I finally heard the Hillary crying clip on the way home tonight. I have not heard Romney or any other politician cry (not saying that they haven't I just haven't heard them) so I don't have anything to compare to.
I try to be objective when stating this but I'm sure my many biases are involved. I thought she sounded like a pussy (bad choice of words I know but that was my initial reaction). It sounded to me like she was upset because she is not winning and thus the tears.
How the media portrays male Crybabies
Mitt Romney:
Mitt Romney’s eyes filled with tears Monday as the Republican presidential contender recalled watching the casket of a soldier killed in Iraq return to the United States and imagined if it were one of his five sons.
Adding a poignant twist to a story he often tells on the campaign, Romney recalled the scene at Boston’s Logan International Airport while he was Massachusetts governor. [AP, 12/17/07]
But the fact that he teared up, people said, “Whoa, we thought he was so wooden and robotic, and there he is actually tearing up.”
So actually, I think it does have an impact. It’s a genuine moment. It seems genuine. [Newsweek’s Richard Wolffe, MSNBC, 12/17/07]
President Bush:
The pictures were just what the White House wanted: A teary-eyed President Bush presenting the Medal of Honor posthumously to a slain war hero in the East Room. [Washington Post, 1/12/07]
A tear rolled down Bush’s cheek during the event,
an extraordinary display of emotion by the commander-in-chief. Bush has been known to tear up and reportedly once cried in a private meeting with war widows. [Chicago Sun-Times, 1/12/07]
The president is tremendously sentimental. Forget about putting his parents anywhere near him. At his inauguration he purposely kept them out of his line of sight so he could stay as dry-eyed as possible.
He has learned not to brush the tears away. [Newsweek, 4/02]
Defense Secretary Robert Gates
Robert Gates almost broke down as he gave a speech at a Marine Corps dinner. … Mr Gates’s show of feeling suggests that
he brings a more human side to the role of defence secretary. [BBC, 7/19/07]
What is less often visible is the toll this war takes on the people who run the operation.
Tonight we have a rare glimpse of emotion from a man who normally carefully chooses his words, the Secretary of Defense, Robert Gates. … a rare public display of emotion from the civilian in charge of this war effort. [NBC News, 7/19/07]