Tabitha Hale, co-founder of Smart Girl Politics
When we think of women in politics, we think of Hillary Clinton or Nancy Pelosi. Or in political activism, we think of the endless parade of angry feminists screeching that voting Republican is voting for rape and subjugation. The other side of the political spectrum - the conservative political activist - rarely gets any airplay, except in comedic skits about Ann Coulter or Dr. Laura Schlessinger.
When Sarah Palin stepped onto the scene last Fall, she was torn to pieces by the media and the liberal political machine who asked questions like "How can she raise a family, a disabled child, be governor now, and be vice president later?" They never asked Barack Obama how he intended to raise his two young daughters, Malia and Sasha, if he became president. And if Sarah Palin had been a liberal women, instead of a gun-and-bible-clinging conservative, she wouldn't have been asked, either. Instead she would have been praised as a woman who could have it all.
That said, there is a new breed of young activists who are conservative and proud of it. Smart Girl Politics, a bottom-up grassroots movement to make women more politically active on their local scene, was started by Stacy Mott and Tabitha Hale earlier this year. These are not dowdy Thatcherites with their blue rinse and their best years behind them. Tabitha Hale, for example, is in her mid-twenties, young, attractive and opinionated. Twice weekly she hosts Raisin' Hale on Radio For Conservatives - another grassroots project by the younger, hipper generation of conservatives - where she wails hell on the liberal establishment and offers smart solutions on the local level.
Smart Girl Politics, she says, is not about influencing the political scene in Washington, DC. It's about influencing the school board in Wichita, KS or the town council in Bangor, ME. It's about getting homeschooling moms and young, enthusiastic conservatives involved locally, where their voices can be better heard. It's about coming out of the conservative closet and saying, "Yeah, I'm a conservative. So what?"
Another attractive, smart and witty conservative making her voice heard on Radio For Conservatives is Dr. Melissa Clouthier. Both Melissa and her husband are busy chiropractors, also raising three young children. Melissa has been blogging for years, and takes time out to attend events like the tax protest tea parties, CPAC (Conservative Political Action Conference), and other local events as they pertain to school policy or local legislation.
These women are not professional activists. They do not lobby government for operating money, or spend countless hours on the talk show circuit. They are merely trying to make small differences in towns across America, and encourage others to do the same. They are young, in touch, smart, funny, brash and unafraid of being labeled "conservative".
Comments
Glad to hear more Women are getting involved in Politics. Every girlfriend I ever had never even voted once in my generation. Most Ladies I have meet , the same thing. Its like some Women think it takes care of itself.
Nice to see young Ladies get involved.
JMO
She's going to have to do a lot more than simply calling herself, "Smart Girl". And since she's a member of the "anti-intellectual" set, I won't hold my breath...
Clinton based on your musings I've read I'm pretty sure these "anti-intellectuals" would out score you the intellect test. Your not doing the left any favors when you claim that intelligence is on your side then getting your posterior handed to you in debate as you often do. Again you may be just a right-wing operative trying to undermine the left (at least that is my hope).
Sorry Mark, I have nothing to do with it, it's conservatives who demonize our educational institutions, (aka "librul" professors in those academic "ivory towers"). It is the conservatives that demonize science, ("we don't want to believe that, we want to believe in magic!") It is the conservatives that take pride in ignorance, (er, "faith")...
Yeah, Clinton it is the left that is repsonsible more making us the most advance nation on the earth! get real-- our quality of life that we enjoy was creating by ingenuity of buisness leaders and not a beard scratcher living in a tree house. Sure the right has some some rednecks, but the left has more than its share of wild-eyed loons using one side of their brains.
Yeah, our world leading educational institutions have nothing to do with it...hmmmm
Coming from the party of "Home Schoolers", i'm pretty sure education isn't the biggest concern. Where did all these genius business owners learn to run a business?
Like Evolution and Contraception, another tough question the "right" has yet to answer...
Clinton asked "Where did all these genius business owners learn to run a business? "
Do you mean the big bad Wall Street business?
Well, most were educated at the big Ivy league schools. How'd that work out for your 401K?
MANY are now elected officials who are robbing the US blind as I type this.
One is even President, you know the one.
