Transcripts For CSPAN Politico Forum On Women Leadership Morning Session 20171231

Please welcome politico Vice President and general manager, alexis williams. [applause] good morning, everyone. On behalf of the politico ceo and editorinchief, welcome to the fifth annual women rural summit. [applause] thank you so much for joining us. It is absolutely amazing to see so many familiar faces, as well as a lot of new faces. It has been a great evolution and im so glad to have you all with us today. I am here to do a simple job which is to say thank you. Thank you to everyone for attending. A special thank you to our ambassadors, and at every table there is an ambassador that will be helping lead conversations. If i could just ask you to stand quickly if you are an ambassador. [applause] remarkable women, many of whom have flown in from across the country to help the Youth Empowerment information and share insight. Our first annual inaugural and they will be leading dialogues, so i hope you all enjoy that. We are informing, empowering and connecting women such as yourselves together. Today, we will have amazing conversations, thoughtprovoking dialogue and issues on Human Trafficking and harassment in the workplace, empowering conversations with female ceos and entrepreneurs who made it big and want to share insight with us that we can all learn. And so it will be a great day and hope all of you can join for the full program. I would be remiss if i did not say thank you to our incredible sponsors for making this possible. Our founding partners, google the Foundation People at the tory burch foundation. [applause] our 2017 resenting sponsor joining us for the first time this year. [applause] our 2017 supporting sponsor, loreal and u. S. Bank. Thank you all so much. [applause] we have a few brief housekeeping notes as well. First of all, please join the conversation on social media. Hashtag is womenrule. Help bring in women that cannot be here but are watching on the lifestream. Second, in the space there is a marketplace, one of my favorite parts. It is a series of women run businesses, all of whom are selling their wares. I encourage all of the woman to all of you to put your money where your mouth is. And we are overcapacity today. If you are unable to join for the full day, please let our Registration Desk know so we can seat as many people as possible. With that said, thank you again for being here. I hope that you leave today informed, empowered and connected to some amazing women. And now, please welcome, joining me in welcoming our lady boss, Carrie Budoff brown. [applause] please welcome editor, Carrie Budoff brown. Hey, everybody. I am Carrie Budoff brown, editor at politico. I am thrilled to welcome you to the fifth women rule summit. We launched as a quarterly event series involving only a few hundred women. It is now a community of tens of thousands of women across the globe. We come together today at what is truly a watershed moment for women. In the past year, we have seen a huge gap. A gap between womens understanding and vision of themselves as equal citizens in one hand, and on the other, the vast underrepresentation of women across the government and private sector. The questions that drive women rule are, how do women come to positions of power and what difference do they make when they are there . Over the five years of this program, we have learned without question that it matters. It matters that women are not only at the table but they have voices that are truly hard. And it matters that they are Critical Mass not merely a token , view. Woman ruled conversations has no doubt that womens progress is connected. Women that run for office, benefit from Women Leaders in business who can fund raise and provide models of leadership. Women ceos need women lawmakers that can help women succeed in business. And to grow the numbers of women in business leadership, we need more Women Entrepreneurs like those who are generous enough to participate in our women rule week and those in the marketplace today. And likewise, womens advancement in sports has in many cases, been a pipeline for women serving in public office. Today, we will hear from women in all of the fields about what it will take to keep making progress. And with Sexual Harassment dominating the conversation coasttocoast, were going to delve into that topic as well. It is hard not to. When it comes to this issue, weve learned that what happens to women in hollywood is connected to womens experiences in Silicon Valley, the media and on wall street. The conditions that enable Sexual Harassment are bigger than any one perpetrator. Workplace or sector of the economy. That is the message of the founder of the Metoo Movement who we will hear from today. And it happens to be shortlisted for the time person of the year. Yeah [applause] the Metoo Movement reflects so movement represents so much. It helps us as leaders and mentors. It is about locking arms, identifying where we have been left behind, and why that happens, and figuring out how we can make change to the status quo so we have equal representation and we are equal citizens. Today, you will hear from and meet women that are trail blazers. Trail blazers that will not accept the status quo, those that lift up other women, take risk, foster change and have impact. Our hope is that from hearing from this Diverse Group will inform you about the Bigger Picture and your own face in it. Your own place in it. Our hope is to connect you to the amazing women not only in this room but across the women rule community. Our hope is that this will empower you to go back to your organization and your community with not only a sense of inspiration, but with a clear idea of what we can do to make sure that progress continues to be made. I just want to go off a script for one second. To thank a couple of people. Louisa savage, our director and alexa williams. Their brilliant staff that