Old Fights on New Battlegrounds..., August 24, 2007

August 24, 2007

Wanted to share with you all a piece that EMILY's List President and Founder Ellen R. Malcolm recently wrote for the Hillary Clinton blog as a part of their run-up to Women's Equality Day (this Sunday!). You may remember that Ellen was appointed a national Chair of the Clinton campaign in March. You can see her original post here, or read on as she shares her thoughts on the recent developments in the race for the White House and the 87th anniversary of women receiving the right to vote.

Old Fights on New Battlegrounds

By Ellen R. Malcolm

It's the dog days of summer but it's more than just the August heat that has my temper at a slow burn. It's the ongoing negative and sexist political tactics that our opponents are using to attack Hillary.

One of the things that we all know as women - and here at EMILY's List we see it all the time - is that the first thing her opponents do when a woman reaches for a higher office is attack her credibility. From the very beginning in 1985, when we started raising early money to help women candidates compete, the question was always the same: "Can She Win?" Opponents (or their paid pit bulls) will always try to raise doubts about whether a woman is up to task or whether she can really amass the support - and money - she needs to compete.

We are now seeing the 2008 version of this hackneyed ploy. Karl Rove just went on a week-long spree against Hillary, saying she can't win the general election. His motivation is clear: Republicans don't want to run against Hillary Clinton, so Rove is using his "goodbye press" for all its worth to attack Hillary's credibility. Unfortunately, we've even begun to see some of Hillary's primary opponents use this same "Rovian" tactic.

I am probably giving Mr. Rove too much credit by making him into an adjective - because I know "the credibility question" is a well-worn drill repeated every time a woman tries to go where only men have gone before. The absurdity of seeing it used in the face of such overwhelming contradictory evidence makes me (and a lot of women out there) very angry.

Hillary Clinton is the frontrunner in the race for president. Period. She is ahead in primary polls and she beats the GOP frontrunners. She is the only candidate whose numbers are steadily rising - while her nearest competitors are sliding backwards.

Hillary's experience going back to her first Senate campaign is replaying itself now across the nation - the more people get to know Hillary, the more they like her. Her conversations with voters across the country are smashing the caricature that the media (and Karl Rove) have tried to make of her. She is winning voters over with her experience, intelligence, and leadership.

Sunday is Women's Equality Day - a day we celebrate the women who withstood attack and broke down barriers to empower us all in the political process. Just 87 years ago, women won their right to vote - to make their voice heard in the political process. Back then anti-suffrage advocates argued that most women "really didn't want the vote, and that they weren't really qualified to exercise it anyway". Today, these arguments sound both ludicrous and hauntingly familiar to my ears.

So this Sunday and every day until November 2008 - I'm calling on women across this country to not only join with me in generating the support Hillary needs to become the first woman president - but to serve as ambassadors of truth. Help me push back against these tired tactics that Hillary's opponents are using to try to undermine her credibility. Whether you're interested in public office or a corporate office, it is a fight I know so many of you know well. It is a fight I know we can win.

Have a great (Women's Equality) day!

Ramona