Twenty Twenty-four could be the year that we hear the Sergeant at Arms announce those words before Congress. It’s a possibility that becomes more possible every day. After all, madam’s have been around for thousands of years. Our more recent history includes Madam Speaker, Madam Chairperson, Madam Secretary and Waylon and Madame (Really? You didn’t see that coming?)
Constitutionally, any woman who is a “natural born citizen”, “is 35 years of age or older”, “has resided in our country for 14 years” (I don’t know if those 14 years need to be consecutive or not or if someone could spend their first 7 years here, move to another country to be raised and return home for 7 years to run for president. Insert your own uninformed Obama or Cruz joke here. I’ll wait.) and has not been president for two terms already (not an issue for any woman, yet.)
Unconstitutionally, there is a religious test, a race test, a gender test, likability test, screen test (but no I.Q. test, Rorschach test, or morality test).
So, why no woman president? Setting aside the period before women received the right to vote; Setting aside the period before Helen Reddy’s “I am Woman”; Setting aside the period before Virginia Slims cigarettes; the answer is simple. Permission. People need permission to be contrary to tradition en masse. Perhaps “en masse” is the key.
“En masse” means “as a single group”. What “single group” is a more compelling case for a woman president than the “single mom”. Everyone, regardless of your station in life, knows a single mom. Full disclosure, I was raised by a single mom (Okay, she became a single mom after killing my dad; well technically it was cancer, but we knew. And if Bush two had given Putin cancer while Bush was staring into Putin’s soul…. I’m just saying.), so I know firsthand about the resiliency, the leadership, the strength, the patience (it took 15 years to kill my father with cancer.), the drive… that a woman has within her.
You know a single mom. You have seen her work two jobs to provide for her children. You have seen her sacrifice her needs so that her children can have their needs met. You have seen her fight tooth and just polished nails to protect her home. You already know these things. You already know that women can be and should be president. You just need permission to go against tradition and elect her president.
Here is your permission. It’s okay to do the right thing and get it right this presidential election. It’s okay to finally put your vote where your “I believe that all people are equal” rhetoric is. It’s okay to follow the evidence and ignore the sexist noise that is coming from “woke but” people. “I believe in equality but ...”. “I believe in the constitution but ...”. “I believe she’d be a good president, but …”.
We’ve had corporate whores running this country for years and never more whorish than our current GOP candidate. It’s about time for a Madam President.
By GD Fenderson.
GD Fenderson is Certified Forensic Humourist out of Maryland.
Go to www.SoGDFunny.com to learn more about him. |