brought this to life. They have nurtured women rule like your own child. They truly embody the spirit of this community in ways that im immensely count, and i wanted to make sure recognized properly. They were [applause] just in closing, if we all lock arms in this room, our collective power is stronger than any one person. And that is what woman rules is about. Thank you for being here today and lets get started. I would like to welcome one of my amazing reporters at politico to come on stage and start the first panel. Thank you. [applause] please welcome Politico National political reporter eliana johnson. [applause] hello, everybody. Thank you so much for being here. I am eliana johnson. I cover the white house for politico. We are so excited to have you all here this morning. I have with me an amazing panel and we are going to kick this off starting with the talked about the 2018 midterm election. In 2016, there was a lot of discussion about having the first female candidate to top the president ial ticket with a major party and a lot of talk about how gender impacted the results of the election. But there was less discussion i think, about what happened at lower levels for women and in reality, there has been stagnation in a number of women serving in congress and at the state and local level. Today, women make up 20 of congress and 25 of state and local offices nationwide. That number has not increased for several years. This conversation and the numbers came out of politico women rule investigation that was published in june and will focus a little more on that. And in particular, what it will take to start increasing the numbers. For those of you have not gotten a chance to read the women rule investigation i really encourage you to do so. It is fantastic. You have Copies Available at the without further delay, i will get to my panel. Really, i am thrilled to have you all here. Congresswoman chandler who is a case study and i think the democrats who succeed and donald trump related territory. Representative henderson, South Carolina state representative from the greenville area. Last but not least, somebody who im sure most of you know if you are watching cable news. Amy walter, National Editor of the political report. Lets start with you amy. Reading the New York Times yesterday, there you go i saw that i needed done he and a served as key medications director for president obama was quoted in the upsurge of women particularly learning and credit primaries. Her response when asked about this was to proclaim 2017 and i think 2018 quote the year of the woman. Is she getting ahead of herself as far as midterm elections are concerned . Can we really prepare for an influx of female officeholders . Thank, you eliana. Thank you all for being here and inviting me. It is not very often that i sit on the stage and look out to a sea of women. Usually, the faces are [applause] how often do without in a sea of 99 men and then one woman stuck somewhere in there . That is a fascinating question but personally it is also interesting because i came to washington in 1991. I think it was about two weeks before the clarence thomas, anita hill hearing. And it was literally, i just remember the moment when the light sorta switched on. A bunch of women noticed this allmale panel in the Senate Grilling and literally looking down and grilling this africanamerican woman. It was at that moment where emilys list really went from a little shop. We saw in 1992 a Record Number of women win. More women were elected that year then at any point in history. It was a whopping 24 women in the house and five women in the senate. But what we forget about that year, we talk a lot about it being a reaction to anita hill. 1992 had a couple of things that this year does not have. Which was that it was a redistricting year. So there are a lot of new seats, and there was a huge scandal. The house bank scandal, we learned many members of Congress Just overdrew their accounts by a lot. And then they got to hide that fact. My favorite was not just that they would do that, many of the men would say, you know, my wife. I dont know you know women. They just spend the money. I do not know where it goes so that, not only did you have a Record Number of women winning but you also had a freshman class in 1992. This year, you do not have those two factors. Although some of the scandals, while it is not house bank it is Sexual Harassment scandals. But i do think a different kind of house bank. Different kind of house bank. You do have an energy though that feels similar to 1992 and 1992 in thathat this sort of boiling of energy from women voters. Weve always seen a gender gap, democrats doing better among women than republicans do. But when you see the favorability between how men and women view donald trump, it is quite striking. In fact, i went and looked. This is the last nbc wall street journal poll. Trumps Approval Rating among women is 32, 63. In another poll woman strongly disapproved of donald trump compared to men. We are living in this moment of intense energy. The New York Times report report report points to a number of women especially on the democratic side interested in running. Many of them are running against each other in primaries. So you will see a Record Number of women candidates could not necessarily a Record Number of women and office. But i think what we have seen in virginia as well, was in places that are suburban, well educated, Like Northern virginia, like suburban chicago, like suburban denver. This may be the time when we start to see those voters have an outsized influence in this. I was just going to ask you about the changes we might see among women voters in reaction to the trump to some of these scandals. You answered my question. Thank you for that [laughter] i kept going. Our politico investigation found that women are, when women right when women run, they are as successful in terms of their win rate and as successful in terms of fundraising but the problem is women simply do not run as often as men. So you are partly responsible for the recruitment of candidates. I was wondering what you found are the most effective recruitment techniques and whether they differ in terms of what is effective for recruiting women and what is effective for recruiting men . It is very different. Recruiting men in comparison to recruiting women. And i will walk you through a little bit of the scenario. I was vicechairman of recruitment in the last election cycle for the Democratic Congressional campaign committee. Im still involved with that mostly focusing on the midwest which is the area from a democratic perspective that we figure that we better figure out if we ever want to win back the house. I am in a district little more perspective i represent central and northwestern illinois. 