On Women in Politicsand the Old Boy’s Network

Editor’s NoteThis interview is excerpted from TalkingLeadership: Conversations with Powerful Women, a book of interviews withWhitman, Anna Quindlen, Patricia Schroeder and 10 other influential women. Thebook was edited by Mary S. Hartman. director of the Institute for Women’s Leadership at Rutgers University. I-lartman andRuth B. Mandel, director of Rutgers’ Eagle-ton Institute of Politics, conducted theWhitman interview. Copies of the book,published in 1999 by Rutgers UniversityPress, may be ordered through “The CAPTBookshelf” on our website at www.nireoorter.org.

Mary Hartman: What were (your parents’) expectations of you?

Christine Todd Whitman: I’m theyoungest of four, by eight years, so I grewup almost as an only child. What I remember especially was the conversation aroundthe dinner table, just Mother and Dad andme. It was on their favorite subjects — government and politics, -hat was happeningin the world... Mother was very involved inpolitics, too, so I went to a lot of things. Myearliest memories are going with Mother tocount paper ballots in Oldwick until two inthe morning. I was allowed to stay up lateon election night., and I loved it.

I was expected to go to college, but if Igot married and didn’t go, that was no bigdeal. Dad said, “You’ve got to learn secretarial skills.” I said, “Over my dead body,because if I can answer ‘yes’ to that question, ‘Can you type?’ I’ll never go beyondit.” I refused to learn how to type. Mother’smessage was mare: “You can do whateveryou want.” I think it took Dad a while. torecognize that I was the one who was goingto be in politics here in New Jersey, but hewasn’t opposed to it.

I recall asking myself whether I was re

ally a Republican, or whether I was a Republican just because my parents were.You have to understand that I grew up in asomewhat rarefied atmosphere, in thesense that Mother and Dad were within theparty structure — behind the scenes, buthigh enough that they were doing important things. Mother was chairman of theRepublican National Convention programin 1956, when I was 10, and she had an organizing role. I went to my first convent.ionthat yea!’, and I was able to see all the people everybody else was talking about...So, I was early plunged into politics at a

level most people don’t get to until theyhave slogged through the vineyards a longtime. My parents did the slogging, and Iwas able to ride their coattails to an extent.I did plenty of grunt work, as I said, but Iwas also able to see the excitement andt.he glamour parts of it. I loved meeting allthe people, and I knew I wanted to be involved in government for a long time, eventhough I didn’t know what I would do.

I w’asfl’t committed t.o elective office,but I interned with (U.S. Sen.) Cliff Caset.he summer between my junior and senioryear in college, and I had a ball. He did agood job with his pages, and I wrote aspeech for him that he gave on the floor ofthe Senate. That was a lot of fun.

Ruth Mandel: How did (the women’s)movement influence the choices youmade?

CTW: Obviously, the women’s movementopened a lot of doors. It made more thingspossible, because people were beginning toaccept ... well, they didn’t really acceptwomen. Deep clown inside, most of theguys still didn’t think women belonged inpolitics, but they were harder and harderput to explain why there weren’t morewomen there. If a qualified woman cameand said. “I am interested and I want to getinvolved and I’m willing to do the scutwork to get involved,” it was harder forthem to keep her out, so that helped...

We had Millicent Feniwick in SomersetCounty, who was a big role model foreveryone, a trailblazer. I also still had thevery personal role model of my parents,with Mother being someone who was inthe forefront in areas where womenweren’t usually taken seriously. Dad deferred to her opinion on many things, andhe’d always push her rather than himselfwhen people started talking about runningfor public officeThat there was also so much happening

everywhere else for women made it seemeven more natural. I remember when I wasdown in Washington in the late ‘60s or early ‘70s, a friend of mine was very close toBella Abzug, who at that point was reallyleading the movement. I went to a meetingin her office involving strategy for themovement. Abzug wasn’t sure who I wasor why I was there, but she knew I wascoming from the wrong side! I can remember being absolutely fascinated by how shewas working the other women who werethere, who were clearly neophytes in thepolitical system. She had the agenda, sheknew what she wanted to accomplish, andshe had them just completely wrappedaround her little finger... Hers was thepractical vision. She knew exactly what ittook to make politics work, while theywere looking at the broad, idealistic,everybody’s-going-to-be-happy-and-be-together side

RM: (You are) the first woman in thisstate ever to win statewide officeWhat were the most important conditions or circumstances that made thishistoric event possible?

