So a number of people have noticed the significance of Nancy Pelosi’s position as the first female Speaker of the House of Representatives. And I thought President Bush’s discussion of that historic position was very well said. It is historic that, at the last State of the Union, the announcer said, “Madam Speaker, the President of the United States.” And I am not criticizing Rep. Pelosi when I say I have a few other things I have noticed regarding this issue.
First, I was very interetsed in the fact that those introduced at the State of the Union prior to the introduction of the President were introduced by a woman. Then, an older man introduced the President with the now famous “Madam Speaker.” It is probably coincidental, but I was startled when I saw the old guard (the rich, white, old male) suddenly interupting this historic moment for women.
The other thing I am keeping a close eye on is the way Pelosi’s appointment has colored the discussion of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s run for President. The idea seems to be that since Pelosi has the third highest position in America, then that means America is ready to elect a woman to the highest office in the country. And for the record, I hope America is ready. Certainly, nearly every other major/industrialized nation has done so. On this issue, America is behind the world. But, I’m not sure the country is ready.
Look at the way Clinton’s campaign has been handled already. First and foremost, very few people are saying “Clinton for President” or “Sen. Clinton for President” (the second would alleviate any problems people might have with confusing the Senator with her husband since Bill Clinton was never a Senator). Instead, the phrase has been “Hillary for President.” Why is it appropriate to refer to a woman running for president by her first name when everyone would find it completely innapropriate to say “Rudy for President,” (fmr. NY mayor Rudy Guiliani) ”John for President,” (fmr. Senator John Edwards or current Senator John McCain) ”Barack for President,” (Senator Barack Obama) or “Tony for President” (sorry, couldn’t help myself). Equality should be equality, no?
I’m not a big fan of Hillary Clinton, but I respect the fact that she is the first woman to be a real contender for the Presidency of the United States of America. I just hope people don’t use her gender against her, just as I hope people don’t use her last name against her. But I can’t help but expect both with happen.
