Women and Politics

[The content below is a paraphrased summary of the Obama speech made at the DNC this week. It in no way is meant to express the political inclinations of the author or the WCFF.]

After the surprise visit to the Pepsi Center on Thursday, Senator Barack Obama arrived at the Invesco field after a build up of anticipation from supporters of the Democratic Party. By 2:00 PM the 16th Street Mall started to empty. The protesters had moved. In every store, shop or restaurant you could hear the buzz about going to Invesco field. Although, for security reasons, the light rail didn’t go straight to the field. Some people walked miles to get there.

You had to have a special ticket to in order to get in to the field. The ticket included a security code so no one could copy it. The change from the Pepsi Center to Invesco field meant more people would get to see Senator Barack Obama accept the Democratic Nomination for President. The amount of people increased from about 45,000 people to about 80,000 who had tickets to get through security and into the arena. Reminding some of a similar time when John F. Kennedy (JFK) accepted the nomination. Many remained just outside, not able to get in but wanting to be close enough to watch on the monitors.

The star-studded event included entertainment from John Legend, Jennifer Hudson and Stevie Wonder. Speeches from Al Gore, Governor Bill Richardson, Governor Tim Kaine, and V.P. nominee Joe Biden warmed up the crowd for Obama’s highly anticipated appearance. Senator Dick Durbin introduced Obama with the video of his life.

Obama is greeted with cheers, chants, and tears as he thanks the crowd that isn’t really giving him a chance to speak. He accepts the Presidential nomination and then expresses his thanks to all the candidates and thanked Bill Clinton. He gives a special thanks to Senator Hillary Clinton as he references the opportunities she has opened up for women and his daughters. He talks about Ted Kennedy, his family, and Biden before he begins to talk about the economy. He addresses a list of issues including the economy, healthcare, and education. Obama talks about home loss, mortgage crisis, high cost of tuition, and credit cards. He tells stories of people’s live affected by illness, outsourcing of jobs, and homeless veterans.

He talks about his opponent Senator John McCain and how closely his policies are similar to President Bush with snappy lines like “Eight is Enough,” referring to a 80’s family TV show and describing the last eight years of the Bush administration. Obama goes on to say, if McCain’s policies is 90% close to the previous administration he doesn’t want to take a 10% chance on repeating those eight years. Obama gives credit to McCain by saying “he just doesn’t get it.”

Obama:

“McCain subscribes to a philosophy that prosperity will trickle down, the market will take care of health care and and that anyone in poverty should pull themselves up by their bootstraps even if they don’t have boots.”

Obama goes on to explain that it is time for a change and this is why he is running for President. He talks about measures of success by describing progress with increase in jobs similar to when the economy increased the salaries of Americans by $7,500 during the Clinton administration. Obama uses stories of American families shared with him and compares them to challenges for his mother, grandfather, and gives a special tribute to his grandmother, calling them his heroes.

He indicates that he has a 10-year plan to end the dependence on oil from the Middle East. Raising 15 billion dollars to new energy sources and five million new jobs that won’t be outsourced. He discusses his education plans. He covers issues for women including equal pay, reproductive health and unintended pregnancies. He spoke of important issues in the gay rights community. Obama addressed the Second Amendment, referring to protecting the law but keeping AK47’s off the streets and out of criminals hands. He talks about the war in Iraq, concerns in Iran and Georgia. Ensuring veterans have equipment in battle and care when they come home.

Obama:

“Patriotism has no party. I love this country and so do you and so does John McCain.” “Those men and women that have fought in wars together have not served a red or blue America, they have served the United States of America.”

Acknowledging that change will not be easy, Obama talks about the change that will come to Washington with contributions from both the government and parents responsible for doing their part in making “change” happen.

Obama:

“The change we need does not come from Washington; change comes to Washington. Change happens because the American people demand it.”

He goes on to talk about some of the change he has seen over the duration of his campaign.

Obama:

“Youth voting for the first time, and the Republicans that thought they would never pick up a Democratic ballot, but did.”

He talks about the American promise that 45 years ago today Americans from all four regions came to the Lincoln Memorial to hear a preacher from Georgia speak of his dream.

Obama:

“Together our dreams can be one. America we can not turn back with so much work to be done.”

“Let’s keep that promise, an American promise”

[Update: Video Added]

Getting into Pepsi Center on the day of the Role Call Vote seemed easier than normal. Although the security was the same as any other day, there were not as many people entering at 3 p.m. I wasn’t sure if it was too early or if many people hadn’t realized the significance of the events of the day.

This day I was able to go behind the podium and watch the big screen, escorted, of course. I took pictures and video of the view, watching some states cast their vote. There were screams and cheers for both Obama and Clinton as the votes were cast.

