Comments on: A tale of two Senators

By: Jeremy Young

Jeremy Young — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:22:14 +0000

Absolutely! You’ll just have to match my grad school salary, which shouldn’t be too hard…I think you’ll be more accomplished than Bennet anyway, even after he’s had two years on the job. Heh.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:21:31 +0000

And of course, you can say anything you like about me when I’m dead–no hard feelings.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:20:39 +0000

Jeremy, let me know if you’re open to being my campaign manager. I’ve got a spare room in the basement, and I’ll make you Chief of Staff when I’m elected the next Senator from Colorado!

By: Jeremy Young

Jeremy Young — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:18:50 +0000

You know what? I could have sworn that I saw something about that, but when I went back and checked my source, all I could find was polls of Republicans versus Bennet. I guess it was wishful thinking on my part. I hate political nobodies who get free appointments to powerful positions. I’d primary him myself if I was old enough and lived in Colorado. (What a spectacle I’d make!)

On the other hand, I happen to be a huge fan of Gillibrand, and have been since she first ran for Congress.

So — mea culpa on that primary idea. I do wish it’d happen, though. And also, that does invalidate the rest of my argument in the previous comment. Oops! Carry on.

By: Historiann

Historiann — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:09:15 +0000

I’ve seen no on announce her or his intention of primarying Bennet–what’s your source on the notion that he’ll be primaried? For the record–I’m not a Gillibrand partisan, I’m just making note of the different treatment each candidate has received in the press.

If the Dems are unhappy with Gillibrand, then someone should primary her. Let the chips fall where they may.

By: Jeremy Young

Jeremy Young — Thu, 29 Jan 2009 23:04:28 +0000

To be fair, Senator B is going to be primaried, and Senator G has that seat for life. The brownies and cookies will dry up real fast when Senator B loses his job. Meanwhile, a lot of the anger directed at Senator G comes from people who wanted that seat and who will now never have a shot at it, because she’s just too damn good at her job.

Note that I’m absolutely not condoning the sexist language used to describe Gillibrand. But isn’t there a possibility that this discrepancy comes from something more than sexism?

By: Feminist Law Professors » Blog Archive » “Gender, history and biography”

Wed, 28 Jan 2009 03:08:37 +0000

[...] Oh and while you are over there, also check out A Tale of Two Senators. [...]

By: Historiann

Historiann — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 18:00:18 +0000

Yeah–that was my reaction. (You dropped the D-bag, not me, cgeye!) Especially the invidious comparison to Richardson who (I’m sorry, GayProf) is rumored to have quite a closet full of jangly ol’ skeletons, especially of the sexual harrassment variety.

Once again, it’s the Ladies of Edenton Tea Party attitude rearing its ancient head!

By: cgeye

cgeye — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 17:53:39 +0000

Funny, the only thing I can think of when reading that missive from Tulane is “douche”.

One can hope Madame Secretary’s associates, both male and female, create a Great Wall of denied access for this clown.

It’s one thing being a fool, but another to advertise it in your college magazine….

By: Historiann

Historiann — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 16:13:52 +0000

That’s true–but she doesn’t have a “brand name.” (She took her husband’s name in marriage, and he’s British as I understand.) She certainly benefited from her father’s experience and connections as a lobbyist (not an elected pol), as do most men in national politics these days. (Our other Senator goes by the name of “Udall,” which I might have held against him except for the fact that he spent several years in the House and he’s a true “Boulder liberal.”) But–Gillibrand’s first job in politics was not a “special” appointment to the U.S. Senate.

My rules were the same for men and women candidates for “special” appointments: show that you’ve got the chops, explain clearly your stands on the issues, and a successful election campaign in your past. Caroline Kennedy was inappropriate by those standards, as is Michael Bennet, but Bennet got the call anyway. (Must have been those fantastic brownies!)