There are women making strides in politics around the world during every election cycle. This is excellent news because women have traditionally struggled to enter the political work environment at all levels. Women candidates are gaining voters’ support due to advancements in technology and access to money. These changes have resulted in women having a significant presence in Congress. In fact, the 2018 election cycle was historic for women. The election also produced the most diverse group of Congresswomen in 200 years.
The involvement of more women in politics has led me to ask:
Have Congresswomen generated any results for American women?
Critical issues facing women today (which have been evolving for the past 30 years) include:
✅ Trillions in national debt
✅ Supreme Court appointments that are politically divided
✅ K-12 schools are a disaster after spending thousands annually on each student
✅ Seventeen years of war
✅ Women’s Social Security is missing
✅ Government waste is costing billions
✅ Pentagon lost $21 trillion
✅ No middle-class tax cuts for single women
✅ Veterans cannot get proper medical care
✅ College student debt is in the trillions
My list continues to evolve. In sum, women in Congress have failed.
There have been many gains for women over the years and during President Trump’s first two years in office. However, more progress could have been made on significant issues that face Americans. If the women of the 115th Congress, as well as Congresswomen before them, could have focused on cohesive, unified leadership instead of creating division along political party lines, real-world results would have been obtained. The proof can be reviewed by the Congressional roll call votes, that indicated that the ‘Do Nothing Congress’ label has been and still is appropriate.
Will the new women in Congress produce any results?
If the past is any indication of the future, the answer is no.
Predictions for 2018-2020 Congressional Women
Accountability will continue to disappear in the halls of Congress.
Why? There are no defined responsibilities for political celebrities. There are “no formal or definitive requirements, each Member of Congress is free to define his or her job and set his or her priorities” (Roles and Duties of a Member of Congress: A Brief Overview). The entire job description is a joke. Politicians take advantage of their elected positions for their own agendas.
The celebrity contest is on!
The newest superstars to enter the halls of Congress have behaviors that will gain them money, social media followers and celebrity status. However, the behavior will not help American women. How did the contest begin?
Rep. Ocasio-Cortez – I realize that Ms. Ocasio-Cortez’s actions are cute and funny and that she is only 29 years old with no real-world experiences. As such, I am willing to give her a pass for her silliness. However, I expect her to grow up very quickly because she is responsible for Americans of lives. This job requires more than dancing, social media celebrity, and advancing her political career.
Rep. Rashida Tlaib – Her vulgar video that threatened the President of the United States went viral. Therefore, I do not think I need to say more. Ms. Tlaib needs to take her job seriously. Her position requires more than cursing, social media celebrity, and advancing her political career.
Who enters the celebrity contest next?
There are another 129 women contenders.
How will the celebrity contest end?
The cheap talk of Congressional women will not decrease our trillions in national debt, fix the K-12 educational system, create a safer nation, or rebuild America’s infrastructure.
We will witness a lot of DRAMA from the women in Congress over the next two years. I suspect the catfights and the unprofessional behavior between Congressional members will escalate. The media will go overboard to gain ratings, and American women will become tired of the battles and be disappointed in all Congressional members. The cheap talk of Congressional women will not decrease our trillions in national debt, fix the K-12 educational system, create a safer nation, or rebuild America’s infrastructure. Social Security, Medicare and government waste will not be reviewed for solutions while illegal immigration will continue to grow and cause our country further financial stress. The opioid addiction crisis will continue, and drugs will continue to flow across open borders into inner-city children’s lives and will increase.
And the winners are?
There are none. The losers will be American women. Over the next few years, every single person needs to start questioning the reality of how politicians make decisions and use their behavior to influence society.
What does childish behavior and disrespect for other humans gain for politicians?
They gain money, social media followers, and continued celebrity status.
What does childish behavior and disrespect for other humans gain for the media?
The media gains money, social media followers, and continued celebrity status.
What does childish behavior and disrespect for other humans gain for American women?
Nothing.
Will any Congresswomen lead well during the next two years?
Most likely not. Real leaders make the hard decisions that could result in losing friends & followers, they lose the ability to become a celebrity and lose the ability to develop financial gains. Very few people have the character to be a real leader and do what is right to create long-lasting change.
The talk will continue to be cheap and costly.