CTW: It was, first, the guys being williuig tohave a woman as a sacrificial lamb againstBradley. I never thought I was going to win.I looked at it this way: The one opportunity— and there aren’t that many here in NewJersey to run statewide — was for the United States Senate. I said, “I’ll take it on, I’lldo it.” They were very willing to have medo it because they didn’t think there was aslight chance — any chance at all —thatthey’d win that election. So they didn’tstand in my way for the nomination. Theytried when I ran for governor, but I madetoo good use of the intervening years, and Idid too well in that race. They couldn’t dismiss me. It was the party organization’sworst nightmare come true, because theyhadn’t supported me. They gave lip servicebut they didn’t give me money, they didn’tcampaign for Whitman, save for a few exceptions — Chuck Haytaian was there, andthere were a few others. But for the mostpart, they didn’t...

MH: Bosh didn’t come into the state?

CTW: Right. Bush wouldn’t come into thestate; he would not come into the state forme because he didn’t want to tick off BillBradley. He stopped at an airport once after the race, and when he came in, Ithought my husband was going to kill him!He came to a fund-raiser for the party, andI sat on the dais, having just run that raceand coming within a hair of beatingBradley. They had me up on the third tierof the dais, way off in the corner. GeorgeBush came in and talked about new faces,

CONTINUED ON PAGE45

“Bush wouldn’t come into the state; hewould not come into the state for me becausehe didn’t want to tick off Bill Bradley.”

28 New Jersey ReporterMarch 1999 29

WHITMAN

to the web site calendar as they are received.

MARCHTUESDAY, MARCH30Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Transportation and New Jersey Transit,10 am.; Department of Personnel, 1 p.m. StatehouseAnnex, Committee Room 4(1st floor, Room 130).

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 31Assembly Appropriations Committee: Departmentof Law and Public Safety, 10a.m.; Department ofBanking and Insurance, 1p.m. Statehouse Annex,Committee Room 11(4th floor. Room 438).

APRILtUESDA APRIL 6Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Law and Public Safety, 10a.m.; Department of Banking and Insurance, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 4(1st floor, Room 130).Drew University: Cokie Roberts, co-anchor of ABC’s“This Week with Sam Donaldson and Cokie Roberts,”an ABC special correspondent, and news analyst forNational Public Radio, is the lecturer for “The DrewForum.” To be held at the William E. and Carol G.Simon Forum and Athletic Center on the Drew campusin Madison at 8p.m. For tickets, call (973) 408-3776.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL 7Assembly Appropriations Committee: Departmentof Environmental Protection, 10a.m.; Department ofState and Public Broadcasting Authority, 1p.m.Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4th floor,Room 438).

THURSDAY, APRIL 8Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Environmental Protection, 10a.m.:

Department of State and Public Broadcasting Authority,1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 4(1st floor, Room 130).Rutgers University: 1999 Eagleton Political Film Festival, “Idealism and Cynicism Displayed: Candidates andElections in the Movies.” Showing of “The Farmer’sDaughter” (1947) starring Loretta Young, followed by adiscussion led by Ruth B. Mandel, director of the Eagleton Institute of Politics. To be held at Eagleton Institute, Wood Lawn, 191 Ryders Lane, New Brunswick, 7to 9p.m. Call Jeff Hack, Eagleton events coordinatorat (732)-932-9384, x249, for further information.Rutgers University: “The Spread-Out Metropolis: TheDemise of HOV’s and Other Options to Automobility,”with Robert Cervero, professor of city planning at theUniversity of California, Berkeley. To be held in the Edward J. Bloustein School of Planning and Public Policy’s Special Events Forum, 33 Livingston Ave., NewBrunswick, at 4p.m. For further information, contactBev Bauman at (732) 932-5475, x758, orbabauman@rci.rutaers.edu.

