Jan

27

TEXT: Obama State of the Union, 2010

Filed Under Barack Obama, Politics | 1 Comment

http://www.whitehouse.gov/the-press-office/remarks-president-state-union-address

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary

_________________________________________________________________________________________________

For Immediate Release                                                         January 27, 2010

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT

IN STATE OF THE UNION ADDRESS

U.S. Capitol

9:11 P.M. EST

THE PRESIDENT:  Madam Speaker, Vice President Biden, members of Congress, distinguished guests, and fellow Americans:

Our Constitution declares that from time to time, the President shall give to Congress information about the state of our union.  For 220 years, our leaders have fulfilled this duty. They’ve done so during periods of prosperity and tranquility.  And they’ve done so in the midst of war and depression; at moments of great strife and great struggle. Read more

Aug

26

Women’s Equality Day 2009

Filed Under Civil Rights, Democrats, Gender, Government, Ohio, Politics, Sexism, Women, intolerance, leadership | Leave a Comment

It was the best of times it was the worst of times? That’s kind of how it feels if you’ve been following the gains and setbacks of women over the last century, let alone the last several months.

Here’s a round-up of worthwhile reading about today’s commemoration of Women’s Equality Day:

What it is, from the Huffington Post:

…a celebration of the ratification of the 19th Amendment to the Constitution which acknowledged the right of women to vote.

And from About.com’s Women’s History guide.

See also the National Women’s History Project.

Ohio Secretary of State and Democratic primary contender for U.S. Senate 2010, Jennifer Brunner’s statement

Leader’s Moment of Decision Led to Women’s Equality Day is Gloria Feldt’s reminder to us that men have helped along the way via a well-known but important anecdote

Women and Politics writes, “We’ve come a long way…maybe”

Today’s Worplace, a Workplace Fairness blog, talks about continuing the fight

And in just a few minutes, I’ll be participating in a White House conference call with Health and Human Services director, Kathleen Sebelius and Tina Tchen in honor of the day.  The call is described as

…a call to update you on the Council on Women and Girls and discuss health reform’s impact on women.

[and]

…talk about progress on the Council report and the impact that health reform will have on women. You can check [out the report] here…: http://healthreform.gov/reports/women/index.html.

Finally, from Ohio’s own Lisa Renee Ward, at The Heart of Glass City Jungle, information about a Women’s Equality Day celebration in Columbus:

On Wednesday, August 26, a full-day of activities at the Ohio Statehouse will celebrate Women’s Equality Day. At noon, Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner will address the group followed by a statement from State Auditor Mary Taylor and a program on the passage of the 19th amendment granting women’s suffrage.

…

This event is sponsored by Ohio Women Inc., a nonprofit organization dedicated to informing the public about the needs of women in Ohio.

I know that event has been in the works for quite some time and I hope it went off without a hitch.  If photos or reviews of the event pop up online, I’ll update this post with them.

Jul

7

[updatedx2] GOP’s White House 2012 ticket: Female-Female?

Filed Under Campaigning, Congress, Elections, Gender, Government, Jewish, Kathleen Sebelius, Politics, Primary, Republicans, Sarah Palin, Vice President, Voting, Women, conservatives, democracy | 26 Comments

NB: Thanks to Chris Cillizza of the Washington Post’s The Fix for linking to this post. He’s got a great companion piece that looks at the question of which women are in the wings, but reviews mostly Democratic possibilities.  I thought this post of mine compliments that with a look at GOP options.  Please feel free to add more names in the comments. Oh, okay – and he’s a fellow Hoya.

During my appearance on CNN.com/LIVE yesterday, I mentioned that one of the side effects of soon-to-be-former Alaska Governor and GOP Vice Presidential nominee Sarah Palin’s decision to not run for re-election as governor and to resign as of July 26 is that, seeing that she has done it (run for her state’s highest office and then leave it with 18 months to go) and justified those decisions with a variety of rationales, who is to say that she has not opened a floodgate for potential female primary candidates for the GOP presidential and vice presidential nominations? Male candidates become “career politicians” all the time, from both parties, right? Why not the women?  If we’re breaking down barriers, why not let the ambition women have be overt, just like the men’s, to keep climbing higher in politics?

This thought path got me thinking:

Could we see a female-female GOP ticket for president and vice president in 2012?

Why not? Read more

Apr

16

Maria Shriver seeks to define “A Woman’s Nation”

Filed Under Culture, Economy, Gender, Media, Research, Social Issues, Whitehouse09, Women, democracy, employment, leadership | 4 Comments

Big kudos to Chris Cillizza’s Cheat Sheet today for mentioning Maria Shriver’s effort, A Woman’s Nation:

A Woman’s Nation: Maria Shriver, California’s first lady and scion to the Kennedy political legacy, is lending her name to a nationwide effort to document the state of women in society — the first such major project since the Eleanor Roosevelt led a similar project for President John F. Kennedy. A Woman’s Nation, as the effort will be known, will combine the forces of the Center for American Progress, a liberal think tank, the Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership and Policy at the University of Southern California and Shriver’s California Women’s Conference. The goal of the endeavor will be to produce a full report to Congress and the president, according to a release announcing the group’s founding.