"Happy Indep", I think you are missing the point...this has nothing to do with the "ivy league" and everything to do with conservatives constranation with science. Until conservatives learn that public school teaches your children how to act in public, that science is what has brought us out of the dark ages, and that people who study for a living are doing a service for you, (not against you), you will continue to be marginalized as the yokels you seem to embrace. Again, nothing to do with "Ivy Leagues", everything to do with respect for knowledge...
Dawg-gone it Uncle Jed that Clinton is back again. Can't seem to git rid of him or Geraldo.
Clinton, I will bet a years salary that "home schooled" kids are much further along than your public school kids with their left wing administrators. Again you take swipes at people when you have no facts to support the gas you expel (not that the left actually cares about facts). The left has been in charge of the education system, its unions; its administrators etc. for over 40 years now and look where we are.
Please Clinton start educating your self on the facts and open your mind a little. You may point to some far social conservatives and make fun of them, but take a look at the far left ideologues droning around with their talking points and their worn out ideas that throughout history have been proven failures. It seems that anytime you ever present facts or logic to a far left person they retreat to name calling etc. as they cannot deal with the issues
Clinton says "public school teaches your children how to act in public"
And NOT much else.
Happy Indep, what is cool is that I can usually fish Clinton out on Wendy's blog and tune up on him before I go to all of the progressive blogs and duke it out with the heavy weights.
It is refreshing to run across Clinton (he is pretty easy to carve up) after debating with the well informed liberals who every once in a while can make an articulate argument. I guess it is similar to a boxer tuning up on a lesser opponent before a big fight.
So, now that I've shown that I'm the only reason come to this site, can I start collecting money from these adverts?
Please send any checks for me to...
666 Garafalo Way
In care of: George Soros
Ivory Tower, Academia 696969
Talk about illusional cases of grandiloquence. Clearly a clinical study in delusional schizothymia. Granny fetch your rheumatiz medicine.
Wendy, thanks for your article on Smart Girl Nation. Very nice site populated by good writers. I will be registering and participating.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Good post Wendy.
And for Clinton The Big Red Dog feeders, hasn't Wendy implored you guys not to? As you can see, it causes him to crap on the carpet for godsake.
Upon registration and participation, I discovered a serious problem at Smart Girl Nation.
"Your comment is awaiting moderation"
This is, of course, very annoying and borders on being personally insulting.
I wrote to "Dawn" at Smart Girl Nation "feedback" encouraging her to drop this "moderation waiting period" method. This waiting period serves only to discourage participation.
Smart Girl Nation is a good site, is informative, is worth reading but participation is being discouraged. Chances are Smart Girl Nation will not become popular because of their current moderation policy; bloggers are impatient and expect to see their boasting immediately.
Examiner Dot Com does not employ this type of moderation and is both popular and free of any real problems.
Will my professionally written and pertinent article appear at Smart Girl Nation? I do not know, I have to wait and see.
Annoys me to invest time and effort into writing an article which is pertinent and interesting only to have my article stalled by possible censorship.
For readers who are interested in this moderation policy, if accepted, my article will appear here,
smartgirlnation.com/2009/05/12/one-to-watch-meg-whitman/
When my article appears and if at all, I do not know. This annoys me.
Okpulot Taha
Choctaw Nation
Wendy
I am probably three times you age and it took me this long to learn what I am going the tell you now. I hope that you don't have to wait that long to learn it.
A few months ago thanks to the Internet for as long as it last without censoring I was awaken in a different world. I started writing recently for the Examiner but also have a website. Google readwhatisee and read some of the latest articles that I have posted. Learn about the political deception that we live in starting with
Continued:
...starting with the CFR, The Trilateral Commission and their control news media that creates an illusion of a government that we do not control. They control the government and the government control us. Listen to Kennedy's "Secret Society Speech" that I inserted on a recent article. Follow the links and do your research. It will be like taking the red pill of the "Matrix". Welcome to the real world.
Pedro Alfonso
Alachua County Examiner
Wendy I see real potential in your writing style. You should make the move from opinion based writing to fact based. If you do I think you will be a star.
Some of you people and your misconceptions...please. I am a conservative, I have an MS, I have a layman's interest in quantum mechanics, and my undergraduate minor was in Art History. All of my conservative friends have bachelor’s degrees, mostly in science. We have condescension for our political opponents too, for sure, but our condescension is at least accurate!!!
George Copeland
RNC Examiner
www.examiner.com/x-13572-RNC-Examiner
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