Senators Murkowski, Ayotte (center), and Collins (right).
I chuckled when I read the various media accounts of the role women in congress played in getting an agreement to stop the bipartisan bickering to come to an agreement to end the government furlough. A record number of women (20) serve in the 113th Congress of the United States.
It has been well researched that women tend to have a more collaborative approach to problem solving. This strength seems to have been a real asset in helping Congress develop an approach that ended the impasse.
Sen. Susan Collins of Maine, a moderate Republican in her third term, led a bipartisan group of 14 senators—six of them women—who developed the compromise to end the 16-day partial federal shutdown.
John McCain (R-Ariz.) who was part of the group is credited with saying, “It’s a good outcome. Leadership, I must fully admit, was provided primarily by women in the Senate.”
Not afraid to highlight the female impact, Collins said in an ABC interview—“What I find is with all due deference to our male colleagues, that women’s styles tend to be more collaborative,” Collins said in that ABC News interview.
This is such a wonderful example of the “business case” for diversity. The research clearly shows that having women in leadership positions positively impacts the bottom line. I can’t think of any more important bottom line impact than stopping the $12 billion a day drain on the world’s biggest economy and all of the other unintended consequences.
What more proof do we need that diversity pays? You go, Senate Sisters!
