Back in 2016, when Hillary Clinton was running for president – were we ever so young? – a video went viral of the politician answering the same set of sexist questions, over and over again, over the course of her 40 year career.

Interviewers asked Clinton about her “strong” opinions, that many people might see as “threatening”. They asked her about whether men would want to vote for someone who reminded them of their “nagging wives”. They asked her about her voice, about her clothes and about being likeable, and it felt like they were going to ask her these questions in perpetuity, forever, even when the earth’s core has exploded and the apocalypse has brought an end to humankind.

I was reminded of that video today when I saw two separate news stories about US politicians Elizabeth Warren and Ilhan Omar. The stories are very different: Omar was appearing at an event about anti-Muslim rhetoric and was asked a question by an audience member, while Warren was backstopped at the airport by that bastion of the fourth estate TMZ. But both stories are a cautionary tale about the way we talk about and interact with female politicians.

Why do people continue to ask female politicians the same offensive questions?