Post 7: More Research Paper Progress - Nancy Pelosi's "List"

When I found out that Nancy Pelosi has a list of politicians that she favors and disfavors, I was really surprised that 1. this information was released to the public and 2. this list exists in the first place. I find it potentially damaging (not severely, though) that she has delineated her friends and foes this way. Sure, it sounds as if these lists aren't set in stone, but still. Doesn't it sound kind of .... high school .... to you? It's also a really girly thing to do; I remember my female classmates who had lists for lots of different things (even South Park has an episode that talks about this girl tendency).

This list business does not add help the fact that she is a woman in politics. Because of her gender, she is already in a position to be criticized for her ability to handle political situations with good sense because this has been the trend for the longest time in the country. Sure, one of her close associates explained that this list wasn't like a hit list or anything and that Nancy believes that those that have "done bad" to her will be "punished" anyone (not necessarily by her), it doesn't help that this list exists to begin with.

This is prime fodder for Republicans and any anti-Pelosi people out there to criticize her and believe less in her as a leader in our government. By releasing that a list like this exists gives many of her opponents the right to question whether or not she makes decisions based on the political situation or based on her personal preferences for a specific politician.

Knowledge of this list also doesn't help the case Pelosi is naturally trying to prove that women are just as able government leaders as men. There is already a lot of sexism and gender stereotyping in politics that women in the political world have to deal with. Since it's considered very "feminine" to be emotional and let emotions cloud judgments, certain female politicians like Hillary Clinton make a significant effort to balance these feminine qualities with "masculine" ones of assertiveness and competitiveness. For instance, Hillary maintains a very masculine or gender-neutral appearance, wearing staid colors and keeping her hair very short. Also, she almost never shows emotions that could be considered "weak" in public, except for the time her presidential campaign came to an end in 2008.



Nancy Pelosi also does a fairly good job at balancing the masculine and feminine qualities in her behavior, but this list business? I'm not sure if that was a smart move at all.

I'm really surprised that Nancy Pelosi would make have lists like this. She should've known that the public would find out about it eventually. Something like this definitely affects the opinions people have about her leadership effectiveness. She's helping her opponents discredit her ability to become a good leader by associating herself with something that makes her seem very petty and almost childish.