Women Politicians In The United States

"As a little girl, I would always ask my grandmother what it would take to be successful in life. ... She said all you need are the three bones: the wishbone, the jawbone, and the backbone. The wishbone would keep you hoping and praying because hope is the motivator, but the dream is the driver. The jawbone will give you courage to speak truth to power, lift your voice — it should matter that you’re in the room, that you’re in that space with that voice. The backbone ... will give you courage to stand through all of your trials and tribulations."

"We cannot go from President Obama’s “Yes, we can” to “No, we can’t.""

"If we can go to the moon, we can find a way to have universal healthcare as a right in this country."

"Folks don’t have a problem with us investing our money to help the wealthiest people in this country—corporate welfare, if you will—but folks seem to have a problem with us investing our money in the working poor and middle class in this country."

"It makes no sense that the voices of everyday people, like you, me, your viewers and listeners, are being drowned out by money."

"In 2014, I was asked to help ready for Hillary, and that’s exactly what I did. But when it came time to endorse, I have endorsed Senator Bernie Sanders. He has the type of heart-soul agreement that I believe that we need in this country. He has been a constant champion for civil rights, women’s rights, voting rights. His plan to make sure that we have universal healthcare in this nation, as a right and not a privilege, really speaks to me... directing our public will towards making sure that we change the model in this country to a pre-K-to-college model, that speaks to me, especially because I am a first-generation college graduate and I understand, from a personal perspective, the power of higher education to help somebody change the trajectory of their life."

"The agenda that is being put forward by those on my side of this movement — Medicare for All, living wages, making sure people can unionize, protecting voting rights — the overwhelming majority of people believe in it. What is missing is intestinal fortitude on the side of the Democratic Party. The Democratic Party as a whole have to make a decision: Is this the party of the corporatists, or is it going to be the party of the people? So far, it is failing and proven that it is the party of the corporatists."

"Elections are being decided in boardrooms instead of ballot boxes."

"These people are pouring in this kind of money because they want to be able to control the outcomes that happen on the congressional level. This is it, plain and simple. You don’t invest that kind of money without expecting a return...They are investing in corporatist-type Democrats because they want a return on their investment."

"I don’t bend, that I come from the Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm school of Democrats, and that is unbought and unbossed."

"the oligarchs — because that’s exactly what they are — when you have cryptocurrency billionaires, oil baronesses, other corporate interests infusing or injecting themselves into these local races, it is a problem, because what they do is they drown out the voices and the will. We don’t truly know what the will of the people would be if these super PACs would not jump in in the way that they do. And they seem to — not seem — they particularly target women of color and, going even deeper than that, Black women."

"The heaviness of the trauma of this moment, between the pandemic, between all of these mass shootings, between inflation and people not being able to afford to live. This a traumatic situation. And this problem calls for big policy pushes, such as having Medicare for All, so people can get the services that they need."

"We as a nation have not dealt with racism and xenophobia, you know, antisemitism, anti-Blackness. We just have not dealt with it in this country. And the chickens are coming home to roost, certainly starting with the election of President Donald J. Trump, but all of this was happening in the United States of America before that man was elected. So we cannot sit here and say that it is just because he was elected. We have neglected to deal with a violent past and a violent present in the United States of America, wrapped in white supremacy, wrapped in bigotry in all of its forms, wrapped in sexism, and certainly wrapped in anti-Blackness. And until we are willing and able to deal with that, we’re going to continue to have these problems."

"These type of mass shootings leaves everybody vulnerable, no matter their age; from an infant to the most seasoned person in this nation is left vulnerable."

"This is a centuries-old problem, that African Americans, and particularly African-American males, are seen as more criminal. Nowhere in America should a 12-year-old boy be gunned down in the way that he was."

"What is it about saying “black male” that causes a frenzy, where people decide they will shoot first and ask questions later?"

"We have almost 100 million folks in this nation who are either in poverty or on the brink of being in poverty. Seventy percent of those 100 million are women and children. And for people in the Legislature to be focusing in on Planned Parenthood or to be focusing in on women’s healthcare choices really makes no sense, when what we should be doing is putting people back to work, making sure that we make the requisite investments to educate our children, rebuilding our infrastructure. But yet and still, we have members of the Legislature all across this country who are not only cutting funds to Planned Parenthood, but really are trying to dismantle Roe v. Wade."

