The Firsts

February 1, 2020
The 2018 electoral cycle was a good one for women--well, at least some women, as New York Times reporter Steinhauer shows. In the wake of the "blue wave" anti-Trump backlash of 2018, the largest number of women ever elected to Congress took the oath of office. Some of them have since become household names--e.g., Rashida Tlaib, a daughter of Palestinian immigrants who set off shock waves when she pledged about Trump that she was going to "impeach the motherfucker," forcing an issue that the Democratic leadership had been trying to keep under wraps. The class of 2018 found 106 women in the House and 25 in the Senate, and of the 35 newcomers that year, all but one was a Democrat. As for the Republican women, Steinhauer writes, "their numbers in the House fell from twenty-three to thirteen, the biggest percentage drop ever and the lowest number overall in a generation." There are numerous reasons for that fall, she ventures, including both revulsion among women for the sitting president and the lack of an effort among Republicans to recruit women to their cause. Instead, the Capitol now includes women such as Kyrsten Sinema, who immediately tested the Senate's dress code by wearing a sleeveless outfit instead of the usual business suit. That example seems trivial compared to the weightier intentions of the incoming class, who, by Steinhauer's reckoning, were fueled by Trump to run for Congress just as other Americans rushed to enlist in the service following 9/11, "as part of a larger national emergency response." The analogy won't please the likes of Joni Ernst and Martha McSally, but the larger point is that women hitherto excluded from the system--Arab Americans from Michigan, Native Americans from Kansas and New Mexico, African Americans and Latinas and members of other underserved populations--are now actively involved and pressing for accelerated reforms, to say nothing of the chance to influence the entrenched leadership. A fine lesson in civics and political journalism and must reading for anyone contemplating working in electoral politics.

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March 1, 2020

Thirty-five new congresswomen were sworn in when the 116th Congress convened in January 2019. It resulted in a record number of women in Congress: 106 in the House of Representatives and 25 in the Senate. Even more historic is the number of "Firsts" included in the new members of Congress: the first two Muslim women; the first two Native women; the first African American or Latinx women from their state or district, or combinations of these distinctions. Steinhauer interviewed these women about their reasons for running for office and the goals they hope to accomplish, observing them at town halls and noting their alliances with other freshmen and veteran congressmen and senators. The book is filled with reports on how, as candidates, the women campaigned and met with potential voters in order to raise awareness of political issues. Steinhauer also covers higher-profile women, including Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley, and their relationship to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. VERDICT Steinhauer provides an in-depth look at the women who historically changed the face and composition of Congress. Readers interested in women in politics and government will enjoy the book and appreciate the author's thorough research.--Jill Ortner, SUNY Buffalo Libs.

Copyright 2020 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

March 1, 2020
The largest number of women ever was elected to the 116th Congress in November 2018, with 87 to the House and 23 to the Senate. Among these were Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, the youngest woman elected; Abigail Spanberg, a former CIA agent; Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib, the first two Muslim women in the House; and Deb Haaland and Sharice Davids, the first Native American women in Congress. The new makeup of Congress means diversity, change, and the potential to have government better represent the American people. New York Times reporter Steinhauer follows these women's first year in Congress, chronicling their transitions from trail-blazing campaigns to the daily work of governance. She delves into how candidates ran their campaigns against incumbents, from knocking on doors to viral low-budget video promotions. Readers will find interesting details, such as how new Congress members start day one with a scant orientation and are then left to figure it out. Steinhauer examines events and issues faced, such as the border crisis, diversity, committee experiences, and voting. Anyone interested in government, especially women in government, will find this book informative and empowering.Women in Focus: The 19th in 2020(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2020, American Library Association.)