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Video Conference #3 – Anne Kornblut

Two years ago, the Washington Post’s Lois Romano called 2008 the year of the woman. Hillary Clinton was neck-and-neck with Barack Obama in the Democratic primaries for a long period in the Democratic primaries before losing. Sarah Palin almost became the first female Vice President of the United States before losing in the general election.
  
Anne Kornblut, another writer for the Washington Post, saw a bit of a disconnect between Romano’s headline and what actually happened.
 
“Yes, it’s been very historic, but they both lost. If that’s the year of the woman, where both of the women lose, then it’s not such a year of the woman after all” said Kornblut.
 
Kornblut, author of Notes from the Cracked Ceiling: Hillary Clinton, Sarah Palin, and What it Will Take for a Woman to Win, joined students from the George Mason University Video Studio along with Steve Scully, the political editor for the C-SPAN networks, and students from Pace University, and the University of Denver.
 
One issue that Kornblut addressed during the conference is why female politicans have had a hard time winning elections.  
 
“It’s tough for women because for many years, people have pigeonholed women as experts on domestic policy. They’ve made assumptions that they’re more compassionate, and with that has come other assumptions that they are softer and weaker and can’t do foreign policy or national security as well as men, and they’re not as good in executive roles” said Kornblut.

Kornblut also siad that many women also fall too far to the other side, falling into the category of “Iron Ladies.”

“There are a lot of women who have gone so far in the direction of being tough, and at times Hillary Clinton was one, that there’s been a need for some of that nurturing stuff” said Kornblut.

According to Kornblut, during the 2008 election, Clinton and Palin were “cast into extremes.” She added that whoever successfully becomes the first woman to win a presidential election will find a middle ground between the nuturing mother and the Iron Lady.

All of that begs the question – who will? Who will be the first woman to successfully win a presidential election – and by when?

“Once you get to 2016 and 2020, there are … Homeland Security Director Janet Napolitano, Senator Amy Klobuchar, Senator Claire McCaskill, Alex Sink, if she were to win in Florida. On the Republican side, people love to talk about the idea of Condi Rice” said Kornblut.

Looking closer, to the election in 2012, Sarah Palin is also a possbility, but Kornblut does not see it happening.

“It’s still very unknown if she’s going to run, and if she does run, I think it’s an uphill battle for her. Losing vice presidential nominees don’t do tend to very well the next time around” said Kornblut.

The distance learning course, which is produced by C-SPAN, is a unique opportunity for students to interview guests via video conference. The course airs on C-SPAN3 on Fridays at 5 p.m. and also streams online.

Posted on on April 1st, 2010 in C-SPAN Video Conferences | No Comments »