For the formal read-it-for-yourself-and-decide stuff (and they definitely provide more details on the goal):

Press Release (pdf)

Center for American Progress announcement

And a blog entry by Shriver at The Huffington Post.  Salient parts:

“A Woman’s Nation” will be a multi-year, action-oriented project, focused on capturing an accurate and up-to-date portrait of the American woman and developing next steps to remove barriers to her success. A journalist by trade, I look forward to taking “A Woman’s Nation” on the road – We will host a series of roundtables with men and women on the front lines of this economic and cultural shift, and conduct frank and factual interviews with cultural icons and women leaders about their experiences and recommendations. In an effort to give people all over the country an opportunity to participate in this remarkable discussion, we will hold online town-halls to field and answer any questions about the project.

This on-the-ground reporting, combined with research data from a national poll, will result in a fresh and thorough initial report to be published in the fall of 2009. The report will be followed by a book, and we will then examine regulatory, legislative, business and cultural change that needs to take place to keep pace with the current needs of American women and families.

I don’t know that Shriver would be a candidate for appointment to the proposed President’s Commission on Women, though the primary sponsor, U.S. Rep. Jackie Speier is from California, like Shriver (wife of CA Governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger).   And I’m not sure whether what she’s proposing to do is in competition with, complimentary or supplementary to the Commission.

But as far as I’m concerned, the more efforts out there doing this kind of intel gathering in this area, the better.  I wish her luck and I hope to keep an eye out for how I might be able to get involved, even if just at a netroots level.  My main concern from the start? Please, please, please – be sure to include plenty of women of color and very reliable proportions of women who reflect as many varieties of women in the U.S. as possible – along the entire spectrum of every metric to be covered.

Please.

Apr

13

On the trail: Cuyahoga County BOE Candidate Seminar, 5/16/09

Filed Under Announcements, Campaigning, Cleveland+, Elections, Government, Ohio, Pepper Pike, Politics, Women | 1 Comment

I’ve had a great experience with the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections so far and wrote Director Jane Platten to specifically commend one employee in particular.  Jane then sent me a flyer for an upcoming candidate seminar and campaign finance workshop – so you too can become a candidate like me. ;)

The flyer does not appear on the BOE site yet but here are the vitals:

CANDIDATE SEMINAR & CAMPAIGN FINANCE WORKSHOP 2009
SATURDAY, MAY 16, 2009

9:00 A.M. – 1:30 P.M.
At the Cuyahoga County Board of Elections
2925 Euclid Avenue

For More Information
Please Call Our Community Outreach Department
(216) 443-3258

No Charge – Open To The Public

PLEASE NOTE: Limited Seating – Registration Deadline: Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Also:

I want to give a shout-out to people who’ve been tweeting and blogging about my run for Pepper Pike City Council.  For example:

Walks Like She Knocks

Run Jill Run

Political Makeovers for Women!

Knock Like You Talk (with an endorsement even!)

Jill’s Council Race

Brewed Fresh Daily

Citizen Blogging Boosts Zimon into Local Politics

Jill Goes From Blogger to Candidate

Tim Ferris

Ellie Van Houtte on the White House Project ning

If there are others, please include them in the comments and again, thanks.

Mar

6

Daily Exclamations (March 3, 2009)

Filed Under Cleveland+, Law, Marcy Kaptur, Mary Taylor, Ohio, Politics, Women | 3 Comments

Daily affirmations are

a process of conscious thought or prayer that a person might repeat or affirm during the day. They are usually a sentence or two, which may be the same thought on a daily basis, or may be different.

…

The idea of daily affirmations is that they tend to focus on a positive thought upon which you can dwell, which can uplift the mind, make you feel better about yourself, or help you feel supported by the divine.

Many people take daily affirmations quite seriously, and find that these moments of thoughtful concentration help keep them focused and balanced throughout the day. A certain portion of the world does mock the practice. The Saturday Night Live character Stuart Smalley, for instance, became famous for his daily affirmation “I’m good enough, I’m smart enough, and doggone it, people like me.” While this is a silly interpretation of the practice, it should be noted that things like praying daily, or boosting self esteem with a simple thought are not a bad thing, and may help people stay centered and focused on a positive approach to living.

Well, I’ve been trying to come up with a way to include on this blog all the news, information and thoughts that strike me as news, information and thoughts worthy of being put on the blog. But many times, these items are nothing more than pieces of information or thoughts that I blurt out while watching something while I’m sitting in the car listening to the news while I wait for one of my kids, or I’m thumbing through my newsletter emails on my Blackberry while I wait for one of my kids, or I’m reading the newspaper somewhere – while I wait for one of my kids.  You get the idea.

Prolific as I may be, I still don’t blog about 80% of what I’d like to – maybe not even 90% of what I’d like to.

So, I started thinking about how a lot of these items are just exclamations – they are things that get stuck in my head as defining the tone of the day, the news of the day, the dominating event through which the rest of the day might get funneled – for better or worse.

The way those thoughts punctuate my day gave me the idea to start Daily Exclamations – a daily blog post with links to those things I’d probably put in caps if I was that kind of blogger because in real life, I probably was shouting about it at the television or the windshield or the empty waiting room chairs, but in blog life, I just want to share what caught my attention, with a thought that maybe it will catch yours too, and if it doesn’t, maybe it should.