FRIDAY, APRIL 9Princeton University: “Developing Cities and Globalized Economy: Local Actors and the Struggle for Livability,” with Peter Evans, University of California,Berkeley. Sponsored by Center for Migration and Development, Bowl 2, Robertson Hall, 4:30 p.m.

MONDAY, APRIL12Assembly Appropriations Committee: Department ofHealth and Senior Services, 10 a.m.; Department ofPersonnel, 1p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room11(4th floor, Room 438).

TUESDAY, APRIL 13Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee: TheJudiciary. 10a.m.; Commerce and Economic GrowthCommission, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, CommitteeRoom 4 (1st floor, Room 130).

WEDNESDAY, APRIL14Assembly Appropriations Committee: Department ofEducation, 10a.m.; Department of Community Affairs, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4th floor, Room 438).

THURSDAY, APRIL15Princeton University: “Civic Engagement in AmericanDemocracy,” with Theda Skocpol, Harvard University.Sponsored by Center for Migration and Development,Bowl 2, Robertson Hall, 4:30 p.m.Princeton University: “Rebuilding America’s Cities: ACollaborative Approach to Community Development.”Lecture by Steve Minter, executive director of theCleveland Foundation, followed by panel discussionwith Marty Johnson and Juanita Joyner of ISLES andNancy Kieling of the Princeton Area CommunityFoundation. Introduced by Mark Murphy, executivedirector of The Fund for New Jersey. Bowl 1, Robertson Hall, 4:30 p.m.Rutgers University: “Conversations with New Leaders” features David Grant, executive director of theGeraldine R. Dodge Foundation. Introduced by ElliottW. Lee of the Victoria Foundation and Tobi Walker ofthe Eagleton Institute of Politics. To beheld at WoodLawn, the Eagleton Institute of Politics, 191 RydersLane, New Brunswick. Reception at 5p.m., programat 5:30 p.m. For further information, call Ingrid Reedat (732) 932-9384, x331.

MONDAY, APRIL19Assembly Appropriations Committee: Higher Educational Services, 10a.m.; Department of Military andVeterans Affairs, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4th floor, Room 438).

Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee: Department of Education, 10a.m.; Higher EducationalServices, 1p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room4(1st floor, Room 130).New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection: International Environmental Technology Expo,showcasing Geographic Information Systems (GIS),new “brownfields” cleanup techniques and other innovative environmental technologies. Cosponsoredby the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency andother environmental agencies. To be held in AtlanticCity. Continues Wednesday, April 23. For further in-formation, call (609) 292-0952 or check the web atwww.state.nj. us/dep/srp.Rutgers University: “Conversations with New Leaders” features James W. Treffinger, Essex County executive. Introduced by Mark Magyar, editor of NewJersey Reporter, and Rebecca Doggett, special assistant for community development in the Newark Public Schools. To be held at Wood Lawn, the EagletonInstitute of Politics, 191 Ryders Lane, NewBrunswick. Reception at 5p.m.. program at 5:30p.m. For further in formation, call Ingrid Reed at(732) 932-9384, x331.

WEDNESDAY, APRIL21New Jersey Department ot Transportation:“TransAction 1999: New Jersey State TransportationConference.” Exposition and more than 50 workshops on five concurrent tracks on transportationfunding, planning, management, administration andoperations. Focus on improving air quality and qualityof life through bus, commuter and light rail, and paratransit services. At Tropicana Resort & Casino, Atlantic City. Continues Thursday, April 22, and Friday,April 23. Contact: Frank T Reilly Morris County D07at908-903-1077.Assembly Appropriations Committee: Departmentof Transportation, 10 am.; New Jersey Transit, 1 p.m.Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4th floorRoom 438).American Society for Public Administration:“Public Administration and the Arts.” Discussion ofthe relationship between public administration andthe arts, and the need for public involvement. Contact: —

Alma Joseph (609) 984-6918.New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection: International Environmental Technology Expo,Atlantic City (Conclusion).

