All 45 of the U.S. presidents of the past have been men. Some have been brilliant diplomats, statesmen and humanitarians. Many have been intelligent, charismatic and fantastic leaders. These are all great characteristics that aren’t just reserved for those with one “X” and one “Y” chromosome. It’s high time that Americans push for a president that has two “X” chromosomes. It’s past time to elect a woman.
Hillary Actually Won
The truth is the real winner of the 2016 election was Hillary Clinton, but the prejudicial and arcane system did what the system was designed to do: hand the win to a man.
I’ve argued plenty about the inequitable Electoral College system, so I won’t waste words going there again. Except to say that 3 million more Americans voted for Hillary Clinton in 2016 than voted for Donald Trump and yet, he became the president.
Name another contest where the person who scores highest loses to the person who scores less? We’re not talking about a pickup basketball game, but the presidency of the Untied States. Every vote in this country should matter. That’s what we tell people all the time, yet, at least in 2016, some 3 million votes didn’t matter at all and we must change that by abolishing the electoral college in favor of popular vote.
Women in Leadership Internationally
If you’ve looking for evidence to support the fact that women can be exceptional leaders look no further than three remarkable examples:
Jacinda Ardern – At just 40, Jacinda Ardern is the youngest female Prime Minister ever elected in New Zealand. Voted into office in 2017, Ardern has presided over the nation’s response to the COVID-19 crisis and has done so remarkably well by all accounts. With aggressive stay-at-home order that lasted roughly seven weeks led to a remarkably low COVID-19 infection rate, with just 1,569 cases and 22 deaths.
Angela Merkel – The first female chancellor of Germany is now on her third term in office, having been elected in 2005. A doctor in physical chemistry, Merkel is considered the most powerful woman on the planet. Where other nation’s floundered and saw their economies tank following the Great Recession, Germany’s economy thrived, as Merkel avoided a long-term recession and has since presided over the nation’s unprecedent growth and stability.
Ellen Johnson Sirleaf - was the first female president of an African nation, presiding as president of Liberia from 2006 to 2018. Sirleaf instituted government reforms that established a zero-tolerance policy for political corruption, signed a freedom of information bill, which allowed full and accurate reporting in the media and worked to secure relief from Liberia’s crushing debt during her tenure as president. In 2011, Harvard educated Johnson Sirleaf received a Nobel Prize for her work in Women’s Rights.
We Can Do Better
If we’re to advance as a nation and as a society, we must abandon our patriarchal favoritism and embrace a future of extraordinary female leadership. In Kamala Harris, we have that chance again.
While Sen. Harris isn’t running for the highest office, she is the vice-presidential candidate to a 77-year-old presidential candidate. Should Joe Biden be elected president, she’d be closer to the highest office than any woman has been in our history and in a great position to succeed him if he doesn’t run for reelection following his four-year term.
Sen. Harris supports a range of issues that surveys have shown American support, like closing the income disparity, eliminating private prisons, boosting teacher pay and campaign finance reform. She also supports healthcare for all and eliminating the Electoral College.
As an intelligent, tough-as-nails lawmaker, Harris has shown grit and compassion in equal parts during her tenure in the senior chamber of our legislative body and she has enormous potential to make our government work better in favor of all Americans.
Supporting Joe Biden in this election is the right thing to do because of his stance on the issues that are most important at this time of enormous national challenges. It’s also important because a vote for Biden puts a talented, immensely qualified woman that much closer to the presidency. And it’s high time that happens.
If I can borrow a quote from Trump, I’d say this: What do we have to lose?