What am I going to tell my daughter?

From my daughter's school locker

That was the first thing that popped into my mind this afternoon after watching Governor Palin step down.

My 11 year-old daughter adores Sarah Palin. She is too young to understand pro-choice and pro-life. The difference between drilling and being environmentally cautions.  My daughter looks at Sarah Palin and she sees herself. My daughter plays point guard in basketball like Sarah. My daughter is a competitor and works really hard like Sarah. My daughter will be devastated.

For not once, but twice in the last two years, my daughter has seen a hero fall. Three years ago, when Hillary was serving at a NY State Senator, my daughter wrote a third grade report about Hillary. I took my daughter to meet Hillary, who took the time in the throngs of thousands of supporters to stop, read my daughter’s report, and ask her about it. This is when I became inspired into political activism. This is when my daughter found an important role model.  And my daughter believed “I CAN BE PRESIDENT.”

I still remember an email that a mother sent me last October. She was grieving because her 12 year-old daughter, who prior to 2008 had aspired to a career in politics, told her that she no longer wanted to be a politician - that the boys wouldn’t let the girls win. Teenage girls might experience sexism in a different way, but believe me, they “get it” nonetheless.

I hope, no I pray, that in the end Sarah Palin will run for President. I watched today as many of you did and saw a woman who had just had enough. Not only the onslaught of sexism and vitriol aimed at her, but also at her family. In the last month alone we had Letterman, John Kerry’s comment, the Vanity Fair trash and all other sorts of snipes and sexist attacks. I’ll bet that Todd Purdum is celebrating tonight and getting congratulatory emails and high-fives from his “friends”. (more…)

(This story picked up by NewsBusters.)

Rick Sanchez

In covering Sarah Palin’s resignation from the Governorship of Alaska, the CNN anchor [Update:  Rick Sanchez] said

Oh, I see.  So she’s basically kind of playing the victim here, as often times politicians do.  Well that’s interesting, somewhat Clintonian some would say.

He was reacting to Palin’s comment, as related by reporter “Andrew” [Update:  Andrew Wellner from the Mat-Su Valley Frontiersman]

You are naive if you don’t see a full court press right now on the national level, picking apart a good point guard.

Other comments Andrew related include:

We know that we can effect change outside of government.

I’ve never believed that I or anyone else needs a title to do this.

(more…)

Cross-posted with permission from The Stiletto, a political blog.  The author presents her own opinions, not necessarily those of The New Agenda.

As Gov. Mark Sanford (R-SC) and his oft-modified unlimited hangout continue day-after-day, it’s now impossible to ignore his staggering marital and political indiscretions, nicely summed up by Washington Post media analyst-cum-political pundit Howard Kurtz:

a) His “Appalachian Trail” disappearance
b) His choice of an Argentine lover
c) His stream-of-consciousness press conference
d) His wife hanging him out to dry, especially after he asked permission to visit his gal pal
e) His endless apologizing
f) The e-mails

But wait - there’s more! Add Sanford’s admission to The Associated Press that he rounded a few bases with other women, though he went all the way home only with his “soul mate,” Maria Belen Chapur, in what ended up being “a whole lot more than a simple affair; this was a love story. A forbidden one, a tragic one, but a love story at the end of the day.”

And still more: Sanford has now reneged on his promise to AP to release personal financial records to prove his trips to see his paramour were not funded by SC taxpayers.

But is Sanford’s behavior contemptible enough to make him King Of The Heels, or does that (dis)honor belong to former Sen. John Edwards (D-NC)? (more…)

Mark Sanford at top.

I’ve received several e-mails suggesting a blog article commending Jenny Sanford, wife of SC Governor Mark Sanford for charting her own course as her husband (twice) confessed to adultery before the cameras.  I understand women’s support for her.  But here’s the hitch:  If we applaud Mrs. Sanford, we imply condemnation of other wives who have chosen differently.  And the bottom line is that it’s none of our business.  In my opinion, each woman in this situation has be free to choose what’s right for her and we need to allow her to do so with as much dignity and privacy as possible.