THURSDAY, APRIL 22Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Human Services, 10a.m.; Departmentof Military and Veterans Affairs, 1p.m. StatehouseAnnex, Committee Room 4(1st floor, Room 130).New Jersey Department of Transportation:“TransAction 1999: New Jersey State TransportationConference,” Atlantic City (Continued).

FRIDAY, APRIL23New Jersey Department of Transportation:“TransAction 1999: New Jersey State TransportationConference,” Atlantic City (Conclusion).

TUESDAY, APRIL27Rutgers University: “Conversations with New Leaders” features the Rev. DeForest B, Soaries, New Jersey secretary of state. Introduced by Thomas M.O’Neill, president of the Partnership for New Jersey,and Penelope Lattimer, chairwoman of the New Jersey State Council on the Arts. To be held at WoodLawn, the Eagleton Institute of Politics, 191 RydersLane, New Brunswick. Reception at 5p.m., programat 5:30 p.m. For further information, call lngrid Reedat (732) 932-9384, x331.Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Health and Senior Services, 10a.m.;Special Hearing on Nursing Homes and Assisted Living Facilities, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, CommitteeRoom 4(1st floor, Room 130).

WEDNESDAY, APRIL28Assembly Appropriations Committee: Department ofHuman Services, 10a.m.; Department of Agriculture,1p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4thfloor, Room 438).

THURSDAY, APRIL29Regional Plan Association: RPA’s 9th RegionalAssembly, “Bringing Smart Growth to the Tn-StateRegion.” Workshops include “Strengthening NJ’s StatePlan,” “The Costs of Sprawl,” and “Creating Parks andPlaces in the NY-NJ Harbor.” To be held at the SheratonHotel in New York City. For more information, call 212-253-2727x 309 or look on the web at wwwrpa.org.Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Corrections, 10a.m.; Department ofAgriculture, 1p.m. Statehouse Annex, CommitteeRoom 4(1st floor. Room 130).

FRIDAY, APRIL30American Society for Public Administration/Association of Government Accountants: Annual New JerseyPublic Administration Symposium. Full day of plenarysessions and workshops on various topics dealing withall levels of government. Contact: Frank Gatti (609)292-1404.

MAYTUESDAY, MAY4Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Department of Community Affairs, 10a.m.; Department of Labor, 1p.m. Statehouse Annex, CommitteeRoom 4(1st floor, Room 130).

WEDNESDAY, MAY 5Assembly Appropriations Committee: Commerce andEconomic Growth Commission, 10a.m.; The Judiciaryand Office of the Public Defender, 1p.m. StatehouseAnnex, Committee Room 11(4th floor, Room 438).

THURSDAY, MAY 6Senate Budget and Appropriations Committee:Treasury and Interdepartmental Accounts; Board ofPublic Utilities; Office of the Public Defender, 10a.m.Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 4 (1st floor,Room 130).Rutgers University: 1999 Eagleton Political FilmFestival, “Idealism and Cynicism Displayed: Candidatesand Elections in the Movies.” Showing of “BobRoberts” (1992) starring Tim Robbins, to be followedby a discussion led by Tom Byrne, former New JerseyDemocratic chairman. To be held at the EagletonInstitute of Politics, Wood Lawn, 191 Ryders Lane,New Brunswick, 7 to 9p.m. Call Jeff Hack, Eagletonevents coordinator at (732)-932-9384, x249, forfurther information

WEDNESDAY, MAY12Assembly Appropriations Committee: Departmentof Labor, 10a.m.; Department of Corrections, 1p.m.Statehouse Annex, Committee Room 11(4th floor,Room 438).

WEDNESDAY, MAY19Assembly Appropriations Committee: Treasury andInterdepartmental Accounts, 10a.m.; Board of PublicUtilities, 1 p.m. Statehouse Annex, Committee Room11(4th floor, Room 438).

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