Why it’s harder for women to run for office

GWEN IFILL:

We mark this historic night with two women who have been trailblazers in their own right.

Kamala Harris is attorney general of California. She is the first woman and first African-American and first Indian-American to hold that office, and she is running this year for the U.S. Senate. And Representative Cheri Bustos of Illinois was the first woman elected to Congress from her district. She now works to elect other woman candidates.

Welcome to you both.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Welcome.

GWEN IFILL:

I want to ask you both to think back to 1984. We were just asking Nancy Pelosi about this idea, the big breakthrough, when Geraldine Ferraro became the vice presidential candidate for the first time.

Cheri Bustos, how different is it to be a woman candidate now than it was in 1984?

REP. CHERI BUSTOS (D-Ill.):

I still think there are challenges.

I'm vice chairman of the Recruiting Committee for the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. So, I recruit candidates all over the country. And now I'm vice chair of what is called the Red to Blue Committee.

We have 38 people who are on that list of seats where we think we have an opportunity to pick those up for Democrats. Half of those are women. There are still challenges when we're looking at women running for office. And I think how we're going to correct that is what's going on right here.

When we get a woman in the White House, I think that it is going to be easier to get women to run for office. And I hope that we make some tremendous gains over the years.

KAMALA HARRIS, California Attorney General:

I agree.

I think that — and, also, there's a significance to the nomination of Hillary Clinton that actually relates to advice my mother gave us when we were growing up, my sister and me. And she would say, "Kamala, you may be the first to do many things. Make sure you're not the last."

And so there is that thing about the way that Hillary Clinton has actually lived her professional life that is also about mentorship. It's about encouraging other women to actually go forward and do it, knowing that they can succeed.

Equally important is what Michelle Obama said last night. The significance of Hillary Clinton breaking the ceiling is the significance of telling our sons, as well as our daughters, you can do anything, unburdened by who has done it before.

And that's an important point to make to everybody, not just girls, not just women, not just people of a certain race. It's telling everyone, anyone can do whatever they want. It is all possible if you work hard.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Congresswoman Bustos, as you were saying, there are still obstacles after all this time. What are they? I mean, is just a matter of confidence and seeing that woman in the White House? Because we have had women elected to the Senate, a women — a few women elected governors. What is it, 17 percent of the House of Representatives are women. Is it a matter of confidence? Is it money? What is holding women back?

REP. CHERI BUSTOS:

It is very, very different when we're recruiting a woman vs. recruiting a man, the questions that we get.

A man typically will say right off the bat, can I win? That will be question number one. And if you say yes, then we're all in.

With a woman, it is, how does a campaign impact your children, your family? How do you take it when these attack ads are running? How does your family take that? And, if I am elected, how is it when I have to go back and forth to Washington, D.C.?

So, when I'm involved with recruiting women, I have got a very close-knit group of girlfriends. We were all elected right around the same time. And we take a woman candidate who were looking at out to dinner. And we talk about all those challenges, whether it be — if they have young children, I will call my good friend Congresswoman Grace Meng out of New York, who has two young boys, and say, Grace, can you talk with this woman about what it is like to have two young boys and how you Skype when you're walking over to the House floor to vote and do your homework by Skype with them, and just how you manage that.

But very, very different sets of questions that you get, and perceived obstacles as well.

GWEN IFILL:

Kamala Harris, today, John Podesta, the — Hillary Clinton's campaign manager, said he believed the double standard applied to women, that that is not the only thing driving some of the kind of historic unfavorable numbers for her, but that he thinks it's very real.

What do you think?

KAMALA HARRIS:

I think that, to be sure.

I'm a career prosecutor. I was elected as the first district attorney of San Francisco and the first attorney general of California, which means I'm the top law enforcement officer of the state of California.

And there were a lot of people who doubted that I would be elected for that reason. They said, well-meaning people, that, no one like you has done this before, and that is going to be a challenge, and people aren't prepared for someone like you holding that position.

So, there are challenges, but equally important — and I think the congresswoman is absolutely correct — when we understand that, and then, through your leadership and women and men like you, pulling together an infrastructure to encourage those women to have faith that they actually can do it and building the infrastructure around them.

Anything can be done. But I think also the point that you were asking about, fund-raising is a very real one for women. Women — most women are taught to be independent. And to be independent means don't ask anyone for money. And then you run for office and you have to ask everybody for money.

And there's a real psychological burden that associates with that.

(LAUGHTER)

GWEN IFILL:

Right.

KAMALA HARRIS:

And so what I mention to women who are running for office, I say, listen, just be clear. You're not asking someone to buy you a pair of shoes. It's about having them invest in what they believe is in the best interest of their community, their family, and the issues.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Congresswoman Bustos, right now, the polls show that Donald Trump is doing better with men than Hillary Clinton is with women. Why do you think that is?

REP. CHERI BUSTOS:

I believe that, as we get closer and closer to November and the policies that both Hillary Clinton stands for and the Democratic members of Congress and what we want to support after she's in the White House, and we talk about that on the campaign trail and among all of the states in our nation, I think those number numbers will change.

I mean, what we stand for are currently back-burner issues, equal pay for equal work, paid family leave, making sure that seniors will have their Social Security and Medicare there as they age, because that affects women disproportionately.

So, as we talk about this, and what we want to do, not just for women, but for our families, and you take a look at what Hillary Clinton stands for and what the Democrats stand for, I think we will see some shift in those numbers. I feel confident of that.

GWEN IFILL:

After all is said and done, what difference does it make if it's a woman sitting in either the highest office in the land or on a school board? What does it — I'm not saying that you're running only as women, because, obviously, you're not, but what difference does it make?

KAMALA HARRIS:

We all — the difference is the importance of diversity.

And diversity is important because we all have different life experiences. And when decisions are being made that are going to impact so many people, it's important that we have considered all the ramifications based on how it will roll out.

The more diverse the group of people are who are making the decision, the better the decision will be, especially when you're talking about the decisions that are being made by the president of the United States. And, you know, certainly we know, also, in terms of demographics, women disproportionately are responsible for caring for children and caring for elder relatives.

Women are disproportionately responsible for dealing with household issues, whatever they may be. Women are increasingly equal, or even in greater numbers, the breadwinner in the family. And so women have a certain life experience. We know girls have a certain life experience. And those people who are making the decisions should understand the ramifications of their decisions.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

California Attorney General Kamala Harris.

KAMALA HARRIS:

Thank you.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

And Representative Bustos from the state of Illinois, we thank both of you for being here.

KAMALA HARRIS:

Thank you.

(CROSSTALK)

REP. CHERI BUSTOS:

Thank you. Thank you.

JUDY WOODRUFF:

Thank you.