This week, Facebook users went crazy over Hillary, Bernie and the New York City subway.
In an effort to look more personable, Hillary Clinton rode the subway! Wow! The former New York senator looked super casual with a camera crew and secret service surrounding her. Definitely not a PR move—she's just another run-of-the-mill New Yorker!
However, her ride underground isn't what got people riled up, but rather the video of her attempting to swipe her MetroCard five times before successfully getting through the turnstile.
The video was funny and slightly cringe-worthy, but people FREAKED out. Bernie fans said Clinton pretends to be a "commoner," but is a fraud and doesn't actually care about working class people.
Those commenting on the video ironically used the hashtag #HillarySoQualified to bash the presidential candidate. The hashtag began trending the previous day in response to a statement Bernie made about Clinton not being "qualified." Clinton supporters immediately responded with #HillarySoQualified and reasons why she should be president. The whole thing was a mess.
Bernie made a statement about how you use tokens or jump the turnstile to get on the subway. Classic. His statement was found to be more endearing and "grandpa-esque."
Clearly neither one of the presidential hopefuls has ridden the subway in a while, so I'd like to give them some advice:
Hillary: Nervous about swiping your MetroCard? Watch and try to match the speed of the commoner's swipe in front of you.
Bernie: Tokens won't get you into the subway. We use MetroCards now and the fair has risen to $2.75. To avoid the pricey-ness, you do you and jump those turnstiles.
In all seriousness: Yes, the video and Bernie's statement were funny and might have made you a little uncomfortable, but really, who cares? Both were stupid. It was kind of dumb that Hillary rode the subway and Bernie's statement was just wrong.
They don't ride the subway to work every day, and that doesn't affect their qualifications for running this country.
I'm not a huge fan of Hillary Clinton, and the video definitely highlights her disconnect with working class people (her net worth of $31.3 million does that too), but it certainly doesn't show her lack of support for working class people. And Bernie's comment just confirms that he hasn't lived in New York in a really long time.
The whole thing was an excuse for Bernie and Hillary fans to throw each other under the bus. If you're going to criticize a candidate it should be based on their political views, and if you're going to ride the subway, use a MetroCard—not tokens—and don't bring a camera crew with you during rush hour.