11 of the counties are almost entirely rural. For anybody who follows politics, democrats have not exactly done well in rural america. Donald trump one my district. There is only 12 democrats in the entire house of representatives serving in districts that donald trump won in. I won by 20 points. It was part of that reason that i had my colleagues saying what , are you doing that is different and how can you help us be successful in these areas . When recruiting men versus recruiting women, i can tell you the first question a man will typically ask is, can i win . That is usually what you hear first. The first question that you usually hear from a woman is, how will this impact my family . How do you take all the public criticism that is out there relentlessly and at that level when youre running for congress . Even sometimes, when you build a little more Comfort Level with the candidate, he will say, you know, there is such a large swath of issues. How can you manage understanding all of these issues . I can tell you i have never had a man ask me that question. And you do not, ive never had a man ask first about the impact on his family. So, first of all, to successfully recruit women first you have to ask. Were you asked to run when you first ran for the council . For city council . Ok. I was. I was elected to two terms on city council. A town of 21,000 people. Any illinois people out there . All right i bet chicago. Anyone from downstate illinois . One [laughter] it is completely doable with a lot of convincing. Because most women have to be asked to run. So i was asked to run for city council and frankly i would have i would not have thought of it. I just would not have thought of running, then i was asked to run for congress. Frankly, i would not have thought to run for congress. I had a lot going on that motivated me to run. And you better have that personal motivation. Because phoniness is very apparent in people. It is very apparent. So you better have that drive for wanting to make a difference. And so you appeal to all of that. You talk to how it impacts your family. I typically, when we are recruiting a woman with younger children, i will tell a real quick story because i know you when to get onto everybody, but when we were recruiting a young woman that has children, i say, and what you have a congressman from new york, one of my closest friends who has two little boys, im going to have her give you a call. Because she will take the story about how when we were walking from the office over to the house floor to vote, she is face timing with her kids, doing homework with them. She will house floor and go go to the back to the room and continue talking with them. We were at dinner last night and had two sets of votes. We had gone to one of our favorite restaurants. Grace had to excuse yourself for a little while because her husband was out of town coming here to go to the White House Christmas ball tonight. And so she had somebody walking , and theyg her kids were misbehaving, so she had to face time with them from the restaurant. So you know you get someone that can relate to them. Most of your women in the audience. Personal connection and someone talking you through all of that and even the attack ads and how you deal with that is really what it takes to be successful. They do so much. Thank you so much. Representative, let me turn to you. Republicans and women. We have a dearth of female candidates anyway, but when it comes to republicans, they have a serious on the federal level, and you serve at the state level. Im hoping you can speak to this anyway. Republicans comprised of 10 of the House Republican conference, and it is about the same in the senate. They are five of 52 republican senators. Why do you think republicans face this problem . Because we do not see the same split in the voting population. And what do you think the republicans can do to improve this . The fact is, we will never approach parity in terms of representation of women unless we get more female republicans elected to office. Thank you. Let me ask, where are my southerners . There we go. We are not going to talk about college football. We already chatted about that. Very good question. Ive been serving in Elective Office since 2000. I got started because i had a mentor. It is a little bit different than what the congresswoman was talking about. But women need to step up and just say, i want to do this. Actually work with some and i got elected to congress and offered me a job. I said actually, i want to do this. So that was my first office. But the hard part for republicans, being from a red state. As you know we are red. Everybody is red in the south. So it is very difficult. A lot of women, i was a stayathome mom, really working parttime when i ran. It is a traditional mindset. I was really surprised the first time i ran. I was in a very conservative church at the time. I thought that these leaders are these ladies are going to just be getting on my case about the fact that i should be staying home and taking care of my