11/30/00 12:05 p.m. If Only Women Had Voted The “feminist activists” game.

By Anita K. Blair, president of the Independent Women’s Forum, a policy organization in Arlington, Virginia

The National Organization for Women has announced that Patricia Ireland "and other Feminist Activists" will lead a "Women's Votes Count" protest on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court this Friday, when the Court is scheduled to hear arguments over the Florida election laws.

Ireland says, "If men alone had voted, George W. Bush would have won hands-down." True enough. And if women alone had voted, Al Gore would have won. Ireland alleges that Bush "is trying to claim the presidency by excluding" the votes of women and African-Americans. This is a strange assertion. Yes, minorities, especially African-Americans, heavily favored Gore. But if one excludes the minority vote among women, the "women's" vote went to George W. Bush.

As long as we're playing the "Feminist Activists" game of selecting a president by selectively dividing America, let's see who would have won if some other groups had the exclusive right to choose.

According to CNN's national exit poll: Married people (half of whom are women, probably even in Vermont) would have elected Bush. People with children would have elected Bush. People aged 30 to 60 would have elected Bush. People with high school or college degrees would have elected Bush. People with incomes $50,000 and above would have elected Bush. People who own stocks would have elected Bush. The "middle" and "upper middle" (but not the "upper") class would have elected Bush. People calling themselves "independent" voters would have elected Bush. Perot voters would have elected Bush. McCain supporters would have elected Bush. Internet users would have elected Bush. Weekly (or more frequent) churchgoers would have elected Bush. People who believe abortion should be illegal most of the time would have elected Bush. People in the Midwest and South would have elected Bush. People who live in the suburbs or small town or rural areas would have elected Bush. People who believe honesty is the most important quality of a leader would have elected Bush. People who believe moral leadership should be a higher priority for the president than managing government would have elected Bush.

Among the stable, responsible, well-educated, well-informed, successful, independent-thinking, ethically-minded people who in fact did elect Bush, surely there are a good number of women and minorities. Would Ireland have their votes excluded from counting? Feminist activists, like their candidate Al Gore, have the distressing habit of continually defying logic and, worse, the destructive habit of persistently dividing Americans into false affinity groups designed solely to achieve their own pre-selected outcome.

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2000

Answers

Interestingly, we fit most of the criteria outlined in this article -- college educated, married, thirtysomething IT professionals, income over $50K per year, own stock, live in a rural area. We do not have children. We voted for Gore.

It's too bad that Ms. Blair felt that she could only make her points by slamming NOW. What exactly is the "Independent Woman's Forum"? Are they, by chance, a right-wing think tank, or aligned with one?

-- Anonymous, November 30, 2000

JAF,

I would guess it's a Conservative Woman's group. The piece came from National Review Online.

-- Anonymous, December 01, 2000