Kathleen Sebelius: Taking the Next Step

When I first heard Kansas had a Democratic woman governor, I thought someone was playing a joke on me. "In Kansas? No way!" I said. Having spent the first 18 years of my life in Kansas, growing up in a red state with parents active in the Republican party (my dad was an assistant Attorney General in the 60's), I had heard stories about women in the state legislature who didn't believe women should still vote, I left for college right before evolution was outlawed, and when I first had the chance to vote, my choices were Bob Dole or Bob Dole. How times have changed...

Now, Kathleen Sebelius, a woman, a Democrat, a MOM, is the Governor of Kansas. What's the Matter with Kansas? you ask? It has an interesting history that I don't proclaim to understand, but in its roots were Populism and a long standing small government, pro-farmer mantra. But over recent years, since the 80's, the legislature and state leadership was taken over gradually by more right wing individuals. Thomas Frank's book explains it much better than I ever could, but it's an interesting phenomenon. As a result of this swing to the right, many moderate Republicans were forced to decide between voting for Republicans far to the right or for Democrats. Enter Kathleen Sebelius.

Sebelius is the first daughter of a governor to become governor, so she had a better chance than your average mom of getting elected, but still it was not easy. Nor was her reelection in 2006, but overall, people in the state seem to love her. I was in Kansas City visiting family last week and I was proud to see an editorial in the Kansas City Star about how the Catholic archbishop who denounced Sebelius for not being more staunchly against abortion (although she has reportedly done a lot to help with family planning and abortion prevention in a positive way) and how this is a dangerous attempt to circumvent the separation of church and state. This is just one example - probably the biggest one - of what Sebelius has had to fight as governor, yet she continues to pull through.

I can't say without researching the others on the VP short list how likely she is to be selected by Barack Obama as his running mate. My political experience leads me to feel it won't happen since she's not a white guy from the South, but she has some interesting things in common with Obama that I believe would make them a good team. First is the Kansas connection. They both have roots in the midwest. Next is the fact that they are both pioneers who have surmounted substantial obstacles to be elected into their respective roles. Then there's what I see as a strong resolve for principled leadership. (Sorry... Republicans don't have the trademark on values as much as many would like us to believe that.) And I think their policy ideas are pretty well in line.

Will Kathleen Sebelius be our Wonder Woman if Hillary Clinton does not pull off some sort of superdelegate feat? Will she be the next one to take that big step toward breaking the ultimate glass ceiling? I think she could be a great answer to uniting the party behind Obama. Not just because she's a woman, but because she's so capable, experienced, intelligent and courageous. She has a history of strong, progressive leadership in education, healthcare, and the environment, all things woefully needed in our next administration. She also has proven executive experience. So while the pundits will be pushing Obama to select someone to pull votes from the South, a white male perhaps, I hope they get a chance to see how truly amazing Governor Sebelius is and what she represents for the future of our country.

Comments

[cynematic]

Great post, just lapping it up! I like how you point out that her pro-choice stances are battle-tested and she's managed to garner respect on a range of other issues.

Personally, I put a lot of stock in Obama working to turn the states west of the Mississippi blue, so I'm all about the midwest-west-pacific northwest electoral map as a big factor in the general election.

[cynematic]

Oops, meant to toss "mountain west" states in there too, in the fantasy winning Obama electoral college map.

[PunditMom]

I've said for a long time that she was probably more likely to be our first womsn president. And, as someone who lived in Kansas for a long time, I think it's great, as well!

[Andrea]

Having grown up in Kansas, I was shocked when I found out that since I left, they've elected (and re-elected) a democratic governor, and that she's a woman! Not that I doubt her ability in the least (and have been very impressed by what I've heard of her track record), but Kansas is such a staunchly conservative state. It was a happy surprise to me and I would be THRILLED if she were on the democratic ticket as VP. I'm really interested to see how this goes.