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My kingdom for an ironing man.

I have a pile of ironing that reaches for the ceiling in my spare room. Much to my Mother-In-Law’s chagrin, I instituted an 'iron-as-you-wear' policy when I moved in with my partner. That was over 18 years ago.

So, when two male detractors lodged a blatantly sexist protest against Hillary Clinton’s Presidential campaign today with placards bearing the slogan “Iron My Shirt”, their efforts seemed amusingly anachronistic.

Did they really believe their slogan? Maybe they did. It’s clear dinosaurs still walk the earth - the glass ceiling remains intact in many workplaces, rape is still a powerful weapon on the streets and international battlefields and domestic abuse (physical, psychological, economic and sexual) continues to be a blight on society that breaks through racial and class barriers.

But the protesters taking a stand against Senator Clinton on the eve of her uphill struggle to win the New Hampshire primary - considered a vital victory in the race for Democratic nomination - may have been seeking just to 'rattle her cage' in an effort to force a 'typically female' emotional reaction of the kind voters would find unseemly in a future president.

God forbid a national leader display heart, fragility, passion and wrinkles along with intellect, will and legislative prowess. “Ah, the remnants of sexism - alive and well," Senator Clinton told the applauding crowd at the New Hampshire rally where the men in search of well-pressed shirts attempted to disrupt proceedings.

Is it just me or is a man who indicates to the world that he’s not capable of ironing his own clothes actually screaming “Help! I’m impotent”? It really is laughable that some men (and possibly some women affronted by those of us who forcefully thrust in the direction of the ubiquitous glass ceiling) think a woman isn’t capable of leading a country in the 21st century.

Much of the political analysis surrounding the Democratic Party nomination process pits a man, Barack Obama, seeking to be the first black president, against a woman aiming to be the first female calling the shots in the White House. So goes the theory, Americans are less scared of a black man with a Muslim background than a white woman. This may be a shallow analysis – Obama’s youth and anti-establishment credentials (in contrast with Hillary’s connections to the power elite and the tarnish on the office left by her husband Bill Clinton's terms as President) might be the real source of the groundswell which looks increasingly likely to secure him the Democrats’ top billing. But the media's assessment of Senator Clinton’s potential success or failure as being inextricably linked to her gender, highlights the steep path women seeking election to the highest office still have to tread – Margaret Thatcher and Helen Clark's victories notwithstanding.

I’m personally having a tough time trying to decide who I prefer. I’m cheering for Hillary Clinton as she attempts to smash the West Wing’s glass ceiling but I’m also barracking for Obama (bad pun intended, sorry!) because of the change he represents politically along with his enthusiasm and youthful appeal…I also suspect he’s capable of ironing his own shirts.

I realise this is a revelation that will open me up to accusations of political naiveté but I long for the day when a black woman can run for the Presidency or seek election as Australia’s Prime Minister without race and/or gender being the main discourses in the debate surrounding her leadership potential...and on that day a white man would be proud to iron her blouse.

*THUD* That was the sound of me crashing back to earth.

UPDATE: So Hillary Clinton is being dubbed the Comeback Kid 2 (a sequel to Bill's performance in 1992)after embarrassing the pollsters and defeating Barack Obama in the New Hampshire Primary.

She has attributed the victory to her emotional vulnerability - she was seen close to tears in an exchange with a voter on the eve of the poll. Some say this was manufactured but it was a display of vulnerability that clearly resonated with voters used to seeing her portrayed as cold, calculating and emotionally disengaged.

Others have assessed her win as a product of Feminism - the 'sisterhood' came out in force to vote, they say. I suspect the boys with the placards and an ironing disability may have contributed to any such backlash. Some may suggest they were plants.

But whichever way you examine this result, the race for the Democratic nomination is now genuinely close and exciting. Let's hope this leads to the prioritisation of substance over spin, wit over waffle and sharp over shallow media analysis.

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