Andrew Sullivan sees something:

Anne Rice - a quintessential Clinton supporter - makes her case for Clinton. Notice how she uses the name "Hillary" all the time. To me, that's a sexist double-standard. To Rice, treating Clinton like a male senator is sexist. Maybe it's generational. David Kuo sees the same thing.

I've seen this complaint at least three times this week, on various blogs: why are you people using "Hillary" instead of "Clinton". And, I've given the same answer: I use "Hillary" myself because "Clinton" is her husband. For the past 15 years (at least), if you said "Clinton", you were talking about Bill Clinton. No, he's not the president anymore, but he's still on the scene, and often sharing the scene with Hillary, in a way that other people who share last names with prominent politicians don't (Bush I, for example). He's still making news; he's still casting a big shadow; he's "Clinton". So, to distinguish her from her husband, she's "Hillary". Maybe someday she will claim the last name, the way Bush Jr. has claimed "Bush".

But, maybe I'm being an impolite little blogger, using a grown woman's first name when I don't even know her! I wonder what Hillary herself thinks about using her first name... Well, on the first page of her campaign website, I count 11 uses of "Hillary" ("Ask Hillary", "Watch Hillary", "Join Hillary", "Team Hillary", "Hillary For President", "Women for Hillary", etc.) and only two of "Hillary Clinton" - and one of those is the official "Paid for by Hillary Clinton for President" disclaimer at the bottom of the page. So, umm.... is Hillary a part of this "sexist double-standard" ? Bzzzt.

But what about other candidates? I use "Rudy" instead of "Giuliani" because I can't spell "Giuliani" without looking it up. For all the others, I use their last names - except I think I'd use "Fred", if I ever had something to say about Fred Thompson, cause I like the way "Fred" sounds.

Seems to me that people are trying to find a double standard where there really isn't one.