children. I will never forget,i had a woman about 80 years old. She came up to me and said, you just go. We tell you, if i had the opportunity to do what youre doing when i was younger, i would have done it. And i thought, that is not what i expected. So i think that women need to understand, you just need to step up. I think one of the other big challenges is fundraising and money. We do not have the network that men do to tap into for money. And i will say this, if i do not have an opportunity to speak again, one of the best things you all can do if you do not run is write a check to somebody who is and work. Because that is the biggest problem that women have. Fundraising. Ive been fortunate that i am good at it and i like it. But a lot of women candidates are not. And that is very difficult. Republican or democrat. But we do have a lot of challenges. Thats why i stay involved with organizations in order to help women, republican women run and will, we have all kinds of women. And conservatives, democrats and republicans to have us all represented at the table. And have a voice to make things happen and make a difference. Is the fundraising aspect something that you can speak to congresswoman . Its tough. Running for congress is, it takes a lot of resources. I can tell you that as i look race, i was first sitting republican. Challenge ofa running against somebody in office, it takes a lot of resources. And now as a democratic prochoice woman, emilys list was invaluable. Absolutely invaluable to me. And that is something that, i mean, not just from helping on the fundraising part of it, but as a firsttime congressional candidate, they sent somebody out to help me understand the basics of fundraising. Frankly, i was doing a really lousy job at it. And emilys list sent a woman to my house. I did not have a headquarters at the time and im sitting, i quit my job. I was a Vice President of a health system, and my husband was a cop. I was the primary earner in my family. But i quit my job because this is a fulltime proposition. That is Something Else to think about, how you manage that. I am sitting at my desk at home with my computer in front of me and my phone, pictures of my three boys in front of me. I text my friends in between making phone calls. I would look at my kids pictures. I would send off an email to a friend. And she comes and watches me. She grabs me by the arm, taking me away from my desk, sits me down at the Kitchen Table and says, youre not going to have your phone in front of you. Youre not going to have your computer in front of you. Youre not going to have your kids pictures in front of you. Youre going to make phone calls and this is how you going to do it. She taught me the fundamentals of it. It is not instinctual. To run for office. Whether it is building your field organization, your messaging, social media, raising money. It is something that you have to be taught in a lot of ways. Like i said you have to have inside of you, the drive to want to do it, but you need help. And there are so Many Networks to help women run now more than ever. I did a shout out to emilys list i think we started a program out of my leadership Political Action committee. It was to help, we recruit mostly women and young people and people of color. Because those areas underrepresented. We teach them the fundamentals in an allday boot camp. It is something that i am, i feel very passionately about getting more people to run for office. That is what we are doing to help out the next generation. I want to talk a little bit about the wave of Sexual Harassment scandals that have been on capitol hill in recent weeks. They have impacted one of you personally. They are starting to shake the political landscape. Can we play the video that we have . If the last few weeks has taught us anything, its that we need more women in power. Not less. So when youre choosing the next attorney general, who can you trust most not to show you their penis in a professional setting . Is it the candidate that is not have one . I would say so. I am a woman. That is not a liability, it is an asset. I approve of putting more women on the ticket. [applause] that was an ad from a democratic candidate for attorney general in michigan and amy sent it to me and i loved it. Definitely captures the current political scene but congresswoman, leader policy has been criticized for the way that she responded to the Sexual Harassment allegations against john conyers. He announced this morning that he is going to retire. The key word being retire, not resign. I wanted to ask you, do you think his retirement rather than resignation is an adequate response . And how did you feel about the way that leader pelosi handled this situation. Not only with conyers but her response more generally . I think that if you are and trusted by the public, whether you are in the senate or whether you are in the house work have been in conquest for 40 years for one year. We need to serve as role models. And i know people do not see members of Congress Like that anymore. But frankly, if you are perpetuators of Sexual Harassment, i just think congress is the place to be. And again, no matter what body you serve in, and no matter what party you are in, i will tell you what, it is sad when the one area bipartisanship seems to be that we have republicans and democrats for sexual harassers. I think it is not a place to be. I would like to play a part in helping to win back the trust of the public and part of it is we got some legislation now that Jackie Speier is leading. To require Sexual Harassment training. We have a piece of legislation that will require anybody who is paid out, victims from this secret slush fund, that that has to become public. And the victims, should they choose, to not be subject to a gag order. If they want to speak out about it they should be able to. Leader pelosi, i think many people felt that as a woman, she has a special