Women in politics are #winning.
This week, women broke barriers all over the country, from the Oval Office to the U.S. Army. Find out more in this week’s edition of That’s What She Said!
Capt. Kristen Griest and 1st Lt. Shaye Haver became legends this week. New York Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand praised the first two women to graduate the Army special operations unit on Friday. The Pentagon said they won’t make the final decision on whether to allow women to hold combat roles until the end of the year. The two newest U.S. Army operatives said they are “happy, relieved, and ready for some good food and sleep.” And, the sleep will be well-deserved. Griest and Haver finished in a class that started with almost 400, including 17 other women. Only 96 made it to graduation.
So inspiring that two @WestPoint_USMA grads will make history as the first women to graduate @USArmy Ranger School: http://t.co/M35kOcFFbJ
— Kirsten Gillibrand (@SenGillibrand) August 18, 2015
Equal pay for women may be the only position the leading presidential frontrunners Hillary Clinton and Donald Trump see eye-to-eye on. Clinton’s view on wage inequality is clear: she wants to break the “highest, hardest glass ceiling.” In a similar tone on Thursday, Trump told msnbc’s “Morning Joe” hosts Brzezinski and Joe Scarborough wage inequality is “very dangerous.” Presumably teasing, the straight-shooting entrepreneur told the morning show host Brzezinski he would pay her “so much more” than Scarborough.
We asked @realDonaldTrump about equal pay on @Morning_Joe: http://t.co/Hoo0tx4rMT #KnowYourValue
— Mika Brzezinski (@morningmika) August 20, 2015
3. Laverne Cox
Laverne Cox gave a shout-out to Raffi Freedman-Gurspan, the first openly transgender White House official who started her newly appointed position at the Oval Office this week. Transgender rights activists praised #POTUS for appointing her as the new director of outreach and recruitment. With just over 500 days left in office, President Obama has done more than any U.S. president to expand rights for the LGBT community. Kudos to him.
Congratulations Raffi Freedman-Gurspan, the first openly trans white house staff member. #TransIsBeautiful https://t.co/imcRatSymo
— Laverne Cox (@Lavernecox) August 18, 2015
Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY) took a very similar stance on opposing the Iran nuclear deal as two of her outspoken party counterparts, Sen. Bob Menendez (D-N.J.) and Sen. Chuck Schumer (D-NY). Her stance against the deal comes as Republicans and some Democrats want Congress to reject the deal President Obama has steadfastly been pushing. Congress has to vote on the deal by September, but some speculate Obama may act on his own to push his legacy deal forward.
Thx to my constituents for turning out last nite to discuss my #IranNuclearDeal opposition – Great event! @AIPAC pic.twitter.com/FYtsUoo6Z2
— Grace Meng (@RepGraceMeng) August 19, 2015
Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-NY) pushed The Schedules That Work Act which would make it hard for employers to schedule workers as “on call” and even compensate workers for last-minute schedule changes. The bill, introduced by Warren, would impact retail, restaurant and building cleaning workers. Many other employers like Abercrombie & Fitch, Gap, and Starbucks have taken steps to bring more “stability and consistency” when coordinating employee hours.
This is why we need to pass the Schedules that Work Act to give workers a chance to build some economic security: http://t.co/KTUXUURH5a
— Elizabeth Warren (@SenWarren) August 17, 2015
Rep. Gwen Moore (D-WI) backed the Justice Department’s recent efforts to make it harder to criminalize the homeless, tweeting that she was “happy” to see the department getting involved. A statement by the DOJ could change the way cities regulate and punish the homelessness. In a statement, weighing in on a Boise, Idaho’s anti-camping ordinance, the DOJ argued that it is unconstitutional to ban a homeless person from sleeping outside. The DOJ called it “cruel and unusual,” according to the Eighth Amendment.
Our fight should be against poverty and NOT those trying to escape it. Happy to see @TheJusticeDept getting involved. http://t.co/19ydwLiUu4









