Hillary’s women problem

The War on Women rhetoric has become a well-known mantra of the liberal left—arguing that the conservative right has waged this so-called war.

In an analysis compiled by the Washington Free Beacon, it has been discovered that Hillary Clinton—the left’s iconic champion of this rhetoric, paid her female staffers 72 cents for every dollar paid to male staffers.  While Clinton was a senator the median annual salary for a woman working in Clinton’s office was $15,708.38 less than the median salary for a man.   

{mosads}It seems as though she should take “champion for equal pay” off of her resume seeing as she doesn’t practice what she preaches.  Not only does Hillary Clinton say that all women deserve equal pay, but she goes so far as to accuse the right for not advocating for it—which seems highly hypocritical.  Her faux outrage is in fact dishonest and shameful. 

Not only is Clinton at fault here, but the White House as well.  We’ve heard the same tired rhetoric and talking points from Obama and his administration regarding this fictional war on women.  In fact, last summer it was reported that Obama’s White House shows that the average White House employee earns $88,600 while the average female earns $78,400—a 13% difference.  Obama has gone to great lengths to propose and advocate for legislation such as the Paycheck Fairness Act—a liberal initiative that would narrow the “fictional” pay gap between men and women.  Needless to say Obama should’ve taken a look into his own administration before spearheading such an initiative.   

Hillary Clinton and Obama’s war on women rhetoric should be called out for what it is, a sham.  Liberals are obsessed with gender disparity, but yet they are the ones objectifying women.  They can’t have it both ways—insisting that there’s gender discrimination yet they don’t pay their women equal to their male staffers.

As a young professional woman myself, I think I speak for many women when I say stop the pandering.  Stop parading women around on the campaign trail like political puppets.  Women are not prizes to be won; we are hardworking, self-reliant, and command respect.  Women are not helpless victims looking to be saved by the federal government.  The federal government and its programs have actually done more harm than good for women.   

Yes, it is true that some professions pay more than others and it contributes to differences in salary—but this is not gender based or discriminatory. Once all factors are considered when it comes to occupation and level of education, women are on the same playing field as men. Women are earning more bachelor, masters, and doctoral degrees than their male counterparts but somehow still liberal progressives rally around a ridiculous gender disparity rather than celebrating women’s accomplishments. 

If Hillary Clinton truly believes that there is gender disparity in the workforce, then she should start by paying her female staffers equally.  In fact, paying them 72 cents for every dollar paid to a man is well below DC’s average of 90 cents to every dollar.   

Hillary Clinton and her liberal allies need to stop the worn-out talking points that use misrepresentative data and then deduce that pay disparity is a result of gender discrimination.  It would appear as though gender discrimination only truly exists on Senator Clinton’s staff and in the White House.  Maybe liberals should start shattering their own glass ceilings before throwing rocks.   

Pratte is a communications consultant and commentator in Washington, D.C.