responsibility as the third most powerful lawmaker in the country. She has a special responsibility to act and act quickly. Did she miss this . Are you asking amy . [laughter] good try is it unfair . We have on the republican side. Who, now it has come out. 84,000 was paid out of a slush fund. I do not hear people asking speaker ryan about why he is not talking about that. [applause] if i had republican member of congress i will be asking them. Like i said, i believe that no matter if your democrat or republican senator house number, have seniority or not, should not be serving in congress if you are a sexual harasser. It is not the place to be. [applause] you know, the assumption i think im regarding the entire event today is that more women in elected office is a good thing. And i was wondering if i can have each of you in a lightning round address why you think that is. What is the value of having more women . How would your jobs be different . Amy in particular you wrote that you think democrats have missed this, would be different if there were more women in elected office . Were more women in elected office . Why do we start with you amy. About why what could change if you had more women . What is the value that women bring to the table . I just think where youre seeing the Sexual Harassment allegations and real assault, is in industries that have historically been dominated. Not just that there are a few women. Men are running everything whether it is the media, hollywood and congress. It should not be the fact that we are not hearing the same level of scandals out of quote unquote regular working america is because they have already gone there. The fact that congress has to say, should have Sexual Harassment training. Anybody that has worked in the company for the last 20 years has had to go through Sexual Harassment training. That is not like what . That is amazing [laughter] i never thought of that and i think the challenge for Congress Also is the fact that you know everything gets referred to as the Ethics Committee. An internal investigation by your peers. Right . That also raises the question about can your own peers, should they be Holding Accountable or should it be somebody on the outside actually investigating these in a way that does not raise the question of the credibility of the investigation. I just think that overall, and i have been frustrated in some ways about the way in which we talked about the role that women should play in that you know this is the world of Sexual Harassment. So women are going to win. Like women only do well when it is something that is domestic issue that affects them personally versus, i dont know, women can also do well in the middle of a war. Women can do well in an economic downturn. We really box women into this very narrow sort of idea of when they can rise and when they shouldnt. But overall, i think that what women bring to the table when you have more than one or two in the room, i think it is a very different incentive structure and offices and in situations where women are running the show. Which is one that does not, at least in my experience, focus simply on survival of the fittest. That is, i know we hear a lot about this collaborative nest. I do think that there is a sense that we have more women in the room, you will get more questions asked. We saw that during the financial crisis. Who were the ones blowing the whistle . All along when the banks and Mortgage Companies saying, wait a minute this does not seem right to me. Wait a minute, i am willing to ask the questions that no one else in the room is willing to ask. And to have more of that at the table. I think it is what is going to change not just the idea of Sexual Harassment but the culture in general. The fact that the first question itask is can i win kind of tells you everything. Its about winning, if that is your number one priority versus how will this impact everyone around me of your priority, that changes all kinds of decisionmaking. The one thing i was thinking about, we have our own version of scandal in South Carolina. We have the corruption probe thats been going on for years , campaign finances, people doing things that are just ridiculous with their money, and all i could think of, this is basically an issue of character of the person. I think its something amy had on, when i got elected, everybody came to me and expected me to be sponsoring womens issues bills. I do economic development, i do transportation, i do jobs, i do healthcare reform, i do infrastructure. Thats not my background. My path was can be a whole different way because of my district ever highly business oriented district with a bunch of International Companies but we do get pigeonholed. What women bring to the table, women would never, would never cross their mind to try to get away with doing things. I think power gets to people. Its a character issue whether you are a female or male and i think the issue is that women tend to be consensus builders and tend to get along, we tend to cross bridges. When i first got elected, i started talking to people from the other party and making friends and people were just mortified. They also were mad, since im from the upper part of the state and not the coastal part of the state. The coastal part and the upper part dont get along. People are like youre not supposed to be talking to me and im like whatever. Its fine. We find a way to build Common Ground with other people we serve. For me, im a musician and we talk about music or sports or whatever to build relationships with people first and then issues second so that it when its time to have something we are working on we can go to people in the other party and hopefully both of us but at least listen and be able to talk to what were working on. Those are the things i find with women and how we make a difference in the chambers, the bodies that i serbian and the organizations ive been involved