Thursday, October 24, 1996GOVERNOR:
Prominent GOP governor discusses women’s role in politicsBy
Scott Lunceford
In 1993, Christine Todd Whitman became the first state candidate
to defeat an incumbent governor and the first woman governor in the
history of New Jersey.
Her victory over James J. Fiorio provided an opportunity to make
a national name for herself in the fields of education and
environmental reform, among others.
In what some see as a striking parallel to Bob Dole’s proposed
15 percent tax cut, Whitman’s record shows that she managed to
fulfill her campaign promise of cutting New Jersey taxes 30
percent. Critics maintain, however, that the fulfillment of this
goal has depended not on a "tax-and-spend" policy but a
"borrow-and-spend" policy in order to create the net increase of
117,000 New Jersey jobs she referred to in her 1996 State of the
State address.
At the time of selection for a Republican vice-presidential
candidate, Whitman was widely considered to be a strong candidate;
the selection of Jack Kemp does not appear to have dampened her
loyalty to the party, however, in that she is still heavily
involved in campaigning for Bob Dole; it was on just such a day
that she granted us a few minutes of her time to discuss the future
of women in politics and her party’s role in creating an American
community.
The role of women in politics is changing. As one of the
architects of this evolution, where do you feel growth, or even
reform, is most needed?
One of the biggest problems is to encourage more women to get
involved and run for the more time-consuming public offices. One of
the things that has held women back is that they have either just
been moving up the corporate ladder within businesses and just
didn’t have the time to run for office. Either they were not
encouraged by their businesses, or they didn’t have the financial
resources to devote to politics, or they were raising a family and
find a great difficulty with time. But it is becoming more and more
important, I believe, that women being in elective office can bring
a different set of priorities to the table in problem solving and
in addressing issues that demand the kind of frame of reference
that women bring. So the real challenge is with the parties,
themselves, to do a better job of encouraging women and opening up
opportunities to women.
According to the Center for the American Woman and Politics,
women voters have consistently shown more support for Democratic
candidates. How is the Republican Party encouraging support from
female voters this November?
The Republican Party is encouraging women by addressing issues
that are critical concerns. The Party realizes that women own
one-third of American businesses and represent one out of every
four workers and they are very concerned about economic
opportunities. They are also obviously very concerned about crime,
and we intend to address that concern.
The Women’s Campaign Fund, which backs women political
candidates who favor abortion rights, states that "a
pro-abortion-rights position would be a challenge for a Republican
woman trying to rise in her party’s leadership." From Bob Dole’s
perspective, is there room for more pro-choice advocates like Susan
Molinari and yourself in the GOP?
Well, he certainly gave both of us very prominent roles in the
convention, which wouldn’t have happened if he hadn’t been
supportive of it. We’ve done an awful lot of campaigning together,
and I’m about to support him in the West. If he felt that there
wasn’t room for us in the Party, then he wouldn’t be using me this
way.
New Jersey is a highly industrialized state with many
environmental disputes. You are noted for settling those disputes
through mediation rather than litigation. How so?
Well, what we’ve done is that we’ve tried to set up a process of
mediation, bringing all parties to the table early on in the
discussion. What we’re really doing is working off of Netherland’s
model. We looked at sending delegations over to Holland early in
the administration. That gave us a chance to take a look at how
they have approached their environmental concerns, because they are
very similar in size and have the types of problems typical to New
Jersey.
Currently, California is an arena for dramatic debate over
issues affecting women and minorities, such as Proposition 209,
which could repeal state affirmative action programs. What is your
view on the issue?
I have signed, since I’ve been Governor, two executive orders
expanding the outreach to minority communities to ensure that
minorities and women are provided equal economic opportunities.
"… women being in elective office can bring a different set of
priorities …"
Christine Todd Whitman
Governor of New Jersey