Because after all, when you read some news headlines or ticker captions, or hear some commentary, don’t you find yourself repeating it, over and over, as if to affirm that someone really said what you thought you just heard?

Here are the Daily Exclamations for Friday, March 6, 2009 (this list is going to be long and unwieldy but I will try to organize it by topic – I’m cleaning up not quite 200 unopened tabs – I know I know…):

Ohio

From NewsNet5, Redistricting to determine which [Cleveland city] council seats will go where – The deadline is April 1.  Realneo has pdfs of the handouts from the community meeting that was held 3/4/09 to discuss the plans (they were posted by Ward 15 council member, Brian Cummins). Henry Gomez of the Plain Dealer shares impressions of the meeting here. Adding in: An Ohio Daily Blog post on the subject – worth the clikc.

Read or watch Cleveland Mayor Frank Jackson’s State of the City.  Here’s the PD’s cribbed version.

Wow! The Ohio Republican Party finally decides to cover the dissent left of center folks have with President and previously candidate Barack Obama. Playing the game that seems to be most popular these days, Which Media Personality Best Represents the Opposition For Your Purposes?, the ORP points to Rachel Maddow as evidence that “even liberals are railing on” the president. Ya know, I guess they’re missing that big ole Accountability Now group that is raising millions of dollars specifically to support political candidates who can push Obama in the direction they want (because, you know, they oppose his trajectory).

Congresswoman Marcy Kaptur (D-9) scolds a fellow legislator for name-calling in this video. I love it.

Ed Morrison has posted an atlas in progress in order to “reframe the conversations about the future of Northeast Ohio toward a tighter focus on education and innovation.” I haven’t had time to really examine it but it looks like a very interesting application.

I didn’t trust Ohio Auditor Mary Taylor’s protestations about Ohio Governor Ted Strickland’s “failure” to get her what she says she needs in terms of documents and data to do an audit of the administration for 2008 and my instinct was right.  This doesn’t make the gov’s administration blameless, but also undermines and makes look shrill Taylor’s extremely public and prolific fingerpointing.  Read a far more complete story that you’ll hear from Taylor here.

Journalism, blogging, social media

Fabulous video of NPR political commentator Daniel Schorr (brother of CWRU MSASS professor, Alvin Schorr – someone has got to write a book on what these two men have accomplished in their lives) learning how to use Twitter.

The Citizen Media Law Project provides an update on the status of federal shield legislation in the 111th Congress and examines whether bloggers will be left out.

A caricature of me as a superwoman won the Parenting Publications of America Silver award for interior illustration. Here’s the comment:

This attention-getting illustration gets to the point with a caricature of a mom who carries all the important ecoutrements of her job. The playful super-hero colors enhanced the first impression readers have.

Women

A video re-mix, to the tune of Right Said Fred’s Too Sexy, of former congressman Dick Armey letting us know how he feels about spousal units and Joan Walsh (hattip to her here where there’s an accompanying video of President Obama talking about the women in his life at the Lilly Ledbetter Act signing).

Legendary pollster Celinda Lake on how the “Gender Gap in Politics Is Invite for More to Run.”

Ask and she shall receive: The White House Project is amping up its Go Run! program again so that there will be more invitations to women to run. Go Apply! (there are nine three-day training sessions, like the one I helped organize in Ohio last year, scheduled already)

I think the writer shows a bias that I don’t know if I agree with in this article,  “Called into action with kids at home: Where do military moms’ loyalties lie?” The latest re-asking of that question arose because of the case of Lisa Pagan.

Wonderful post about International Women’s Day,which is this Sunday. The post features reflections from Gloria Feldt, Deborah Siegel, Elizabeth G. Hines, and Courtney E. Martin.

Law

When I was an ombuds, workplace violence was on the rise and becoming alarming to many ombuds. I can’t imagine how they’re feeling about federal appeals court’s rejection of a law that banned guns in workplace parking lots.

Feb

26

White House alumna & Strickland legal counsel appointed to Franklin County bench

Filed Under Courts, Law, Ohio, Politics, Ted Strickland | 2 Comments

From the Columbus Dispatch:

Two lawyers working in state government have been chosen by Gov. Ted. Strickland to fill open seats on the Franklin County Common Pleas Court.

Kimberly Cocroft, a 35-year-old Democrat, works as deputy legal counsel in Strickland’s office. The other appointee, Laurel Beatty, 34, also a Democrat, is director of legislative affairs in the secretary of state’s office. Both women will begin their judgeships April 6.

I wrote about these opening here and noted very specifically something which the Ohio Republican Party’s expected bash piece about the final candidates who didn’t get the nod leaves out: all four of the final candidates who were not selected have already run for judicial posts and lost.  Each and every single one of them.

Kind of an important fact the Republicans seem to like to ignore (losing that is).

Feb

19

White House Project alumna up for Franklin County bench appointments

Filed Under Courts, Gender, Law, Ohio, Politics, Ted Strickland, Women, leadership | Leave a Comment

Ohio Governor Ted Strickland will be filling two Franklin County Court of Common Pleas vacancies soon.  According to the Columbus Dispatch,

Strickland will take recommendations from the Ohio Judicial Appointments Recommendation Panel, a bipartisan committee that he created in January 2007 to screen applicants.

