Friday Round Up on Monday: What Was Your Anita Hill Moment?

It’s the 20th anniversary of Anita Hill’s truth-to-power moment (I’ll dub it Hill’s personal “power to” moment) confronting then U.S. Supreme Court Nominee, now Justice Clarence Thomas, that changed the culture’s understanding about sexual harassment forever. I delayed the Friday Round Up in order to share two important events that I participated in last week, along with a selection of related news reports and commentary…

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Is Obama’s Leadership dragging down Dems?

I’m in SC today speaking to the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association Women Lawyers and Leadership Conference. Everyone is looking for leadership, but we need to remember that a leader is somebody who gets something done. And then go do it. Same advice I have for members of Congress in my Arena commentary today. Read on and let me know what you would tell the complainers:

Foreclosure signArena Asks: President Obama’s sagging poll numbers have many Senate Democrats up for reelection in 2012 running for cover. And discontent with the president is growing on the House side, too: In his retirement statement Thursday Rep. Dennis Cardoza (D-Calif.) ripped the Obama White House for what he called inaction on the housing foreclosure crisis. Will President Obama be a political albatross for Democratic congressional candidates in 2012?

My Answer: As a lawyer, President Obama should know the first rule of debate: whoever defines the terms is most likely to win it. His failure or perhaps intentional reluctance to do that is the real albatross weighing down members of Congress and causing him to lose the extraordinary voter enthusiasm that swept him into office…

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She's Doing It: Brenda Sperduti Leading Her Dreams

Brenda SperdutiI’ve known Phoenix City Council candidate Brenda Sperduti as a civic activist for over 20 years. Because I so often encourage women to run for public office, it’s only right that I do what I can to highlight the accomplishments and character of those I’d like to see making the decisions at all levels of government.

Special note to my Phoenix friends: Early Voting deadline is fast approaching and the election ends November 8th. Please remember to cast your vote. For election information, click here.

Here’s Brenda in her own words…

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Women, Power, Media and Political Leadership at American University

My speaking engagement at American University on January 13, 2011 featured a powerhouse panel of women: Journalist, Amanda Hess; Political Strategist, Karen Finney; Women & Politics Institute Director, Jennifer L. Lawless; and Congresswoman Terri Sewell joined me in a discussion about women, power, the media, and political leadership. A full transcript of the event, including the question and answer session, is available at Sociable Susan Magazine. Photo credits: Susan Majek.

Introducing the panel and providing a context for our discussion. Congresswoman Terri Sewell as Jennifer Lawless tells her story.
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Jeanette Rankin, First Congresswoman

If women had held the preponderance of political leadership roles, woud peace have become more of a central organizing theme of history than war? Yesterday I met the Kamala Lopez, the director and producer of a new documentary film, A Single Woman, about Jeanette Rankin, the first woman elected to the US Congress. Rankin, a Montana…

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