Women in Washington, or the Lack Thereof
More than half of the US population is female. Yet women hold less than a quarter of congressional seats.
Jay Newton-Small, the Washington correspondent for TIME and author of Broad Influence: How Women are Changing the Way America Works, sat on a five-person journalist panel, addressing all 115 AP Government and Politics students as well as other New Hampshirites. She spoke on how women can gain leadership in Washington.
“Just look at Hillary Clinton, she says ‘I know I can do the work,’” said Newton-Small, applauding women’s work ethic. She highlighted the success of congressional women. “During the last government shutdown, the senate was 20% female. When the men weren’t talking, it was up to the woman to negotiate and work it out. Seventy-five percent of what was passed in that divided government was women-authored because the men were just too polarized.”
Newton-Small also noted some differences in how men and women may be perceived on the campaign trail. “When Bernie screams, it ignites passion, people get really into it. But then when Hillary does, [screams] it’s treated as shrill, like a shriek, and it’s negative. And that different reaction, that’s just a gender thing.”
Besides Secretary Clinton, GOP Presidential Candidate Carly Fiorina is the only other female major party candidate in the national race. Unlike Clinton, Fiorina has been polling in the single digits, currently at 6% in New Hampshire. Despite polling above Carson and Christie in most surveys, Fiorina was excluded from ABC’s Manchester GOP Debate on February 6th.
Sunday, Fiorina hosted a “SuperBowl Pregame Party” at the Yard Restaurant in Manchester. Fiorina spoke to the hundred-person crowd in an intimate sports bar setting, decorated with patriotic balloons and inflatable footballs. Fiorina provided free beer, chicken wings, burger sliders, and lively music, yet many attendees appeared hostile and skeptical of Fiorina’s chances.
She took the football theme to heart. Fiorina began by polling the room for Broncos and Panthers fans, bonding with the majority of New England attendees who are still bitter that the Patriots aren’t in the big game. Fiorina, often criticized for being uptight, had connected with the males in the room in a language they understood.
Fiorina continued with a football analogy. “In a few hours, coaches will be meeting with their teams in their locker rooms, telling their players to fight. This is what we need to do, we have to fight for this campaign. New Hampshire encourages me, it was here where I first decided to run, and we are going to run.”
Fiorina was clearly angered by ABC’s decision to leave her out of the debate. “There were 16 of us [in the GOP race]. Now there are only 8. Yet only 7 were allowed on the stage. This game is rigged by the professional political class, by the national media. Don’t let New York and Washington decide for you. Join with me. Fight with me. Vote for me. It’s time to take our country back.”
When asked if they would like to see a woman in the White House, most attendees of Fiorina’s event agreed that they were less concerned about gender and more about the candidate’s stance on the issues. This was the case for Nekita Lamour, a teacher from Boston. She was a guest at the Radisson Hotel in Manchester, visiting New Hampshire to “witness some lost civic engagement.” Lamour said, “I don’t really care if it’s a man or a women, so long as they can run the country, they have the right policy, and they know how to reach out.”
Sharon, a Long-Island native, shared Lamour’s views. “I like Hillary, but it’s not just because she’s a woman. Just like I didn’t only like Obama because he was black. It’s because of her experience, knowledge, and her hard work in face of opposition.”
Her friend Carol spoke more passionately in favor of a female president, and believes that a woman in the white house is long over due. “I would love to see a women president. Women are underrepresented across the board in government and it’s time for a change.”
Two men at the Carly Fiorina event hardly cared who the president was at all. “She [Fiorina] was compelling, definitely a nice speaker. I don’t know, it’s nothing against her being a girl, but I’m just not planning to vote for her. I’ll be honest, I might not come out [to vote.] None of the specific policy stances caught me. Not that I really know where what my stances are,” said David.
“I’m just here for the free food,” said his friend Chris. They both laughed.
