Senator Gillibrand is the Real Deal
October 23, 2009
by Amy Siskind
|I had a chance this morning to thank Senator Gillibrand, on behalf of our organization, for speaking out on Monserrate. In case you missed it, Kirsten didn’t mince words in her statement:
Domestic violence has no place in our society, and certainly has no place in the State Legislature. A court of law has found Sen. Monserrate guilty of domestic violence, and I believe he should resign immediately. If he does not resign, then the Senate should move to expel him. We must take a hard line against violence toward women in our society.
Sen Gillibrand spoke about a major factor in her first election, as a Democrat, in a 67% Republican district in upstate New York: her opponent attacked her in an extremely sexist manner, and fortunately it backfired!
Sen Gillbrand has a tremendous command of the international and domestic issues facing our country. She is also an outspoken advocate for women.
And little tidbit that I found rather surprising and touching when chatting with her: Kirsten drives her young children to and from school everyday. Amazing woman – truly.
We need to cultivate and support as many women on both sides of the aisle as possible. Having women in leadership roles ensures that women’s issues are focused on – as State Sen Krueger’s and Sen Gillibrand’s leadership on getting Monserrate to resign clearly shows.
Kirsten did also comment on the partisanship in the current U.S. Senate. She was thankful for the two senators from Maine who seemed willing to listen – at which point one of the attendees noted: “Of course they’re both women!”
No. She’s not. Look, I want a woman in that seat as much as you do. I’m a NY’er. Gillibrand is female and that’s about all. If we are going to work to put women in these positions, let us look at all qualified candidates.
I will be voting, but I will have to see her move more important legislation that the fluff she’s been doing. And, if she can’t move more important legislation, she doesn’t deserve the seat.
Cyn,
She has, as a junior senator no less, taken the lead on several important pieces of legislation.
As well, she sits on 4 important committees as a new senator – including the one regulating derivatives where she has 15 years of security law practice experience and is literally helping to craft legislation going forward.
I encourage you to take a look at her website. She has bravely spoken out for women, children and the LGBT – well ahead of what with the amount of time served would be willing to stick their neck out to do.
How does everyone here feel about today’s announcement that Sarah Palin is endorsing a MALE third-party candidate over the Republican WOMAN running for the NY 23 Congressional seat? I’ve often said that Palin is no friend of women, either from a policy or gender support standpoint. Apparently Diedre Scozzafava has views on women’s issues like abortion that don’t gibe with Palin’s, so she’d rather support a man.
I agree mostly with Amy and was very happy when Gillibrand was chosen. the only flap is her vote to continue funding ACORN after the tape surfaced when these ACORN employees had not problem with girl trafficking. still on my to do list to send her info regarding domestic female trafficking.
Gillibrand has done little in my humble opinion, and her choice to continue funding for ACORN was all the proof I needed to know she was simply more ho-hum politics as usual in Washington.
Unlike, however, Sarah Palin, who is forever the rogue and I am loving her more every minute. Instead of politics as usual, Sarah has endorsed a 3rd-party politician over a Republican woman running for the same Congressional seat. Instead of asking why, NBS just complains that Mrs. Palin is ‘no friend of women’ and assumes it has to do with abortion. Perhaps the 3rd-party politician is a better candidate, or perhaps the woman running is not a good choice. I think that your bias against Mrs. Palin is showing. Many of us feel that the Democrats and the Republicans are one and the same and a 3rd-party might be our only option. I will not even digress and discuss the issue of abortion except to say that it is a tactic, like race, that has been and will continue to be used to misdirect our attention. I want to know what a politician intends to do about the economy, our borders, and our enemies. Everything else is moot if those three issues are not being properly handled.
ACORN is not just a little bad, it is bad to the bone. With taxpayers money they registered and fostered the biggest coup in the history of America last year. The caucus vote in my home town in Texas was all the proof I needed, especially after seeing ACORN employees harassing 80 year old women to the point of tears. To support ACORN is unacceptable.