with. Before i came to congress, i was a journalist for 17 years and then i worked in healthcare for ten years. This is my third profession and, in all of those jobs, i have never been in a room where decisions are made that its not better if you have diversity. Never. [applause] that means diversity of all sorts, age diversity, ethnic diversity, gender diversity,. I really think, in a dream world, if every elected body could truly make up the population of our country from all those perspectives, think about what a better nation we would be in the better world we would be. As it pertains to serving in elected office, anyone in the room ever want to run for office . Anybody else . We need some more. I tell you, it is through Public Service that you can change the world. I still believe that it is a dignified profession, i am proud to be in congress, if you work hard and youre honest and youre doing it for the right reasons, you can really bring about tremendous change. Since we have 99 women in this room, i agree with representative henderson, women we are relationship builders. Everything is built on that foundation. Amy and i, we are both on the congressional womens Softball Team. Can i draw one contrast between men and women. So the men in congress have a baseball team. Right . And they play at the National Ballpark under the lights, its a big game with a bunch of press and the way they have their team structured is democrats against republicans. Its been structured that way for a long time. For congressional womens Softball Team we have senators and house members, democrats and republicans, and our opponent is the womens Washington Press corps. [laughter] we practice at 7 00 a. M. Two or three mornings. Week from march or april until june, all for one game and we raise money for the young survivors coalition, for young women diagnosed with breast cancer. Weve raised close to a million dollars. But just to give you a feel for our infield. Its a good infield. And you beat us last year. But you know, we have kiersten pitching, we have martha roby, republican from alabama on first, Debbie Wasserman and we have senator republican from west virginia. Thats our infield. But what happens at that 7 00 a. M. Hour when were going to practice with no makeup on, in our sweats, i mean i have not even combed my hair. I brushed my teeth that most and so we are there in our rust form and you build a relationship where it leads to democrats and republicans working together legislatively because you know each other at a deeper level, you might go on target runs, you might go out to young child together, and it really does build a deeper relationship. So to that point, the more diversity the better and the better off our country will be. I think thats a great note to close on. Thank you all so much for being with us. [applause] thank you. [inaudible conversations] please welcome coauthor diana palmer. Thank you so much for joining us today. I am thrilled to be here. This is our fifth annual summit. Im in a palmer, coauthor of the politico playbook and we want to encourage you all to join in on the conversation on twitter with women rule. This is a panel i am particularly very excited to be part of. Its something we started crafting several months ago about women in sports and politics, and justice conversion thats happening with President Trump regularly tweeting about the nfl and the National Anthem but just athletes in general using their voice in a much more active way on issues that cross the political spectrum. I want to introduce with without further ado, former nfl player, michelle, president of the Freeman Company and a partner, a former Lieutenant Commander of the navy and head coach of the all navy men seven. Im excited about this. Last but not least, lindsay is the Vice President. [inaudible] [applause] lets get started. I think the underpinning of this conversation has a lot to do with President Trump in washington. Weve all focused on the nfl, National Anthem, but a lot of other athletes have joined in this protest movement. Talk to us about what youve seen and also, from my perspective. [inaudible] i think we have to own that women really started this black lives Matter Movement first,. [applause] i think we also have to own that specifically women in the wnba where the first group to work in solidarity, black and white and theyre not given the credit for the work that theyve done. You have six entire nba teams who wore black lives matters tshirts, your 14 that would only answer black lives matter like a question and no men teams have ever taken those types of risk in women arent given the credit and arent honored the same way men are so i think we first have to step back and say well, women have taken all the actual bullets and men are still given all the credit. When athletes are taking big stands, i can imagine as a employee of politico, if i started tweeting things it would be welcome. Are you ever concerned about them going too far or getting too far in front of the brand . Its funny because i think often athletes are separated from the personality or their journey. Being on the field or the court and then the not supposed to talk about their personal journey or what got them there, and i think to honor a human being and say who they are and how they play and how they got there is important and the issues that matter to them are important. Its wonderful. You and i have spoken about the goalie for the capital marching the pride parade and how the social media that he took after that. It was all positive. Absolutely, and the strength and courage that he showed and that these athletes are saying we are human, we have a journey and it matters and i have to say, as an owner, its moments like that were you are proud. At least monumental sports and entertainment, thats been our position that these folks come out and have a platform for change. They have a voice. Have a national voice. Why not