Posted on 05/17/2002 4:47:58 AM PDT by RippleFire
Albright endorses Bowles
'Erskine is the feminist in this campaign,' says ex-Cabinet official
By IRWIN SPEIZER, Staff Writer
GREENSBORO - Former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright campaigned for Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Erskine Bowles on Thursday, hoping her endorsement would give him a boost with female voters.
Albright told a cheering rally in Greensboro that Bowles stands out from the crowded field of primary contenders for his commitment to women's issues.
"I definitely can vouch for the fact that Erskine is the feminist in this campaign," said Albright at a evening rally at the Koury Convention Center sponsored by the Women for Bowles Committee.
Bowles, an investment banker and one-time colleague of Albright's as a former chief of staff to President Clinton, followed up by referring to himself as a feminist and vowing to advance women's causes in the Senate.
"Once and for all, we have to have equal pay for equal work," Bowles said.
The women's vote is emerging as a key element in the race to succeed Republican Sen. Jesse Helms, who is not seeking another term.
Bowles is among nine candidates vying for the Democratic nomination in a field that includes two women: Secretary of State Elaine Marshall and former Durham City Council member Cynthia Brown.
In addition, state Rep. Dan Blue of Raleigh, another candidate for the Democratic nomination, has been trying to promote his support of women's issues. On Thursday, Blue responded to Albright's endorsement of Bowles by issuing a statement questioning Bowles' commitment to women's issues.
Of the six Republicans in the race, two are women: Elizabeth Dole, a former Reagan and Bush Cabinet member, and Dr. Ada Fisher of Salisbury.
North Carolina has never elected a woman to the U.S. Senate. Although several women at Thursday's rally said they were heartened by the presence of women on the ballot, they were nonetheless backing Bowles.
"A lot of people will vote for Liddy Dole or Elaine Marshall just because they're women," said Pat Cotham of Charlotte. "I'm for Erskine because I feel he can move our state forward on day one."
Albright was the first woman to serve as U.S. secretary of state. When Bowles was chief of staff, he was the one who made the telephone call alerting her that the president was going to make the job offer.
Albright said she worked with Bowles on many occasions while both were part of the Clinton administration. She said Bowles supported her goal of making women's issues a top priority in foreign policy.
"He is the nicest really smart guy I have ever known," Albright said.
Albright noted that during her stint as secretary of state, she had to shelve her partisan leanings to be effective in carrying out foreign policy.
She said that she continued to keep a low profile in Democratic circles after the Sept. 11 attacks and the ensuing war on terrorism in a show of solidarity with President George W. Bush at a time of national crisis.
Staff writer Irwin Speizer can be reached at (803) 329-2107 or ispeizer@newsobserver.com.
It sure is good to have a real Secretary of State again.
Hard to see why females would identify with her. But Albright should help Bowles wrap up the all-important hotel maid segment of the voting population!
LOL!
You do mean 'fortunately' don't you? Lots of good coffee and more than a few keyboards saved out here.
Er, I'm not sure this logic follows. Now, if it said "she hopes the endorsement will give him a boost among gnomes and trolls," I could buy it.
Ok, that will nail down the old, dowdy, ugly, liberal, wacko, feminist vote for sure. (I thought he already had that one in the bag)
I wonder how Elaine and Cynthia feel about hearing that Erskine is the real feminist in this fight?
Thank goodness! I was holding my breath...
in fear that Mad Maddie would endorse Liddy,
thus condemning Jesse's Senate seat to a Dimbulbcrat.
Beware.
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