Hillary Clinton urges women to turn out for 2014 midterms
Though they "might not be as glamorous as presidential elections," Hillary Clinton said Friday, the upcoming November midterms are "crucial" in concocting Democratic makeups both on Capitol Hill and at states' helms. That, in turn, will advance progress on issues relating specifically to women, she said.
During her remarks to the Democratic National Committee's Women's Leadership Forum Conference in Washington, D.C., the former secretary of state offered up endorsements to almost every female Democrat running statewide in 2014.
"We have so many reasons to be hopeful," she said. "Mary Burke gives me hope. Maggie Hassan gives me hope. Martha Coakley and Wendy Davis give me hope. Alison Lundergan Grimes, Kay Hagan, Mary Landrieu, Michelle Nunn, Jeanne Shaheen, Natalie Tennant - they all give me hope."
Democratic women running for House or Senate this year number over 100, and six are engaged in bids for governorship. "If I could vote for all of them, I would!" Clinton exclaimed.
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Though Democratic National Committee chair Debbie Wasserman Schultz has in recent weeks shouldered scrutiny for her questionable leadership and a recent cringe-worthy remark comparing the tea party's handling of women's concerns to domestic violence, Clinton embraced her - both literally and in verbal praise. "Debbie wears so many hats so well: DNC chair, trusted friend, congresswoman, mom," Clinton said.
Speaking just hours before NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell would go on record conceding the league has been "wrong" on handling issues of domestic violence, Clinton grieved that commemoration of the Violence Against Women Act's anniversary "was tempered by troubling news on many fronts, from the outrages of the NFL to assaults against women in uniform and on college campuses."
Clinton also took on a Supreme Court ruling over the summer that said closely held companies like Hobby Lobby don't have to follow President Obama's Affordable Care Act mandate that requires large firms to help pay for their employees' birth control. It "pulled the rug out from America's women" just as the new health care law was taking effect, Clinton argued.
Some of her broader points, like supporting a minimum wage boost and equal pay for women, echoed those she made during her highly publicized return to Iowa last weekend. And to be sure, Clinton's remarks - while tailored to women's rights - were merely the latest cog in the campaign machine her team is building ahead of a likely 2016 presidential run.
One riff in particular foreshadowed what could well become a permanent addition to her future stump speech during a harrowing time of unprecedented partisan gridlock.
"When women participate in politics, the effects ripple out far and wide," she said. "Weren't you proud when a coalition of women senators broke the logjam during last year's government shutdown?" she said. Drawing on advice she once got from Sen. Patty Murray, D-Washington, she added: "You work together and you get the best outcome that you can."
With just as much if not more of an interest in breaking through the Washington logjam, the president took the stage several hours later to promote his pro-women's rights agenda as something that's not political, but which serves "about half the population."
"It's remarkable that some folks still talk about women's issues as if they're something separate," Mr. Obama said. "We do better when we field a full team. When women succeed, America succeeds."