honor that. Thank you. Not always the perspective about all ownership and not uncommon in the wnba so i am very lucky to work in a league that has led on these issues in a way that im very proud of. Michelle, to build on what you were saying, in terms of whats so important about the athletes and their personal story, thats really when athletes are most powerful in the way they connect people and i think the reason why they can be such effective agents of social change, because people can identify with them. When you hear their story, think about watching the olympics but how may times you cry. It happens all the time. Its all about those stories and those connections, these athletes can be leaders, their human, have a perspective, they have a valuable point of view and for me as an agent its all about how you define risk. Like to think we are in an era where we are reimagining what it means to be safe and for my clients, the most unsafe thing is to not be authentic. We encourage our clients to step out, we encourage them to become educated and thats a critical part of engaging in social justice work particularly for athletes who have a microphone in the face not wanting to say the wrong thing, not wanting to feel stupid on an issue or not fully informed, i think that holds a lot of people back from even just making that first step to get involved and that starts by being educated. For me i like to think about the new safe is being on the right side of history and thats where we like for our clients to be. Historically if you put it in context of their very often lead when it comes to social justice work and you think about the athletes who, i dont want to use the word suffered. Se because i think legacy goes beyond monetary value but you think about athletes like muhammad ali who obviously is seen as an incredible hero, but thats very much in hindsight. He gets critical that we celebrate our heroes today, we take Colin Kaepernick who has clearly taken hits for taking his position and being in solidarity and standing up for each other continues to be very important. On a talk to because you are an athlete, you coach the all Navy Men Rugby team, youre the first woman to do that for them. You are in the navy, at that time, what has that been journey been like in the last 20 years or so. One of the things i recognize is that if this had been 20 years ago, i would not be the head coach of the mens rugby team. That continuum is only made possible by women were willing to go out there, break barriers, be the first which is sometimes very uncomfortable, often times unpopular, but very needed. The opportunity that presented itself as his head coaching position, and as i was talking to you about last night, i was putting coins in that bank for almost 17 years because when i was a competitive athlete, i did have men who basically said, even though we dont have a navy rugby team for you, you are one of us and we will welcome you into our family. Fastforward 15 or 16 years and this opportunity actually happens that im wellpositioned because my credibility, having been an athlete at a highlevel, both because of putting my coins not trust bank over such a long period of time but im also no longer an oddity in terms of being a woman in a leadership position. When i came into the navy 20 some years ago i was the first woman on my shift. I was working with men who had never worked with or worked for a woman. That is no longer the case. Fastforward 20 years later and im flying to san diego two weeks after i got married because one of the women that i came to the service with his taking care of the destroyer. In terms of women coaching men, that doesnt happen very often but that is a continuum. The men that i work with and train with im no longer an oddity, im just a continuation of whats been happening, that shift in the armed forces overtime. Talk about that transition from leadership as a woman being on a ship with men and then being a coach. Going to go back to something you said about communication. Really, you have to figure out what motivates my athletes. What drives them. Whats important, whats happening in their lives and being able to connect on a personal level. Its not all about whats happening on the rugby pitch. Its who are they as a person and how i get the best out of them. Because of this continuum of women in leadership positions and being able to be part of the conversation, i now can have that conversation as a head coach of the mens team and im very thankful for that and very lucky to have been in the position where i now have a seat at that table and i can claim that seat. We were talking before, you have a unique position as a woman owner of these teams. How has that transition been over the last several years . Its interesting. Washington d. C. And monumental sports and entertainment has three female owners which is the capitals, the mystics, the wizards, the capital one center, and so we know as weve shared that the more women in the room, myself, sheila johnson, the more women in the room, the more important becomes and something a previous speaker was saying as we were backstage about that diversity, when i look at the ownership of our teams, it actually reflects the fan base of washington d. C. That is the right thing. So, i think washington is lucky because we have someone that thanks that way, i dont think thats true of every organization, whether thats a company or sports team, but womens voices are important. We see things differently. We see things from a human level that may be a guy doesnt pick up on, and i think the more women you put in that boardroom, the more women that are listening and feel comfortable speaking out or giving their opinion, the more rich that workplace and those teams or whatever the opportunity, i think thats true of all businesses. Have you had any of those moments, where you are the woman and they dont see you. I remember the first time i walked