We lost a big one last year women, but we have no one to blame but ourselves. Women did not stand behind or beside Mrs. Clinton–at least not enough of us. I have never been ashamed of being a woman until I saw the majority of my sisters standing against the best of the best–and one of us. I will never be the same, and while being able to say I told you so has some healing power it is too little too late. I still have nightmares and wake up in cold sweats thinking did we really do that, did we really allow her votes to be stolen, her words to be changed, her wins to become loses. Did women stand by and actually do nothing? Did we? Yes, we did. We voted for the zero and let the hero walk into the sunset.
Sarah Palin, like Hillary Clinton, deserves respect, support, and our votes. But I do not look to women these days, instead I just look to my fellow Americans. I have a hard time looking at women these days, at least without tears in my eyes.
jenniferintexas,
I feel your pain on Hillary – believe me – that was the reason we founded The New Agenda – to draw a line in the sand on sexism and say “Never Again.”
But another part of what TNA wants to accomplish it to get a woman(women) into the highest office. I agree with you that Sarah Palin could be such a woman. I also have been watching Kirsten Gillibrand and she can also be such a woman. She is a new senator and we need to support her as she rises up the ranks.
NBS – didn’t see you come by this site when Obama told our AA governor not to run. From what I’ve seen Gov Paterson has done wonderful things for women and has won the respect of many of our members.
Amy,
I hope that you do. I wish all women could feel what I feel because it might inspire them to see beyond the spin and focus on what matters. In 2009, women are worse off than we were 50 years ago. Eating disorders are at an all time high, pornography is considered ‘cool,’ our so-called women leaders (for example, NOW, MS, N. Wolff, Toni Morrison, and so on and so forth) are the ENEMY as far as I am concerned, girls as young as 7 are wearing provocative clothing and having sex, tweens and teen girls are OBSESSED with boys and sex, and so on and so forth. Oh, and we still don’t have the ERA and when a girl wins the most votes to become president they just take them from her….
If I did not have familial obligations, after what I saw happen last year regarding women stabbing Hillary Clinton in the back and/or just backing the idiot known as Obama, I would have left this country for a third world country. Right now in Africa over 1 million women are incontinent due to early childbirth (i.e. when children are sold by their families and raped by their husbands) and lack of enough nutrition early on to grow and as such are simply children having children. They become ostracized and lead sad lives. A small fraction (approx. .5%) of these women receive the simple surgery to make them whole again, and even though I faint at the sight of blood I thought that perhaps I should go somewhere where the women WANT to help themselves, where I would not be debating with so-called feminists about why Mr. Obama is not a feminist, and where my breath and heart ache and work might actually help a woman.
But I cannot without leaving those I love stranded, so here I sit in America. I appreciate your opinion regarding Gillibrand, but anyone who does not know about ACORN is simply to far behind the curve to excite me. Sarah Palin, on the other hand, might just be ready day one to rock the boat. And I’m sitting here waiting to rock it with her. And don’t think that ‘women’s issues’ are not important to me because they most certainly are, it is just that at this point in history we need to reclaim the country before we start talking about anything else.
I challenge women in America to think about what really happened last year. Don’t sugar coat it, don’t deny it, and don’t diminish it. Look in the mirror and deal with it. Bitter does not even begin to touch it …. not even close.
Hi Jennifer and Amy,
good news on Huffpo of all places. all female republican senators voted for Al Franken’s amendment to the 2010 defense appropriations bill. he amendment forbids mandatory arbitration clauses in defense contractors contracts with employees when sexual violence and battery is involved. the case form jamie Leigh Jones had sparked his interest, when she told about how KBR (a denfense contractor) dealt with her complaint about being drugged and gang raped by her fellow male employees and then brought to a container and sealed off from the outside and not allowed to talk to anybody or go to court because of a mandatory arbitration clause.
30 male republicans voted against the amendment. that is the story of huffpo not htat all female republicans voted for it.
one point why palin does not support the female republican candidate may be her vote for the stimulus bill is the rumor i was picking up lately.
Amy,
Why would I post on this site about Obama not supporting Patterson? I thought this was an organization supporting women’s issues?
NBS
It’s an organization supporting WOMEN. If you don’t know the difference, study up.
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