An original group of 14 applied, eight were interviewed and six are now finalists.

They are (descriptions are from the Dispatch article):

Laurel Beatty: 34, daughter of former state Reps. Otto Beatty Jr. and Joyce Beatty. She is director of legislative affairs for the Ohio secretary of state, has worked at three law firms and has served as a hearing officer for the city of Columbus on the Equal Business Opportunity Commission and the Red Light Photo Enforcement System.

Kimberly Cocroft: 35, former Ohio Supreme Court law clerk and current deputy legal counsel to Strickland.

Frank Macke: 59, in private practice in Columbus for 33 years. He ran unsuccessfully for Common Pleas Court in 2006

Richard Brown: 52, partner in the Columbus office of Buckley King with 27 years experience. He last ran unsuccessfully for the Franklin County Court of Appeals

Mark Serrot: 54, in private practice in Columbus. He has served as an arbitrator in Common Pleas cases and is a hearing officer for the Ohio State Racing Commission. He ran unsuccessfully for the Common Pleas bench in 2004

Mike Rankin: 55, registrar of the Ohio Bureau of Motor Vehicles with a 29-year legal career. He is a former assistant county prosecutor and chief deputy clerk for Franklin County Municipal Court. He ran unsuccessfully for Municipal Court in 2005

The WHP alumna I know is Laurel Beatty.  And, ironically, Laurel is one of the women from WHP with whom I had a chance to spend a lot of time during the three days of the workshop last June.

My impressions: smart, dedicated, affable, good listener, diverse background, thoughtful, engaging. She’s also a “she,” she’s African-American and she’s well under 50.  If you look around the Ohio courts, you just don’t see too many who look like that – or are like Laurel. (I’m not familiar w/Kim Cocroft at all.)  Given the demographics of Franklin County, reaching for gender and racial diversity wouldn’t be the worst thing a governor could do, especially if the recommendation panel has given the candidate its stamp of approval already.

As for the four who failed to get elected to the bench, I don’t have anything to add to that other than I don’t know them.  Well, wait – I will say this: remember how a lot of us felt about now Ohio state senate minority leader Capri Cafaro getting appointed to Marc Dann’s seat in 2006? After losing to Steve LaTourette for the 14th-CD in 2004 and Betty Sutton for the Dem primary for the 11th-CD in 2006?

The power of incumbency saw her get re-elected in 2008. Fine.  But, if given the chance, the option, the choice, should the governor really be giving the four who lost elections a boost to incumbency, after having lost?

Feb

11

NY Gillibrand special election: Dems choose male candidate

Filed Under Campaigning, Congress, Elections, Gender, Hillary Clinton, Politics, Voting, Women, leadership | 1 Comment

From The Fix:

Paterson To Set Special Date (Finally): After several weeks of hemming and hawing, Gov. David Paterson appears ready to announce the date of the special election to replace appointed Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand (D) in the 20th congressional district. Paterson told a local television station yesterday that he would announce the schedule for the special today; under state law, once Paterson declares the seat vacant the special election must occur within 30 to 40 days. Both parties have already picked their nominees: state Assembly Minority Leader Jim Tedisco will carry the Republican banner and wealthy businessman Scott Murphy will be the Democratic standard-bearer. A poll released recently by Tedisco’s campaign showed him leading 50 percent to 29 percent although that survey is almost entirely a test of name identification at this early point in the race. The district is extremely competitive and the special election will receive significant attention from both national parties.

From what I could turn up on the Dem’s choice, wealthy isn’t all it’s cracked up to be – and the chosen has no political experience in NY. From NPR’s Political Junkie:

Democrats have come up with Scott Murphy, a venture capitalist who has never run for office before, has been involved in politics in his home state of Missouri — and who, according to Politico’s Josh Kraushaar, failed to pay “thousands of dollars in taxes on a start-up computer software company he owned more than a decade ago.” In the wake of l’affaires Geithner and Daschle, not to mention allegations about House Ways and Means Chairman Charlie Rangel, Republicans feel they have a winning issue.

More on Murphy and his problems: Read more

Feb

4

[poll] OH US Senate race: The win, the women & the apportionment board

Filed Under Congress, Democrats, Elections, Government, Jennifer Brunner, Mary Taylor, Media, Ohio, Politics, Primary, Republicans, Sherrod Brown, Statehouse, Ted Strickland, Tim Ryan, Women, lee fisher | Leave a Comment

Other than my extreme distaste for Mark Naymik’s use of the word “delicious” in this Plain Dealer column about Ohio Governor Ted Strickland, Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher and Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner and the Democratic options for filling retiring U.S. Senator and Republican George Voinovich’s seat, it does a decent job outlining the reality that, when you say yes to one thing, you are pretty much saying no to something else – implicitly. That’s a tactic Strickland often uses: to say “yes” and “no” in such a way that you don’t really think about how that’s actually happened – his position on casinos and gambling is probably the best example of this.

In this instance, Strickland gives a “yes” to Fisher’s candidacy, as noted in the Dayton Daily News last night:

Gov. Ted Strickland said Tuesday afternoon that Lt. Gov. Lee Fisher is the “best qualified” Democrat among those considering a run for U.S. Senate in 2010.

