January 17th 

This remarkable exchange between Former Governor Jennifer Granholm (D) and political strategist Mary Matalin (R) lays clear the importance for women's political leadership.

Ms. Matalin claims women don't need to be elected; they simply need to be in the room.  While Ms. Granholm makes the case that women need to be directly influencing as the elected individual casting votes that impact women's lives.

What do you think?  Should women be satisfied with the government we have?  Or, should women be securing leadership levels commensurate with our numbers and clout?

I Vote for Women.com supports the election of women to public office so that our direct influence matches our numbers and clout -- and so that the policies and practices of our country are in sync with women's needs and views.

View here on YouTube or here on Medialite.com.

You Think Only Women Know How to Fix This Country?




Transcript:

JENNIFER GRANHOLM: If you had more women in Congress, the minimum wage would be raised from the federal government. Forty-percent of households where there are children are headed by women. If you have more women in Congress, there would be affordable, quality child care. If more women were in Congress, there wouldn't be a debate about whether your insurance company should cover contraception in the same way they cover Viagra. There needs to be more women, but why don't they run? They don't run because they don’t want to put their foot into the piranhic waters which is Washington D.C.

I just want to say, I hope women run because it's a form of service to your nation. It is a form of a way to bring balance. The only way you're going to get compromise in Congress, the only way you're going to see some sort of cooperation is to have more women in the room and more women's voices represented.

You disagree?


MARY MATALIN: I’ve been in the room since before you could even wear pants. Okay? In the Reagan administration --


BILL MAHER: You mean before a woman could wear --


MATALIN: -- could wear pants in the White House. So I had one dress on the back of my door and then I would bring in -- it has nothing to do with our gender. 


GRANHOLM: I think we should be there. If they're going to legislate about us, we should be there.


MATALIN: Men --


GRANHOLM: You don't think so? Ninety-two percent of the leadership of the --


MATALIN: I don't want to have [inaudible] of women's health issues to men. I don't want to abrogate children's issues to men. Why do you think that only women know how to fix this kind of stuff? They don't.


GRANHOLM: I'm just saying that 92% of the Republican leadership in the House are white males. That's what they know. That's what their perspective is. Don't you think it would be better for all if there were more diversity?


MATALIN: I think it would be better for all if there were fewer actions coming out of Washington and more actions coming out of states. (HBO's Real Time, January 17, 2014)