Let’s think about some traditional ideas about women and money: the stereotype of women mounting enormous bills on shopping sprees, much to the dismay of the aggrieved husband, or the custom of husbands giving their wives allowances to keep her away from the family finances.
Now let’s think about this: During what the New York Times calls “an epic and high-stakes fiscal battle,” the leaders with their hands on the U.S. government’s purse strings are all women, from both parties.
Some shit’s going to get done.
Senators Patty Murray and Susan Collins are the ranking members on the powerful Senate Appropriations Committee. Representatives Kay Granger and Rosa DeLauro are heading the also-powerful House Appropriations Committee. And rounding out the group is Shalanda Young, the first Black woman to head the White House Office of Management and Budget.
All we can say is: Some shit’s going to get done.
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Rethinking Women and Money
We can imagine some people reacting to this bit of history the same way they might upon seeing a female piloting their plane: Is a woman up to this?
In my experience, [women] are often more collaborative than our male counterparts.
Here’s what Emily Cochrane of the Times says: “As Republicans and Democrats position themselves for a major clash over funding in the coming months, [the five] say they are determined to defy what they acknowledge are steep odds and bring some sanity and orderliness to the spending debate.” And, we can assume to defy any lingering negative attitudes about women and money.
What’s more, being women may help the process. “We do bring different experiences, and in my experience, are often more collaborative than our male counterparts,” Collins told Cochrane.
As the Times notes, their political profiles are vastly different—Murray and DeLauro are both liberals, Collins is a center-leaning Republican, and Granger is a staunch conservative. “But,” Cochrane reports, “they have all experienced versions of the same struggle on Capitol Hill: the hustle to get recognized, the extra layer of scrutiny from male colleagues, and often being the only woman in the room.”
Let’s celebrate that they won’t be the only women in the room, but, in a historic first, all the women in the room.
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