Although Strickland says he’s been upfront about this with Brunner, this statement is still a “no” to Brunner, no matter how you slice it.  It should be noted, however, that it’s also a “no” from Strickland to everyone else in the Dem field, until and unless Fisher chooses not to run.

The strength of Naymik’s column is in its fleshing out of at least two deeper battles: first, the one that has to do with whose word is stronger, whose name, whose endorsement?  Strickland for Fisher, or, if Brunner were to procure an endorsement from current junior Ohio U.S. Senator and fellow Democrat Sherrod Brown, would it hold more sway statewide?

This is where Naymik uses “delicious” regarding how he feels when contemplating this duel for the voters’ confidence vis a vis the power of an endorsement:

Brunner won’t publicly discuss her thinking just yet and didn’t respond to a call Monday. She is seeking the support of her close friend and political mentor, Sen. Sherrod Brown. Their relationship makes the whole scenario more delicious because Brown is also a close friend of Strickland’s. Strickland said he had talked only briefly to Brown about the upcoming Senate opening.

I do not have an answer as to whose endorsement would do more, for either candidate.  I think it’s a real toss up.  Much depends on who, if either, are able to do better for their constituents: Brown in Congress or Strickland in running the state. Read more

Jan

30

Resumé

Filed Under Politics | Leave a Comment

JILL MILLER ZIMON
________________________________________________________________________________
e jillzimon@mac.com

EXPERIENCE

Contributing Editor, BlogHer.com, September-November 2008; June 2009-present

Political Analyst, 2005-present

Columnist, Contributing Editor, Writer, Cleveland Family, 2004-present

Freelance Writer, 2002-present

Blogger, Wide Open, for Cleveland.com/The Plain Dealer, 2007

Storyteller, KnowlegdeWorks Foundation, 2004-2006

Ombudsman; Director of Risk Management, Bellefaire JCB, Shaker Heights, Ohio 1992 – 2000

Principal Investigator, University Hospitals, Cleveland, Ohio 1989 – 1995

Kronenberg & Kronenberg, 1991-1995

Yale University Development Office, New Haven, CT 1985 – 1988

Sherut La’am, 1984-1985

EDUCATION

HONORS and AWARDS (partial)

2009 Journalist of the Month (Women’s eNews, 3/09)

2008 Most Influential Person in Pepper Pike, Ohio, Sun Newspapers (Chagrin Sun, 1/09)
2008 WE Magazine’s 101 Women to Watch This Fall

2007 Bronze Medal, 35-54K circulation, Parenting Publications of America, Column: Humor

2005 Gold Medal, 35-54K circulation, Parenting Publications of America, Personal Essay

2004 Gold Medal, 55K and up circulation, Parenting Publications of America, Personal Essay

BOARDS, MEMBERSHIPS and LICENSES (partial)

ENGAGEMENTS (partial)

2009 Press, Politics Online Conference
2009 Panelist, Fem2pt0, Working Women and Policy, Washington, D.C.
2009 Speaker, Children and Family Leadership Exchange Media Day, Summit County

2008 Panelist, Ohio Election Summit, presented by NYU’s Brennan Justice Center
2008 Blogger, NPR Election Night Blogger War Room
2008 Speaker, BlogHer Annual Conference, Race and Gender
2008 Speaker, Annual Ohio Women’s Business Conference & Expo
2008 Panelist, Collaboration Symposium, Case Western Reserve University
2008 White House Project Ohio Go Run! Speaker, Attendee
2008 Press corps, WAM!2008 (Women, Action and the Media), at MIT
2008 Press corps, Democratic Primary Debate, Cleveland State University
2008 Speaker, RootscampOH

2007 Keynote panelist, American Association of Political Consultants Academic Outreach, University of Akron, Bliss Institute of Applied Politics
2007 Speaker, Youngstown Press Day
2007 Speaker, RootscampOH

2005 Speaker, Society of Professional Journalists Annual Conference, The Business of Freelancing

Jan

27

Colorado women rule! With 40% female legislature

Filed Under Elections, Gender, Government, Ohio, Politics, Sexism, Statehouse, Women, democracy, leadership | 4 Comments

From the Rocky Mountain News:

But the real story is Democratic women. They outnumber Democratic men in the Senate and were able to win two leadership races expected to go to men. Half of the 38 Democrats in the House are women.

Their numbers are such that gender is almost a non-issue.

“It has taken a long time, but people are used to the idea that women can be in these positions,” said Rep. Beth McCann, D-Denver, elected to the House in 2008.

“It’s commonplace for us,” said Speaker Terrance Carroll, D-Denver. “And I’m glad it is. I think having so many women lawmakers is a great thing.”

That bolded sentence represents wisdom that people who have studied leadership and diversity in leadership will tell you almost any time you give them a chance.  One or two women is often seen and/or felt to be token and can lead to competition rather than support.  That is what some research on women on corporate boards has shown. But when you start to increase above that level, you enter a completely different level of being able to work in groups and dispersed among all subgroups within a larger organization and then you can really have an impact in terms of having a different perspective, a different life experience and a different approach to many issues compared to male counterparts.

The breakdown, the also-rans and the bottom dwellers:

Colorado has the highest percentage of women state lawmakers in the nation. Forty of its 100 lawmakers are women.

