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Indeed one can tell Lynne Cheney is a strong women and has strong views etc but it is obvious that this does not make the VP look less manly.

I get the impression he likes strong women it is often interesting to see when in group of politicians you often see him talking to women some of them actual politicians themselves or wives of politicians. None of this comes over as gushing or sexual or in any way patronizing to me it is genuine interest in how strong women operate and enjoyment of their company.

He has 2 strong women as children and certainly from photos of them and comments made particularly of the oldest grand daughter strong female grand daughters. None of this IMHO makes him look less masculine in fact I think it enhances it and shows how a real man can handle the situation without making him less of a man.

The opposite is true of both the Clinton's and Edwards.

Great analysis of the difference between the Cheney's and the Clinton/Edwards' man/woman dynamics.

I think you could also extrapolate out that dynamic in the Bush family...the women/men...although a little different than the Cheneys.

very well said snugs...totally spot on

Indeed one can tell Lynne Cheney is a strong women and has strong views etc but it is obvious that this does not make the VP look less manly.

I get the impression he likes strong women it is often interesting to see when in group of politicians you often see him talking to women some of them actual politicians themselves or wives of politicians. None of this comes over as gushing or sexual or in any way patronizing to me it is genuine interest in how strong women operate and enjoyment of their company.

He has 2 strong women as children and certainly from photos of them and comments made particularly of the oldest grand daughter strong female grand daughters. None of this IMHO makes him look less masculine in fact I think it enhances it and shows how a real man can handle the situation without making him less of a man.

It's a Wyoming thing. The image of the strong woman making it on her own while her menfolk are off in the back of beyond with the cattle or working on some distant fence line or some such is a very strong icon in much of the west, but it is a core concept in how people in Wyoming think of themselves. My mother's parents homesteaded in the Wind River area of Wyoming and I still have family up there.

The classic image is some rascal coming into a situation and thinking he's going to take advantage of "the little woman" and the men folk sit back and watch as the poor bastard gets his head handed to him. If you haven't seen the John Wayne movie The Hellfighters (a fictionalized story based on the real Red Adair) see if you can get hold of it. Not a great movie, but good enough, and it brings the archetype characters, both men and women, perfectly up to a modern setting. One of the best lines in the movie is after John Wayne's ex wife (who couldn't stand the risks of his profession) has "ripped a new one" on some local military type who failed to provide protection for "her man." Wayne's line is "You'll do" and they get remarried.

It frustrated the hell out of my mom and her younger sister when the family moved to Mississippi in the 30s and they were expected to fit into the "southern belle" stereotype. Fortunately her family hooked up with my dad's family who had the same traditions within the clan, regardless of local expectations. After my parents were married and ended up "making it" to the big city corporate world in New York (in the late 50s) my mom would practically spit nails after running into some socialite twit. Fortunately they ended up moving in circles that included some very important people and the most successful men, even in that society, were married to very strong and competent women (but not ones who wanted to dominate). Some of the power couples I got to observe while growing up were amazing.

The opposite is true of both the Clinton's and Edwards.

It's a liberal thing.

snugs, I am late returning (husband had to have the computer to set up a new printer) but I want to tell you that you are so right about the Vice President being comfortable around strong women.

My father was an only child whose best friend on their ranch in Texas was his cousin, a girl. He was very attached to his mother, a strong woman herself. After he married my mother (a woman with a degree and a job) he bought her a car (in the days when families only had one car) and didn't kick up a fuss when she went back to teaching when I was in the fifth grade. In fact, he hired a babysitter and housekeeper (housekeeping was not her forte). He raised 4 strong girls who are very independent and treasure the support he gave us.

Cheney reminds me of my dad in that way. He treats his daughters as individuals, not as "girls."