"West Virginia is the sixth poorest state in the United States of America and Manchin is pretending like he's helping them. But this is not about the makeup of the state. Look at the polling, even West Virginians agree with a lot of what is both of these bills. This is really about Manchin being bought and sold and choosing the owner-donor class over his constituents. He's not doing the will of the people and neither is Sinema."

"If Manchin and Sinema can push their wheel on the entire U.S. Senate and president, then the progressives almost 100-strong should damn sure be able to push their wheel too."

"Jeff Bezos has more word for the Queen than the workers who have died in his warehouses"

"Neoliberals are more welcoming of fascists than leftists"

"The same politicians that cut the $45.5 billion tuition-free community college plan just gave the Pentagon $45 billion MORE than they requested."

"[on President Barack Obama's performance in the 2012 Presidential Debate of Oct 3, 2012] Can I state the obvious here, since we all have theories? The obvious is he he didn't bring his game because he doesn't have a game. They have now blamed his performance on everything from strategic — he's a unifier — that's belied by his campaign, calling Mitt Romney everything from a liar to a tax thief to a felon to a murderer to a dog abuser to a misogynist. This is one of the most negative campaigns in history..."

"I think so much depends on what happens in the next six months. If the president is determined to go ahead with this plan, and he appears to be determined, I hope it works—for our country, for Iraq, for our soldiers. I hope that I prove to be as wrong as I’ve ever been in my life."

"The fact that after millions of people across the country cast their votes that our political system is basically controlled by Joe Manchin of WV and Susan Collins of Maine makes no fucking sense."

"Madam President, January 22, 1997, Senator Collins cast her first roll call vote for Madeleine Albright to be Secretary of State. From that moment on, she has not missed one single, solitary vote; zero sick days, zero scheduling conflicts. Whether we were voting on war or peace, historic legislation, or the most routine and uncontroversial bills and nominations, the Senator has made sure that Maine got its say every single time. So here is some perspective. The longest consecutive games streak in Major League Baseball famously belonged to Cal Ripken, Jr. Well, our colleague from Caribou has lapped him three times and counting. And, by the way, the Iron Horse didn't have to plan around weekly air travel in and out of New England, all winter, every winter. Anybody who knows Senator Collins knows this moment is not really about a round number; it is about the approach which the number happens to reflect. Our colleague is diligent. She is devoted. Her level of preparation is unparalleled. She holds herself to the highest standards, and she delivers. It is in her blood. Both of our colleague's parents served separate terms as mayor of Caribou. But the Senator also draws inspiration from outside the gene pool. She rightly idolizes her predecessor from Maine, the legendary Margaret Chase Smith, but even Senator Smith's own impressive voting streak topped out just shy of 3,000. I am just sorry that today's milestone moment couldn't present our colleague with a challenge worthy of her skills. Lucky number 8,000 didn't even require a sprained ankle or a hasty exit from a departing airplane. So congratulations to our colleague on this moment and all that it represents."

"In this case, though, Collins chose not to listen to a survivor—or, more exactly, she found reasons not to listen. Murkowski felt differently. After her vote on Friday morning, she told reporters that she was on her way back to her office to work on a floor statement about her decision. Last month, a reporter asked Murkowski if she had ever had a #MeToo moment. Murkowski answered yes, but did not elaborate."

"Together, these two relatively centrist Republicans controlled the fate of Kavanaugh’s nomination—which had looked assured until a few weeks ago, when several women came forward to accuse Kavanaugh of sexual misconduct. (Kavanaugh has denied the allegations.) How did these two lawmakers, who have at times been treated as a pair on high-stakes votes, reach contrary ends?"

"Senator Collins has tested positive for COVID-19 and is currently experiencing mild symptoms. The Senator will isolate and work remotely in accordance with CDC guidelines"

"Collins voted for the GOP tax scam."

"I appreciated the instances when members from the other side of the aisle supported HUD's work, crossing partisan lines. Mario Diaz-Balart and Susan Collins were two Republicans who helped maximize HUD's impact on people in need."

"In a party that was less ideological and less dominated by rich, right-wing donors than today’s G.O.P., all of these points would be regarded as uncontroversial. According to a new CBS News poll, just twenty per cent of Americans approve of the Graham-Cassidy bill, and the earlier G.O.P. repeal proposals were just as unpopular. But, despite its chronic lack of public support, the G.O.P.’s effort to sabotage the health-care system came within a few votes of succeeding in the Senate. For now, at least, it appears to be dead. On Tuesday afternoon, Republican leaders reportedly agreed not to hold a vote on the Graham-Cassidy bill. If this really is the end of the effort to repeal Obamacare, a few Republicans of character will have played a key role. And history will recall that Susan Collins was in the vanguard."