* COLORADO SENATE

21 Democrats, 12 are women
14 Republicans, 1 is a woman [that is the same thing in our state senate - but worse: Ohio's state senate has 21 Republicans - out of a total of 33 seats - with just 1, out of 21!!! being held by a woman, Karen Gillmor, who actually served two state senate terms in the 1990s and then was elected in 2008; her husband was Congressman Paul Gillmor who passed away in 2007]

* COLORADO HOUSE

38 Democrats, 19 are women
27 Republicans, 8 are women

* STATES WITH HIGHEST PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN LAWMAKERS

Colorado, 40.0%
Vermont, 37.8%
New Hampshire, 37.3% [the state with the majority female state senate]
Minnesota, 34.8%
Hawaii, 32.9%

* STATES WITH LOWEST PERCENTAGE OF WOMEN LAWMAKERS

South Carolina, 10.0% [the state with a senate chamber that has no women]
Oklahoma, 11.4%
Alabama, 12.9%
Mississippi, 14.4%
Kentucky, 14.5%

Source: Colorado General Assembly; National Conference of State Legislatures

The other notable piece of information from the article:

[Policy specialist with the National Conference of State Legislatures, Katie Fischer] Ziegler said one reason Colorado might be leading the nation is that the White House Project, a national, nonpartisan organization that pushes to put women in leadership, has been “very active in Colorado.”

“They did a lot of recruiting,” she said.

So let’s go Ohio – I did my part, being on the steering committee and speaking at and attending Ohio’s very first White House Project Go Run! in June 2008.

Yes Pecan!

Or, um, if you don’t have dessert on your mind, yes we can. (But I so have to try that Yes Pecan! because seriously, butter pecan has always been one of my most favorite ice cream flavors.)

Jan

23

[interview] Gillibrand’s advice to women considering politics: ask, train

Filed Under Congress, Politics, Women | Leave a Comment

From an interview newly appointed U.S. Senator (yet to be sworn in) Kirsten Gillibrand (NY) did with Women’s Voices for Change:

WVFC: What encouragement or tips would you share with women who may be considering switching careers and entering politics?

KG: My advice would be for women to identify what they are most passionate about and try to make a difference there. So, if you really care about the public schools in your community, you should run for the school board. If you care about zoning, development and open space, run for town supervisor or city council. If you want to work on national security, healthcare reform and other national issues, run for Congress.

Once you decide what you want to run for, go to a campaign training school. There is the Women’s Campaign School at Yale that offers a one-week summer course, and a weekend course offered by the Women’s Campaign Forum. There are courses in New York state run by the Eleanor Roosevelt Legacy, and in San Francisco byEmerge. And, of course, Emily’s List has events all over the county.

Those training classes will give you the lay of the land and the tools you will need to win. Please run, we need you! [emphasis added]

Regarding that ask at the end, some commenters yesterday sounded rather irate that women need to be asked, but they do.  And it works. For The White House Project training, we have a whole time dedicated to working on how to ask and then asking our fellow attendees.

Update: Gillibrand attended both EMILY’s List POP training and the Yale program she mentions above.

Jan

23

Rep. Kirsten Gillibrand to replace Hillary Clinton in Senate

Filed Under Congress, Politics, Women | Leave a Comment

From the New York Times:

Gov. David A. Paterson has selected RepresentativeKirsten Gillibrand, a 42-year-old congresswoman from upstate who is known for bold political moves and centrist policy positions, to fill theUnited States Senate seat vacated by Hillary Rodham Clinton, according to a person who spoke to the governor early Friday.

…

Ms. Gillibrand, who had never held public office, won her seat in 2006 against great odds, defeating a four-term Republican incumbent in a race that turned intense and nasty in its final days.

She proved to be a formidable candidate, raising millions of dollars and assembling a campaign organization that aggressively exploited the personal and political baggage of her opponent, Representative John E. Sweeney, who frequently found himself on the defensive.

I’ll write more later, but part of what I love about this pick is…Gillibrand is in part a product of the recruitment of women known to other women who know where and how to recruit potentially successful and absolutely qualified women as candidates for political service.  She attended either the White House Project, Yale’s program or something else – that’s what I need to check on a bit later when I have time.

More background on Gillibrand. At that location, you’ll also find links to numerous articles over the years about Gillibrand and can see her trajectory.

Dec

19

The “wait your turn” argument

Filed Under Barack Obama, Campaigning, Congress, Gender, Politics, Sexism, Women, leadership | 7 Comments

Here’s the Judith Warner op-ed that got me started.

I’m unsure if I’m saying properly what I’m feeling, but I am interested in hearing how people feel about this argument.  There are plenty of arguments as to why Caroline Kennedy is not the best pick to replace Hillary Clinton as the junior senator from New York to the U.S. Senate.  And I actually don’t think NY Governor David Paterson should or will choose her (I have no horse in this race – wasn’t an original Obama supporter, don’t live in NY etc.) for the appointment (whomever is appointed will have to run in 2010).  But Warner’s op-ed really bothers me, and this argument she makes, which I’ve been reacting to all week, really disturbs me, but I can’t get my finger on why precisely.

I am distraught over the “wait her turn” argument about Kennedy from the perspective of a woman who was a working out of the home mother for eight years and a work from home mom for eight more years.

