates that it can, in fact, be done. No doubt that will put a spring in Clinton’s step.
Stuart Young is a lawyer and public relations consultant living in London. He has previously worked in Parliament and for the BBC. He can be reached @virtualstuart.
