Actually, I think Allison Lundergan Grimes is pretty good too; and Michelle Nunn is not bad. But this woman has a name that really takes it to a new realm. I don't mean a crazy level; it's a name that is mellifluous; it connotes nature combined with purpose. And it is her actual birth name.
She's an associate professor of law at Fordham Law School. An undergraduate degree from Yale, then she simultaneously earned her law degree from Duke and an MA in political science. Her specialty is anti-trust law.
I heard her as a guest on one of the MSNBC evening news shows, I think Chris Hayes; and she is an impressive thinker and speaker. Definitely takes progressive positions on issues. She was director of internet organizing for the Howard Dean campaign. She co-founded A New Way Forward, a group dedicated to breaking up the power of big banks, and she was involved with Occupy Wall Street.
She's running against incumbent Andrew Cuomo for the Democratic Nomination for governor of New York. All that sounds terrific, like someone I would like to support, especially if the whiffs of scandal swirling around Gov. Cuomo are real. But honestly, New York is not my state, and I'm not going to get involved. It's really her name that intrigues me.
She
could join the ranks of Elizabeth Warren, Hillary Clinton, Jennifer
Granholm, Michelle Nunn, Allison Lundergan Grimes -- and, yes, I'm going
to put Michele Obama on the list -- in giving us a new kind of
politician: all smart, progressive, sane, assertive women -- and they
carry it well with a light touch. They seem a different breed -- so much so that I would almost not include Hillary Clinton; as capable as I know she will be, she's has a bit of the "old school" politics. I'm looking for a new type of smart women, who care about making things work for the people, the kind that has a majority presence in the Norwegian Parliament, which explains why they have such a good social safety net.
Her real name, given to her at birth?
Zephyr Rain Teachout
Ralph
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