On the one hand, I find merit in the argument because if a candidate doesn’t have, relative to the other candidates, experience that makes sense as it relates to the job, it doesn’t matter what the person has been doing before becoming a candidate.

But I can’t stop thinking about how it is also this “wait your turn” line of argument that keeps women, in general, from getting into positions of political leadership, often due to incumbency and the fact that women enter politics at an average age several years above that of men.

For women who try to enter the workforce, and in the case politics, after any time out for childrearing, it’s this exact attitude that devalues and discredits whatever accomplishments were achieved while not seeking political office (or a job in whichever career).  Now, I know this is one of the reasons why so-called opting out is such a problem, and so maybe this is just my privilege speaking – and I will accept that as the criticism of my concern.

But I firmly believe that Warner and others can choose so many better arguments for why Kennedy would not be and is not Paterson’s best choice. So why does this argument and the snarkiness in Warner’s oped have to be the argument one that’s published and emphasized?

One of the lessons EMILY’s List and the White House Project try to teach the women they train is that sometimes you have to run for political office over and over and over to win, and so it’s part of why their programs work to recruit women at younger ages.  But there’s something that just feels wrong to me about the way in which Warner is proverbially patting Kennedy on the head.  It feels not nice and very unsupportive.  And, frankly, reminiscent of Barack Obama’s sweetie incident.

Thoughts?

Nov

18

First female four-star general, General Ann Dunwoody, promoted last Friday

Filed Under Announcements, Gender, Military, Women | Leave a Comment

From the White House Project:

We join the nation in congratulating General Ann Dunwoody, who became the first female four-star general this past Friday.

According to McClatchy, “Dunwoody’s standing-room-only ceremony in the Pentagon auditorium drew the military’s highest ranked officers. Secretary of Defense Robert Gates and Gen. George W. Casey Jr., the Army chief of staff, presided, and three-star generals had to stand in the back because all the seats were taken.”

During the ceremony, Gen. Casey acknowledged that the naming of the military’s first female four-star general took “probably longer than it should have,” but he called Friday’s promotion something the “entire Army can celebrate and take pride in.”

There are currently 21 female general officers in the Army and just under 60 throughout the military. Gen. Dunwoody said that while she was the first, she will not be the last female four-star general. “The bench is deep.”

For more on General Dunwoody, read Campbell Brown’s column or the Army’s military news article from the original announcement last spring, and the announcement last week. From last spring’s announcement:

About 5 percent of general officers in the U.S. Army are women, officials said, adding that this includes mobilized Army Reserve and Army National Guard general officers.

“I have never considered myself anything but a Soldier,” Dunwoody said. “I recognize that with this selection, some will view me as a trailblazer, but it’s important that we remember the generations of women, whose dedication, commitment and quality of service helped open the doors of opportunity for us today. There are so many talented women in our Army today … you would be impressed. So what’s even more exciting for me is knowing that while I may be the first, I know I won’t be the last. I’m thrilled with this selection and proud to continue to serve!”

Nov

18

Still time to vote today, yes, today in Cuyahoga, Cleveland specials

Filed Under Announcements, Cleveland+, Congress, Elections, Government, Ohio, Politics, Voting | 2 Comments

At 4:40pm today, I was the third voter in my precinct to vote.  That is pathetic – even though Democratic candidate Marcia Fudge is running unopposed for the Ohio 11th Congressional District (empty after Stephanie Tubbs Jones died earlier this year).

Here’s the info:

Voters in the 11th Congressional District today choose an interim replacement for the late Stephanie Tubbs Jones and voters in Cleveland’s Ward 1 and Ward 7 cast ballots for City Council candidates.

Polls will be open from 6:30 a.m. to 7:30 p.m. for all the races.

In the special congressional election, Warrensville Heights Mayor Marcia Fudge is running unopposed to fill the remaining weeks of Tubbs Jones’ term. Fudge, a Democrat, earlier this month defeated Republican businessman Thomas Pekarek for a full term earlier this month.

In Ward 1, the Lee-Miles neighborhood, a special primary election will narrow a field of nine candidates. The two top vote getters will face off in a Dec. 23 special general election.

Nina Turner, who vacated the Ward 1 seat to fill a vacancy in the Ohio Senate, named Terrell H. Pruitt to hold the seat until the end of her term in January. The other candidates are Anthony B. Brown, Jana S. Crosby, Ken Ferguson, Tonya Jones, Pierre Nappier, Anthony W. Ruffin, Andre P. White, and Joani Worthy.

In Ward 7, the Hough neighborhood, a special general election will decide a race between T.J. Dow and Stephanie Howse. Council appointed Howse to the seat after the August death of Councilwoman Fannie Lewis.

Before taking over Lewis’ seat, Howse, 29, served as field director for the Ohio Democratic Party. Among other things, she has pledged to give residents a booklet detailing groups and representatives providing services in the neighborhood. She also wants to get residents involved with public meetings affecting the ward.

Dow, 34, is an attorney for the felony division of the Cuyahoga County prosecutor’s office. Among other things, he proposes more programs for seniors and youths. He also wants to attract more businesses to the ward and partner with police to improve safety.

Emphasis is mine – Stephanie Howse is a fellow White House Project grad. You go girl – good luck.

