Women's voting power is already being credited -- or blamed -- for deciding the outcome of the upcoming presidential election. At the same time, Hillary Clinton -- arguably the nation's most powerful woman -- provokes such explosive negatives among the general public that one Cornell historian calls her "Dole's secret weapon."
These were among aspects of the current political scene explored at the fall meeting of the President's Council of Cornell Women (PCCW) in Washington, D.C., Sept. 27 and 28. The event, titled "Politics as Usual? We Don't Think So!" drew about 70 PCCW members for two days of meetings, mentoring sessions with students and a national teleconference.
Established in 1990 as an advisory council to the Cornell president, PCCW members include about 150 of the university's most distinguished alumnae, including all current women trustees, who serve as ex-officio members. The group's mission is to advance the involvement and leadership of women students, faculty, staff and alumnae.
The two-day conference included an analysis of the presidential campaign by Joel Silbey, the President White Professor of History; a panel discussion by representatives of The Washington Post and Legi-Slate Inc.; a reception with students at the Cornell-in-Washington Center; an update from campus by Elizabeth Trapnell Rawlings; and a presentation and teleconference on the aftermath of the 1995 UN Women's conference in Beijing.
Most discussion at all events centered on women's roles: as voters, as professionals, as role models and as members of communities, from the family to the university to the global village.
"Women are going to be the deciding factor in this election," predicted Nancy Schwerzler, director of Legi-Slate Inc., in a panel Sept. 27 moderated by Diana M. Daniels '71.
This political season is vastly different from previous campaigns, Schwerzler said, pointing to the Republicans' showcasing of women at their convention and Bob Dole's getting misty-eyed while recalling his childhood. In 1984, Geraldine Ferraro had to prove how tough she was, and if she had ever shed any tears, she would have been "red meat," the political analyst said.
"This country is wired," said Washington Post editor Walter Pincus, describing a society so volatile that Clinton's current strong lead in the polls could vanish in a matter of days, prodded by media coverage from a press that wants a contest even when the outcome seems clear.
The Whitewater scandal is different from Watergate or Iran-Contra, said the veteran journalist who covered both.
"We're in a new world where scandal is personal," he commented. "Politics on TV has turned into acting, and politicians will be covered like actors."
Pincus finds the current trend of scrutinizing politicians' personal lives "dangerous" and predicts "we'll come to regret it."
"Everybody's personal life can look bad on the front page of a national newspaper," he remarked, adding that details of someone's personal life do not necessarily affect their ability to govern.
Discussion focused on the First Lady and her unpopularity, a theme that was replayed that evening during Joel Silbey's analysis of Campaign '96.
"This is the strangest presidential election I know of," said Silbey, who has studied past campaigns dating from 1788.
"Rarely has there been a more polarizing politician than Bill Clinton," he said, while adding that the Republicans have come up with "the worst presidential candidate of this century, up to and including Michael Dukakis." While the First Lady provokes "remarkably high negatives" among the public, Silbey said, Bob Dole is "fearsome" and "out of sight to most Americans."
The impact of television and the cynicism of the press corps have generated coverage that approaches "dysfunction," said the director of the Cornell-in-Washington Program.
Silbey analyzed the so-called gender gap, saying that until 1980 there were no discernable differences between male and female votes. The first gender gap, in 1980, was male, when particularly lower class white males went to the Reagan Republicans. A slight female gender gap occurred in 1992, when black women moved toward the Democrats. But in 1996, Silbey said: "Clinton's majorities are based on the movement of women across economic, class and racial lines. It is a very sharp shift that, if it persists, will make the difference in the election."
Even alluding to Clinton's strong lead in the polls, Silbey would not predict the outcome of the election because of the volatility of our current national scene.
"Clinton's weakest reed is his wife," Silbey said. "Among volatile voters, who could surge to the Republicans in the last weeks of the campaign, the notion of her is potentially explosive."
Washington is rife with rumors that Special Prosecutor Kenneth Starr is preparing to indict the First Lady this month, a move that could backfire on Republicans or could be the kiss of death for Clinton's candidacy. The hostility directed toward Hillary Clinton "frankly puzzles me," Silbey said, yet could prove to be the trigger of "Dole's secret weapon."
Saturday morning's program included a session moderated by Gloria Lang '69, who continued an exploration of the stages of women's lives initiated by the Class of 1958, whose survey of alumnae was analyzed and presented by Professor Phyllis Moen at previous PCCW meetings. Barbara Press Turner '65, Cheryl Ann Wessen '74 and Molly Chang '85 discussed influences on their career cycles.
During a session in which PCCW members moved into small groups for mentoring discussions with current students, Deborah K. Smith, MA '71, current chair, said that interaction was an important highlight of the fall meeting. "It's exciting to have the opportunity for women to build on their experience and backgrounds and Cornell commonality to enhance their personal and professional acumen. We learn so much from each other."
Attending the meeting were current student trustees Julie Chon and Kety Esquivel, former student trustee Julie Crotty BA '87, MBA '96, JD '96, alumnae such as Nancy Merrill '96 and students from the Cornell-in-Washington program.
The group then departed for George Washington University, where PCCW was co-sponsoring a national satellite conference on women and girls. Lenore Weitzman '64 facilitated a session in which Jayati Lal Ph.D. 97 and N'Dri Assie-Lumumba, Cornell professor of African and women's studies, discussed the 1995 UN Women's Conference in Beijing.