To senators who consider Jeff Sessions the right choice for chair of the Senate Republican Policy Committee but who may also worry, “But we need a woman in the Republican leadership”: Don’t insult women by settling. Kay Bailey Hutchison is a fine woman and senator. But she’s not the most conservative policy person and spokesperson you can put forward.
And also: If you’re going to consider the woman factor — which, though PC, is reality, especially with a female Speaker on the Democratic side — consider the whole message you’re sending, depending on who she is.
It would be no small thing, in my humble opinion, for the GOP to choose as the highest-ranking Republican woman in Congress a gal who gives off mod vibes on abortion. Right or wrong, for better or for worse, a woman’s position on abortion often carries more weight, especially in the political arena (but really any arena), than a man’s.
If I were a pro-life Republican in Congress, I’d want Marsha Blackburn to be the highest-ranking Republican woman (as House Republican Conference chair) in Congress. I’ll take Blackburn’s 100% National Right to Life Committee ranking to Kay Bailey Hutchison’s 75% any day.
It’s but one issue, but if it’s an important one for the party, this is no small thing.
