Editorial: Gender and Politics

‘ ‘ ‘ Gov. Janet Napolitano of New Mexico enjoys white-water rafting, regularly plays tennis… ‘ ‘ ‘ Gov. Janet Napolitano of New Mexico enjoys white-water rafting, regularly plays tennis and has climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro. She’s a breast cancer survivor, and Time magazine named her one of the nation’s top five governors in 2005. And President-elect Barack Obama recently nominated her for the post of secretary of Homeland Security ‘mdash; a job that she would be ‘perfect’ for because, as a single woman with no children, she would be ideally suited for the post, which requires that you ‘have no life.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ These comments came from Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, whose thoughts on Napolitano were acidentally caught on an open microphone his thoughts about Napolitano at a meeting of the National Governors Association on Tuesday. His full quote was, ‘Because for that job, you have to have no life. Janet has no family. Perfect. She can devote, literally, 19-20 hours a day to it.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ To some, this appears to be nothing but a simple gaffe, another example of a politician ignoring the dangers of an open microphone. He apologized for the comment the next day and assured the public that he meant no harm or offense and reaffirmed his support for Napolitano’s appointment. ‘ ‘ ‘ But regardless, the comments are still indicative of a larger notion within American culture that women’s lives are less complete when they don’t have a family, and that being a wife or a mother creates complications that aren’t present in the lives of men, even those who are husbands or fathers. ‘ ‘ ‘ It’s hard to see Rendell’s comments being applied to a man, even one who fits the same circumstances. And considering that the two former Homeland Security secretaries, Tom Ridge and Michael Chertoff, both had wives and children, the comment simply doesn’t seem to make sense unless viewed as a sexist comment. ‘ ‘ ‘ It’s not difficult to tell that women are still treated substantially differently from men in America today. Media attention toward women is different, and expectations are sometimes related almost exclusively to sexual politics. ‘ ‘ ‘ For instance, there was little question during the presidential campaigns of the stress Obama’s candidacy would be placing on his wife and two young daughters, yet Gov. Sarah Palin was criticized hotly for her decision to run for vice president despite having a newborn baby. It’s difficult to think of any reason beyond gender roles for this double standard. ‘ ‘ ‘ Rendell’s comments shouldn’t have too much weight attached to them. It’s possible to regard them as overtly sexist, but there’s no reason to doubt his explanation or to accept his apology for the remark, especially seeing as Napolitano herself has already done so. ‘ ‘ ‘ The real concern in this situation is not the comment itself, though, but the attitudes behind it. Rendell’s quip might have been nothing more than a gaffe next to an open microphone, but the fact of the matter is that his attitude was born out of a sense of gender politics that has no place in modern American society. Rendell might have apologized for his remark, but it’s far more difficult to apologize for the mentality behind it.