Hillary Clinton sat on the board of directors at Wal-Mart from 1986-1992. That’s right, she was part of the evil empire. Hillary is a brilliant woman, or so we are told. Why then is she so clueless about retailing?
Hillary Clinton recently sent off a letter slamming Circuit City for letting go of 3400 employees.
… These decisions are inconsistent with the fundamental compact between your company and its employees. This is the wrong way to deal with the economic pressures of the day — and the wrong way to treat workers who’ve given their all to your company. For several years, the Circuit City told its consumers that “We’re With You.” The steps your company took this week indicate that it is not similarly committed to being with its workers and families.
I ask you to reconsider your company’s actions, and I stand ready to help in any way I can.
Sincerely,
Hillary Rodham Clinton
Of course, her letter did not bother to identify one way in which the company could “deal with the economic pressures of the day†without reducing headcount. The fact that Circuit City is getting its clock cleaned does not matter to Hillary. She’s not going to let the facts get in the way of a Pandering Opportunity.
Look, I’m saddened anytime someone loses a job. I’ve been laid off myself and I know what it feels like. It’s not fun, especially when you have responsibilities to your wife and kids, mortgage, etc. I get that.
The reality is that Circuit City is in trouble. They are getting their clock cleaned by Best Buy and Amazon.com. By every measure, the company is in terrible shape. Here are just a few,
Stock Price History
52-Week Change: -35.63%
Profitability
Profit Margin (ttm): -0.10%
Operating Margin (ttm): 1.08%
Financials
Qtrly Revenue Growth (yoy): 0.60%
Net Income Avl to Common (ttm): -13.69M
Diluted EPS (ttm): -0.07
Everybody running for president, on both sides of the aisle, will pander to one degree or another. Hillary’s pandering, however, is both thoughtless and shameless. In other words, she’s not very good at it. To pander effectively, as her husband did, you must have empathy and a connection with those you are sucking up to. Sidebar: I worked as a volunteer for Paul Tsongas during the NH primary in 1992. I remember like it was yesterday when Tsongas gave Bill the nickname ‘Pander Bear’. I think it was a big reason why he won the primary.
Anyway, back to Hillary, she seems to be pandering out of obligation, because that is what the playbook says to do. This letter is a classic example of bad pandering. She know better, but sent it out anyway. Pandering. Bad pandering at that, but certainly not her worst,