"Contrary to the suspicions of some people on the right, Collins isn’t a closet Democrat. She voted to confirm Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court, and for all but two of Donald Trump’s Cabinet nominees. In 2010, she voted against the A.C.A.; in 2011 and 2015, she voted to repeal it. On many occasions, she has criticized the 2010 reform for offering Americans limited choices and high premiums and deductibles. But, unlike most of her G.O.P. colleagues, Collins has also defied the Party line and recognized some of the good that Obamacare has done."

"The country owes Senator Susan Collins, of Maine, a big vote of thanks. Absent her steadfastness over the past few months, the G.O.P. might have succeeded in blowing up Obamacare. If that had happened, many millions of Americans would now be facing the possibility of losing their health-insurance coverage, while countless seniors and sick people would be on the hook to pay much higher insurance premiums."

"We saw, on 6 January 2021, how ambiguities, simple law, were exploited. We need to prevent that from happening again. I’m hopeful that we can come up with a bipartisan bill that will make very clear that the vice-president’s role is simply ministerial, that he has no ability to halt the count"

"Roe. Judge Kavanaugh is the first Supreme Court nominee to express the view that precedent is not merely a practice and tradition, but rooted in Article 3 of our Constitution itself. He believes that precedent is not just a judicial policy, it is constitutionally dictated to pay attention and pay heed to rules of precedent. In other words, precedent isn’t a goal or an aspiration. It is a constitutional tenet that has to be followed except in the most extraordinary circumstances. The judge further explained that precedent provides stability, predictability, reliance and fairness."

"Kenya is well-positioned to be an African leader in information technology, telecommunications, and mobile banking and is open to partnering with the United States."

"Silicon Valley is 130 miles from Sacramento, but it might as well be a million miles away given how it operates."

"A monkey could drive this train."

"I will fight for it up to the Supreme Court, if necessary... If the Industrial Commission does not have the right to make essential safety laws, it might as well close up shop!"

"[S]he had that burdensome conscience that drove her to get something done that probably made the most significant difference in the life of America than almost anything that you can name."

"[I]nto this enormous churning, seemingly endless insecure society, they introduced the notion of a secure society, social security. I do not believe that the Social Security Act would have made it into law without Francis Perkins."

"There is no contribution that a cabinet member has made in the history of this country that has had the lasting kind of effect on all of us, and the way we live, than what Francis Perkins did."

"Frances Perkins tried to... speak to a level of discontent... unhappiness... misery... [S]he was... unusually committed, unusually brave, alone in a world of men, moving into a sphere that no woman had ever moved into before. ...for all that we owe her a good deal of thanks."

"Prior to the creation of Social Security only 1 out of every 100 Americans had any provision at all for retirement. Their bodies worn out, in poverty and misery, many of them were shipped to... the poor farm, warehouses of death where most of the elderly went to live and to die. Poverty is tough, misery is difficult, pain and suffering are hard, but nothing equals the loss of self-esteem in a person's life, and Frances Perkins changed that."

"She was able to help weave the torn fabric of a failing democracy into a new design for government that would change life for every single American."

"During her 12 years as Secretary of Labor, Frances Perkins suffered public insults, attacks on her manner and dress, lies about her birth place and ethnicity, death threats, and finally an unsuccessful impeachment attempt. Through it all she worked 15 hour days to shorten work hours for others. She crusaded for the poor and homeless, even as her own home was broken by disease and separation."

"She inherited part of a tradition of service. She was its caretaker for a little while, and she passed it on to another generation. ...[T]here was a timelessness and a transcendence to the quality of her work, just a natural part of the American society..."

"Perkins was... right in knowing that the fight to maintain labor standards would be ongoing. As recently as 1991, twenty-five workers died in a factory fire in Raleigh, North Carolina. They were trapped behind locked doors and blocked fire escapes. ...Nor would she be surprised to know that unemployment and healthcare are still problems. ...But she trusted that there would be another generation... who believed in social justice and who would fight to make life better for all Americans."

"Sadly, Perkins was right that the door might not open to other women for a "long, long time." Twenty years passed before... Dwight Eisenhower, appointed... ... as secretary of health, education and welfare... Forty-two years passed before President Gerald Ford appointed Carla Hills as secretary of housing and urban development... Sixty years later President Bill Clinton appointed three women and eleven men to his cabinet."