Nov

14

Remains of the Day, Safari: Women, politics & the elections

Filed Under Barack Obama, Elections, Gender, Politics, PostWH2008, Sarah Palin, Women | 2 Comments

Okey dokey – here are the ones on these topics from my Safari tabs. What’s the difference? I generally work in Firefox – do my reading and research there.  But I open Safari to read my gmail and twitter.  Don’t ask me why – I just do – it became habit.  So, what happens is, when I don’t feel like going back to my writing or researching on Firefox, and I’ve already started to explore links from tweets other people include, those get opened in Safari.  Sometimes I do research in Safari, but the bulk is done in Firefox.

1. One of my fave female political bloggers, PunditMom: The Post Where PunditMom Defends Sarah Palin:

Palin has won the political profile lottery in a way few politicians ever do, no matter where they are from or how long they’ve been on the scene. Skilled politicos know how to seize the moment and move forward when others say their success is unlikely — can you say “Barack Obama.”

…

What Palin does have is a sense of opportunity, something that doesn’t generally come to girls or women naturally in our society. She’s got some serious chutzpah, something I wish I had more of. For better or worse, without a dose of that even qualified women have a tough time getting ahead in any career, especially politics.

Palin has taken charge of this moment that is unlikely to come again and she’s making the most the notoriety that was offered her.

I have to say, if I were in her shoes, I’d do the same thing. When it comes to promotion of women in high profile situations, whether it’s corporate or national politics, none of the men who are still running the show are going to do it for us. Women have to do it for themselves.

2.  Helen Thomas returns to “finish off” Dana Perino (that’s what Wonkette declares).  Great video but I have to say, Thomas did not look that frail at all when I met her last March.  Godspeed to her.

3. From John Farrell at U.S. News & World Report: In Defense of Sarah Palin: Read more

Nov

14

Remains of the day, Firefox: Women, politics & the elections

Filed Under Gender, Hillary Clinton, Jennifer Brunner, Michelle Obama, Politics, PostWH2008, Sarah Palin, Women | 9 Comments

Here’s what I’ve got left over in more than 100 tabs on Firefox (there are a total of 21 items here but I jump after #2 simply because of space):

1. From Fem Dem in Akron: Maybe I Just Don’t Get It. I discovered this blog yesterday or the day before, via The Chief Source, I think. But in reality, I actually had come across it when I read the WaPo article that profiled Swamp Bubbles and Fem Dem in Akron.  My apologies to Katie.  It looks like a good blog and I’ve added it to the sidebar.

2. Rebecca Traister at Salon.com: The Momification of Michelle Obama:

In certain critical ways, Michelle Obama will come to stand in more prominently than anyone could have imagined for the shortcomings of feminism, as described by Linda Hirshman in her 2006 book “Get to Work,” in which she argues that the weighting of domestic responsibilities toward the woman in a family handicaps her chances for professional and economic success. Obama has already said that one of the issues she plans to put front and center while in the White House is the impossible bind faced by working mothers. She knows the trade-offs and sacrifices all too well.

And now, she is in the unenviable yet deeply happy position of being a history-maker whose own balancing act allowed her husband the space to make his political career zip forward, his books sing, his daughters healthy and beautiful, and his campaign succeed. In having done all this, Michelle Obama wrought for herself a life (temporarily, at least) of playing second fiddle. Then again, did she have a choice?

Read more

Nov

7

Stagnation Nation: Women’s wins in political races fail to accelerate

Filed Under Congress, Elections, Gender, Ohio, Politics, Statehouse, Women | 6 Comments

I’d been blogging for nearly a year and a half when the November 2006 elections turned Ohio blue (Democrats took four of the five state offices and former Congressman/now U.S. Senator from Ohio, Sherrod Brown, dethroned incumbent Republican Mike DeWine).  In the course of that time, I threw my first house party ever, for then-candidate and now award-winning Ohio Secretary of State Jennifer Brunner, and I observed up close and personal how support from EMILY’s List – for both Brunner and then-candidate now Congresswoman Betty Sutton (who won the race to fill Brown’s seat in the Ohio 13th) could make a difference.

But I didn’t learn about efforts like the White House Project (WHP) – a non-partisan organization that seeks to get women “into the pipeline” of elected offices and positions of leadership – until just before the elections ended. Sometime before then, I’d signed up for SheSource.org, a service that seeks to place women where currently we see, overwhelmingly, men as so-called experts (think talking head shows on cable and broadcast and talk radio).  One of the e-mails I received just before election day listed Marie Wilson, founder of WHP, as someone who would be available for interviews the day after the mid-term elections, to talk about how female candidates had fared.

I’m a sucker for primary source blogging material and thought this would be a great and unique angle. What I didn’t expect was for my three-post interview of Wilson (here, here and here) to lead to me being on the steering committee for Ohio’s own Go Run! training program, which took place in June 2008 and a permanent fixation and fascination with the efforts, achievements and struggles of women who seek political office.

I hope this post not only satiates my curiosity about how female candidates for political office fared Tuesday, but also causes others  to think about a number of questions raised by examining the state of the race to fill elected offices.

Nationally: Congressional and Gubernatorial Races

If you’d like to see a good review of the results as they relate to women candidates, please check out this pdf from Rutgers’ Center for American Woman and Politics (CAWP).

From Women’s eNews on the House of Representatives: Read more

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