So I want to turn my attention instead to the other woman who could be hurt by the Sanford fiasco.  No, not the mistress — or the other mistresses.  Rather, Nikki Haley, SC Representative, and a candidate for SC Governor in 2010.  Haley entered the race positioned as Sanford’s ally and protoge.  Will the coattails that could have lifted her now drag her down?

Haley is walking a delicate tightrope.  The Sanford photos and quotes have disappeared from her website.  That’s the easy part.  The trickier part is her public statements about whether or not Sanford should resign.  If he does, Lt. Governor Andre Bauer takes over, and since he’s also a gubernatorial candidate, gains the advantage of encumbancy.

After Sanford’s first press conference, Haley said: (more…)

(Nancy’s piece has been picked up by Politicker NY.)

The New Agenda has expressed excitement that several 2010 gubernatorial races may shape up to be a female Democrat vs. a female Republican (Oklahoma, New Mexico, Florida), because perhaps then the contest can be about issues rather than hairdos and ankles. But what’s shaping up to be a female vs. female competition in the New York Democratic Senate primary is more complex.

U.S. Sen. Gillibrand

The fight is for the U.S. Senate Seat now held by Kirsten Gillibrand, appointed by Gov. Patterson to fill the role when Hillary Clinton moved up to Secretary of State. Although U.S. Rep. Carolyn Maloney won’t officially declare for a couple of weeks, the NY Daily News quotes an Maloney advisor as saying:

She’s definitely decided to run. She’s in it.

Such a primary fight might get bloody. The Daily News says that Maloney has criticized Gillibrand:

for her “evolving” stances on guns, Immigration and the economic crisis. Maloney also questioned Gillibrand’s “character.”

Establishment Democrats would like to avoid a primary fight that might weaken the nominee prior to a general election battle. Daily News reports that: (more…)

Karen, a college history student and aspiring author, presents her own views, not necessarily those of The New Agenda.

At first, I was going to write about constructive criticism for the new series Surviving Suburbia, but as I looked over some links to sources, I began to think that the series will not be renewed for another season anyway, so any constructive criticism will be moot. I had wanted to discuss the ditzy and flimsy character of Anne Patterson whose role in the series was housewife. I also wanted to discuss strong and positive housewives from other popular series that the writers and producers of Surviving Suburbia could use to remodel the character of Anne Patterson into a stronger woman.

(more…)

Vanity Fair's rendering of Palin

A number of our members have asked me to comment on the latest hit job (calling it an “article” would be overstating things) by Vanity Fair on Governor Palin titled It Came from Wasilla. Even the title is a disgrace.

In case you are curious what sexism looks like, let me give you some real world examples courtesy of Todd Purdum of Vanity Fair:

…she is by far the best-looking woman ever to rise to such heights in national politics, the first indisputably fertile female to dare to dance with the big dogs.

and

anonymous McCain aides saw Palin as a “diva” and a “whack job.”

and

Some top aides worried about her mental state: was it possible that she was experiencing postpartum depression?

Now the question folks are emailing me to ask is why is this happening?  Why the ongoing onslaught against Governor Palin?   How can Vanity Fair get away with this? (more…)

(The following member alert was sent to our members this morning via a member alert. If you would like to join The New Agenda and receive our alerts, please send us a message at jointhenewagenda@yahoo.com)

THIS IS OUR TIME
Our best month ever!
June was The New Agenda’s most successful month since our inception.

• We welcomed hundreds of new members to our organization.
• Our blog traffic was 50% higher in June than any month in our history.
• We built new alliances all over the blogosphere (unity!).
• We continued this month to be a go-to voice for the media on women’s issues including Reuters, NPR, Townhall, Newsday, and New York Daily News.
• We successfully completed our maiden fundraiser For the Herstory Books (see pictures here and video here.)

And it’s working!
The culture in our country is shifting ever so slowly and The New Agenda is leading the charge! (more…)