Alabama was up first to cast 48 votes for Obama, Alaska followed suit, with Arizona the first to cast votes for Clinton. California, with 441 votes, passed on casting their vote. Everyone began to wonder what was going to be the outcome, with so many votes not included in the count. States were called in alphabetical order declaring which votes were going to Obama and Clinton. Illinois also passes on casting the vote. Michigan, a highly contested state, was able to cast their votes. Voting 125 for Barack Obama and 27 votes for Hillary Clinton.

The other states followed suit, casting each vote until Speaker Nancy Pelosi calls upon the State of New York, Mayor Daley. Several people moved to the front of the line. As you listened to Daley he moved slightly and you see Senator Hillary Clinton. The audience begins to chant “Hillary, Hillary, Hillary” after Sen. Clinton asks to suspend the procedural rules and suspend the conduct of roll call. She goes on to say,

“All votes cast by the delegates will be counted and I move that Sen. Barack Obama be selected as the nominee of the Democratic Party for President of the United States.”

Speaker Nancy Pelosi calls for the motion and accepts the nomination of Barack Obama. The whole event was moving and exciting. Many people around had been brought to tears.

Ambassador Swanee Hunt takes time out of her busy schedule to explain why women should get active in politics at the Democratic National Convention. She is the first in the series of profiles of politically active women.

Ambassador Swanee Hunt has a very active her professional life.

Ambassador Hunt answers why she became active in her political life:

Here is how she got active politically:

Getting active, for Ambassador Hunt, was as simple as advocating. What could you do to get active in politics?

Ilana Goldman, President of Women’s Campaign Forum, explains to women why they should be involved in politics. There are three key things that women should know about how they can take part in the the political process each day. View the video to find out what they are:

I will be in the Pepsi Center live blogging the role call vote. I have spoken to several delegates and listened to Super Delegate Donna Brazile announce at the Women’s Caucus yesterday that she will be voting for Hillary Clinton.

Many of the delegates feel passionate about making history. A woman candidate that was the front runner in the race for President is a significant milestone for women. Delegates have told me that they are compelled to mark this moment in time for all to remember. The role call has been an historical message that began with the campaign of Shirley Chisholm for President. In the blog post at the Huffington Post, Adele Stan and I mentioned these facts in Memo to Obama: Let the Floor Vote Roll.

Look for the follow up of the live blog and profile of some of these delegates.

I was able to talk to actress Rosario Dawson. I asked her why should women get involved in politics at the Women’s Caucus held at the Colorado Convention Center. This is what she had to say:

(Please welcome our friend PunditMom to the WCFF blog! She will be cross-posting from her blog during the conventions and we are so happy to have her. Look forward to more of her posts!)

While there are no statistics to prove this, it feels like there are a record number of events for political women at the Democratic National Convention. That’s a really exciting thing in terms of where political women go from here when the 2008 election is done in November.

NOW’s EqualiTEA, the Unconventional Women forum being put on by a variety of organizations, including The White House Project and the Women’s Campaign Forum, and the EMILY’s List reception, just to name a few, are places for progressive, activist women to gather and start planning the next phase of their political lives and agendas.

The Women’s Media Center is also presenting their report called, “From Soundbites to Solutions: Bias, Punditry and the Press in the 2008 Election,” and apparently we need it, and not just for the guys who insisted on giving Hillary Clinton short shrift during the presidential campaign.

In an article called Hillary Clinton Fans Tough to Woo, Christy Hoppe of the Dallas-Morning News wrote about the increased number of women’s gatherings in Denver, referring to them as an “estrogen-fest.”

An estrogen-fest.

Is that supposed to make us think about hundreds of hormonal women creating a ruckus like a bunch of sorority girls? Because I hardly think it’s the right turn of a phrase to describe gatherings with the likes of Senator Hillary Clinton, Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi and the scores of other high-profile Democratic women, especially when one Clinton almost became the party’s presidential nominee.

Just out of curiosity, when was the last time you read anything written about a political event populated by men called a “testosterone-fest?”

Yeah, I didn’t think so.

The fact that the media, women members included, continue to write about gatherings presented and attended by women — especially political women — in derogatory and dismissive terms like this one never ceases to amaze me. I guess that’s my problem. I should be used to it by now.

But if we can’t even get other women to stop describing serious women and serious events with a vocabulary that can only diminish and mock us, how will we ever get the likes of Chris Matthews, Tucker Carlson, or the whole team at Fox News to stop referring to us as “bitchy” and “castrating?”

If any of you run into Christy Hoppe at the DNC, let her know I’d like to have a word with her. I just hope that she doesn’t run into Gloria Steinem or Nancy Pelosi first. That just won’t be pretty.

(Cross-posted from PunditMom.)