“You can’t be what you can’t see.” That’s how the award-winning film Miss Representation begins, a movie that takes a critical look at negative portrayals of women in the media and how that undermines the ability of today’s generation of girls to see themselves as future leaders. As the mother of a daughter, I’ve [...]
Women candidates for president or vice president have been far and few between in our lifetimes. Until 2008, to see any woman on a national ticket, regardless of party, was a rarity. Sure, there were a couple of famous exceptions like Congresswoman Shirley Chisholm and U.S. Senator Carol Moseley Braun. But it’s pretty [...]
When political candidates start using our personal lives -- the really personal parts -- for their own political gain, they cross a line. And some of the GOP Presidential candidates have ventured into dangerous territory as they've been discussing our daughters' cervical regions to portray themselves in a way they hope will appeal to more [...]
Well, fortunately we made it back from a few lovely and restful days in the Outer Banks before Hurricane Irene sent everyone scurrying, and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that we don't lose power as she heads our way this weekend. In case you're wondering where I've been lately, here are few places you can [...]
Just when I think that the world of politics can't get any more ridiculous, someone comes along to prove me wrong. Some Americans are still holding the Vietnam War against Jane Fonda and apparently they all watch QVC. Because there aren't other places (Iraq, Afghanistan, Libya, who am I missing?) we need to be more [...]
Congressman Anthony Weiner is having the worst week of his political life. It seems that his enemies got a hold of some "naughty" close-up photo of a crotch they claim is his and then tried to get people to believe that Weiner was tweeting the pic to unsuspecting co-eds. It looks like the part about [...]
What am I reading today? Some excellent articles from around the web: Think you understand the state vs. unions battle in Wisconsin? You should read this piece by Connie Schultz at The Plain Dealer. Health care reform is unconstitutional? Well, maybe one Florida judge thinks so, but a Washington state judge says think again. Texting [...]
I've never been to Minnesota, but I'm a big fan -- I like it's current Senators Amy Klobuchar and Al Franken ('cause he was smart enough, good enough and gosh darn it the voters liked him!), someone was ingenious enough to come up with the idea of connecting most of the buildings in downtown Minneapolis [...]
In the days since the massacre in Tucson and attempted assassination of Congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords, many people have been weighing in on the tragedy. Here are a few thoughtful posts worthy of your time: Ilina from Dirt and Noise takes a look at all the ways violence has permeated our society. No one's got a [...]
Not enough women writers to keep the column Broadsheet going at Salon. Really? I wish they'd called -- I could have given them a really long list of great women writers who think about the broad spectrum of politics from a woman's point of view. Governor Chris Christie couldn't come back to New Jersey to [...]
Networking in non-traditional settings is nothing new for women. When our husbands think we're just hanging out with the girls or managing the soccer game and birthday party schedules for our kids, we know that those relationships can be, and usually are, much more than just lost time. So when I read a recent New [...]
Ohio Congressman and House Speaker-elect John Boehner is our town crier. Not a cry-baby crier, but an 'It might be politically expedient to show my softer side' kind of crier. He cries when he talks about his childhood, his family, Iraq war veterans, schoolchildren, and how he's pulled himself up by his bootstraps to achieve [...]
It's November 3, 2010 or to borrow a gimmick from Keith Olbermann, it's the first day since our nation declared it was changing the change. Or should I say embracing the patented obstructionism of John Boehner's Republican party? The wave of Republican candidates that swept into office last night was not a surprise based on [...]
For the last year and a half, I've been working on a book about the increasing involvement of mothers in the world of politics as a result of our new social media world. When I submitted my manuscript (what feels like a decade ago!), few were really writing about or analyzing the idea of motherhood [...]
While the PunditMom household is readying for the annual Halloween festivities, please enjoy Jon Stewart's speech from the Rally to Restore Sanity (and/or Fear!). Many conservatives have already been loudly protesting that this was nothing more than a liberal love-fest, but this speech doesn't sound political to me. Rather, I suspect that the Comedy Central [...]
Just because our official once a year Mother's Day celebration is over, doesn't mean we should forget about what mothers are thinking about. So, I thought a special Mother's Day edition of Mother's of Intention was in order. So, here is some excellent reading from some moms I like, and they're not just thinking about [...]
So let me get this straight -- with the exception of Michelle Obama, all the women who were center stage in the 2008 presidential election (whether they were candidates or not) are bitchy, stupid, whining shrews? If this is where we are in 2010 when it comes to permissible portrayals of women, I may have [...]
My friend MojoMom has plenty of mojo, but she's pretty political, too.So, in light of Edwards and Giuliani getting out of the race and Super Tuesday almost upon us, she invited me to participate in a "Special Election Edition" of the MojoMom podcast.If you have a few minutes and you're still up for some more [...]
Greetings, my name is Sonia and occasionally, Sunshine, as that was what my hippie dope smoker parents had every intention of naming me. But then I think some reverberating voice from above struck fear into their hearts and they refrained. For more about hippie dope smokers, see my blog. If you really want to know [...]
Sarah Palin Moratorium? I'm Not With Dana Milbank on This One
By PunditMom| January 31st, 2011|Democrats, Moms & Politics, Republicans, Women in Politics|7 Comments
No Sarah Palin news for a whole month.? Ahhhh. Sounds sort of heavenly, doesn't it? No videos from her Alaskan home television studio. No reports of her playing the victim. No stories of the obscene sums of money her PAC has raised. No mentions of her reality show reruns. Sort of like a tropical vacation [...]