Category: Uncategorized

Despite the nightmare scenarios we are all experiencing each and every day, at night I am actually dreaming of an injection of feminism into our Senate, and how immediately transformative it is. Organizations that are gender-balanced function better than those that are not, and the United States Senate is most egregiously imbalanced. No one needs to ask which way.

Allow me to introduce you to the seven super women who are taking on entrenched Republican incumbents (toadies all), and one lucky enough to be running in an open seat. In alphabetical order by state, they are:

1. Theresa Greenfield against Joni Ernst in Iowa. While a win for Greenfield will not shift the gender balance officially, it will allow a true feminist to grab a seat at a very important table. Support her at greenfieldforiowa.com
2. Paulette Jordan against James Risch in Idaho. Paulette is a member of the Coeur d’Alene tribe, and will bring Native culture to an institution that has tried to erase it for most of its existence. OMG! Go to pauletteforsenate.com
3. Barbara Bollier against Roger Marshall in an open Senate seat in Kansas. Barbara is a doctor with a practical, no-nonsense approach. She has done well raising money, which is crucial, but she could always use support, either by volunteering or donating. Help out at bollierforkansas.com
4. Amy McGrath against Mitch McConnell in Kentucky. This race has gotten tons of attention. Many many people are ready to ditch Mitch. Folks in Kentucky have been very active this year, so I have high hopes that their grassroots energy and activism will prevail. Please chip in at amymcgrath.com
5. Sara Gideon against Susan Collins in Maine. This is another one which has generated national attention. After Collins’ vote to confirm Brett Kavanaugh to the Supreme Court, fundraising began for whomever the eventual nominee would be. Sara Gideon will shake up the Senate in a positive way. Support Sara at saragideon.com
6. Abby Broyles against Jim Inhofe in Oklahoma. Oh my, what a win this would be! Abby has worked as a television journalist in Oklahoma City, and is well-known, well-liked, and respected by members of both parties. Help her out at abbybroyles.com
7. MJ Heger against John Cornyn in Texas. Like Amy McGrath, MJ has a military background. Cornyn has remained silent since news of Trump calling members of the military “suckers” and “losers” has emerged. Texas is no longer deep red, but is going purple. Add more blue at mjfortexas.com
8. Paula Jean Swearengin against Shelley Moore Caputo in West Virginia. Paula Jean is the most progressive candidate on the list. She is the daughter and granddaugher of coal miners, ready to lead her state and our country into a new energy economy. All three of West Virginia’s Congressional seats have a Democratic woman on the ballot. Women in West Virginia are fired up! Go to paulajean.com

Help me make my dreams come true! There IS an escape from this nightmare, and it involves electing the right people for these times. Those people are women.

Primaries delayed due to Coronavirus, compounded by delays in results out of New York’s June 23^rd primary, have me climbing the walls! We still do not know who our candidates are!!

Losses in New Jersey last week, particulary Arati Kreibich losing to DINO Jeff Gottheimer, with the party fully supportive (gag me), are a blow. Lindsey Blylan came close to beating Jerrold Nadler ~ amazing! ~ and Lauren Ashcraft is still in the hunt against ready-to-retire Carolyn Maloney. NY-15 Is also still TCTC, help!!

Upcoming races to watch are by and large candidates from the Brand New Congress movement. Some are also Justice Democrats, endorsed by Our Revolution, Sunrise, National Women’s Political Caucus, etc. Check their websites for endorsements.

The first primaries are in MO-01 on August 1 and WA-06 on August 4. Cori Bush is back at it in a St. Louis area district, a young progressive woman of color running against an older, ready-to-retire esteemed member of the Congressional Black Caucus, Lacy Clay. Thank you for your service, Lacy.  In the Tacoma, WA (“take Appalachia and replace coal with timber”1) area a 35 year-old queer democratic socialist is up against a right-leaning Democratic incumbent (how is that even possible?), Derek Kilmer. Rebecca Parson is running on a fully progressive platform: Medicare for All, Green New Deal, etc. Watch those two closely.

www.coribush.org
www.rebeccaforwa.com

The next two most interesting primaries to focus on are in FL-23 on August 18 and AZ-01 on August 20. Jen Perelman, another Brand New Congress (also Our Revolution) candidate, is taking on Democratic heavyweight and woman many people love to hate, Debbie Wasserman Schultz in a district between Miami and Fort Lauderdale that is very Hispanic. Jen wants to focus on the service part of being a public servant.  And in yet another match-up between a progressive woman against an establishment Dem, progressive powerhouse Eva Putzova is running against Tom O’Halleran in the Flagstaff area, where she has had a positive impact via her work on the city council. Eva grew up in Slovakia and moved to Flagstaff in 2000. O’Halleran just signed a letter supporting cuts to Social Security and Medicare during COVID-19, ugh.

www.jen2020.com
www.evaforcongress.com

Finally, a race I am fascinated by is in TN-05. The Indivisible Movement has had a lot of influence in Tennessee since the Trump era. Our Comeback Candidate from TN, Renee Hoyos, is endorsed by Indivisible, as is public defender Keeda Haynes, who is challenging incumbent Dem Jim Cooper in a Nashville district where the primary on August 6 will likely decide the outcome. Keeda spent amost four years in prison for a crime she did not commit. Cooper is just another white man in Congress.

www.indivisible.org

July 4, 2020
Oh my my. Here we are again, ready to elect the next wave of women to transform our Congressional leadership in bold and unprecedented ways. Only this time the consequences are so existential, so palpable. Which makes hope for a massive wave of disgusted, disturbed, dismissed, dissatisfied voters all the more real.

For my first blog of the 2020 cycle I want to honor the 27 courageous women who are running again this time. As Elizabeth Warren would say, they persisted. This time many of them will break through, and we can be encouraged by that. We can also assist them in their victories, which will make them all the sweeter. May I present…

THE COMEBACK CANDIDATES!

Alyse Galvin vs. Don Young AK-AL
Joan Greene vs. Andy Biggs AZ-05
Anita Malik or Hiral Tipirneni vs. David Schweikert AZ-06
Audrey Denney vs. Doug LaMalfa CA-01
Diane Bush vs. Lauren Boebert CO-03 ^
Dana Cottrell vs. Daniel Webster FL-11
Carolyn Bordeaux vs. Rich McCormick GA-07 ^
Tabitha Johnson-Green vs. Jody Hice GA-10
Betsy Dirksen-Londrigan vs. Rodney Davis IL-13
Jeannine Lee Lake vs. Greg Pence IN-06
Gretchen Driskell vs. Tim Walberg MI-07
Kimberly Bizon MI-10 ^
Kathy Ellis vs. Jason Smith MO-08
Kathleen Williams vs. Greg Gianforte MT-AL
Kathy Manning NC-06 ^
Kara Eastman vs. Don Bacon NE-02
Tedra Cobb vs. Elise Stefanik NY-21
Tracy Mitrano vs. Tom Reed NY-23
Dana Balter vs. John Katko NY-24
Shawna Roberts vs. Bill Johnson OH-06
Renee Hoyos vs. Tim Burchett TN-02
Adrienne Bell vs. Randy Weber TX-14
Gina Ortiz Jones TX-23 ^
Julie Oliver vs. Roger Williams TX-25
Vangie Williams vs. Robert Wittman VA-01
Carolyn Long vs. Jaime Herrara Beutler WA-03
^ indicates running against a new, non-incumbent challenger
The four bolded candidates are women of color, needed now more than ever to create sound, sustainable public policy.

These women hail from 19 states. If you live in one of them, donate to their campaigns! If you have the same name as one of them, donate to their campaign! All you Carolyns and Danas and Kathys out there get extra credit. If you know someone who lives in one of their states, tell that person about our candidate. Spread the word. We can elect women up and down the ballot if we help them.

The delayed primaries mean we do not have accurate information about some challengers, but now that we are less than four months out I felt it was time to get blogging! Look for future blogs on our astounding slate of women running for Senate; races to watch: exciting primaries in MO, WA, FL, AZ and MA in August and September; and candidate spotlights. Stay tuned because the next 4 months are going to fly by and we need to be on our toes, poised to step in where needed.

Special shout-out to Amy McGrath and MJ Hegar who are also running again, only this time for Senate in KY and TX! Let’s help Amy ditch Mitch and MJ crush Cornyn.

Countdown to the mid-terms has begun, and Half the Congress Should Be Women is happy to endorse ten hard-working and forward-thinking women in races all over the country. The common thread running through this list of women is that they are running against incumbents whose voting records are so abysmal for women that they were declared “worst for women” by Ultraviolet. There is even one woman on the “worst for women” list. Vote them out!

CA-23  Tatiana Matta vs Kevin McCarthy  tatianamatta.com

GA-06  Lucy McBath vs Karen Handel  lucyforcongress.com

MN-02  Angie Craig vs Jason Lewis  angiecraig.com

NC-13  Kathy Manning vs Ted Budd  kathymanning2018.com

NE-02 Kara Eastman vs Don Bacon  eastmanforcongress.com

NM-02  Xochitl Torres Small vs Steve Pearce  xochforcongress.com

NV Senate  Jacky Rosen vs Dean Heller  rosenfornevada.com

OH-04  Janet Garrett vs Jim Jordan  janetgarrett.com

VA-02  Elaine G. Luria vs Scott Taylor  elaineforcongress.com

VA-07  Abigail D. Spanberger vs Dave Brat  abigailspanberger.com

 

I have not posted in a long time. First I was digesting my whole Capitol Hill experience, processing a ton of ideas; then I was just procrastinating!

Now here we are, only four months ‘til the midterm. The master distractor has us all up in arms about children in cages, separated from mama and papa. Ouch, how low can we really go?

Imagine if women were represented in Congress equal to our numbers in society. Do you think there is any chance that it would be legal to snatch babies from their mothers’ breasts?

Our democracy is on the line, so we need to rise up in unprecedented numbers for the midterms. This means you, young people! Register to vote, register your friends to vote, register strangers to vote.

But most importantly, choose at least one candidate, maybe two or three, to support actively. Donate time, donate money, knock on doors.  Our democracy is worth fighting for!

In future posts I will recommend some great female candidates. It is encouraging to have so many wonderful women taking the plunge into politics, where we need them so desperately.

When I wear my sash in honor of the original suffragettes, I get wonderfully positive enthusiasm, people agreeing with me wholeheartedly, only countering with the fact that really, it should be more than half based on the fact that women represent more than half the population. Believe me, I will be ecstatic when we can get to 45 percent!

My sash says Half the Congress Should Be Women, which coincidentally is the name of my new organization. The first-wave suffragettes’ sashes said Votes for Women or sometimes Women’s Votes.

My point is that having the franchise has not translated to actual political equality, and until we have equal representation in the US Congress, we are not being fairly or even adequately represented.

Make your own sash and join me!

Half the Congress Should Be Women!

Reading this piece from Time is the sort of energizing boost we all need in these potentially gloomy, possibly flu-ridden days. Let the adrenaline flow!

http://amp.timeinc.net/time/5107499/record-number-of-women-are-running-for-office

Transparency in wages is the key. Keep in mind that the workforce in Iceland is 80% unionized. We know how powerful that 80% threshold is!!

Here is a discussion about how this new law came about, and what impact it might have in the US.

http://knowledge.wharton.upenn.edu/article/icelands-unique-effort-ending-gender-pay-gap/

I have a sense that 2018 is going to be a very consequential year.  Let’s jump right into it!

Why are we having such a difficult time achieving gender equality in our society? Are women that threatening? Some men are unwilling to accept feminists, and we simply have to accept that. More importantly, we have to be ready for it because those men might make life even more volatile and dangerous for the women in their lives.

As always, we rely on support from our male allies, in the form of modeling equality with your partners and using loving language around differences of opinion.

Columnist Mary Sanchez has some insight for men on this topic, and we all benefit when we try thinking about this from a fresh perspective.

http://www.heralddemocrat.com/opinion/20171228/men-resist-urge-to-play-injured-party

Check out an exciting piece from yesterday’s New York Times. Women all over the country are recognizing that politics as usual is not serving ordinary Americans, and are jumping into the fray at encouraging rates. Hooray!!