into the locker room, ill never forget that. The interesting thing is that my male counterparts had always felt comfortable going in there. Lindsay, as a sports reporter, she would walk in and i would stay back. Nobody told me to stay back, i would just do that. So walking forward and walking through those doors and saying im an equal to the men who invested in this team was an important moment for me. So ive seen that play out, this is been since 2002, ive been involved and slowly i think seeing more women, i want to go back to something we were just talking about, but the coaches of these teams are critically important too so when he looks at his athletes and he says there are important, sometimes in sports you can think theyre just chess pieces that youre moving around. These are real human beings. I think thats an organization that starts with the coach and goes to the entire system of the organization. One of the policy prescriptions that i think all agrees changed the face of women in sports, when you talk a little bit, i know theres concern about where the Trump Administration is honest and if betsy is committed to keeping it in place, is this something youre thinking about . Does it still matter as much as it did was put into place. I think it still matters. One, anytime that we make any progress forward, theres a force that tries to take that progress back and i think were seeing that. I think its important that we know that we are in a space where men are trying to push back and take back control of womens bodies and how women show up in the world so its important to not just women to speak up but men educate ourselves and listen to the stories and the lives of women and start to add our voice to the conversation, not in this idea that were helping women but in this idea that were all in this together, and i think that policies like title ix are important so that we can continue to see women in sports, that we can continue to see the richness of your lives and the stories that are behind them. One of the other big issues we were talking about is the wage gap. Talk to us about whats happening in the state of professional sports and some of the other things that are going on right now. We can just do the collective Bargaining Agreement here. Perfect. Perfect. Im sure it will get done. Look, we had a really important moment. Think this is an important point in history and i think a lot of the conversations that are led by women around equitable support and diversity, and when you talk about diversity, its not always just gender or race, but were talking about different abilities and being an agent who represents athletes who i like to think of as leading cultural conversations and really represent a lot of different constituencies and communities , its really important that were thinking in those terms. Let me talk a little bit about title 19. I think its worth mentioning that title ix is not just about sports. [applause] this is a direct attack on womens ability to do things like report race and how its investigated and its an opportunity for everyone and i think its Super Critical we remember that and not just make it about people who can play. As important as that is because i think the studies are pretty clear about the benefit of women in leadership and it shows clearly and its a 95 level of women in offices have played sports, over half played at the University Level so the impact of title ix should not go unnoticed and we should all be fighting to maintain that. On title ix. I agree, were talking about title ix and this farreaching piece into society and college life and theres a Great Organization called its on us which actually was in the Vice President s bidens purview and it addressed title ix and the rape culture on colleges and how thats tied to funding through title ix of colleges when women report rape and colleges arent giving them the right resources they need and the help they need. I think title ix is important on the cultural side and i think its important on creating athlete leaders. Look, playing sports transcends what happens on the field. It just does. It creates leaders, it creates confidence, it gives women the opportunity to meet other strong women so, we need too, as women, speak out and speak up about title ix. We need to continue to support it. You talked a lot about what youre hope next is for the navy in terms of having a womens rugby team. Talk to me about that next continuation of making sure women have the same experiences as men. Absolutely. I think one of my personal regrets is that i never got to represent my branch of service in the sport that i had dedicated so much of my time too. This is my way of being part of that continuum. Its important because just like you said, its not just about playing sports or giving athletes an opportunity to get on the playing field. Its about giving them opportunities to excel. Opportunities to develop leadership and come lottery. I look at these as my brothers and sisters and weve gone through a lot together but we have to continue to create those opportunities that the men have had for so long so we have women who are aspiring for leadership positions, everything that gave me for which im very thankful, and it was a long road and a lot of trips to orthopedic surgeons and whatnot, but my mom was not very happy when i switched over from soccer to rugby. But its about giving women those opportunities, and im not an arrest until we get that all navy womens rugby team up and running. That will be the continuation of the legacy but we have to make sure everyone has the opportunity to do that. Its not just about the sport, its about what it brings you as a whole person and what you can bring to everyone you encounter as a result of that participation. Im sorry, go ahead. I was just going to say one other thing about the pay gap between the wnba and the mba, the wnba 22 years old. The nba is a bit older than that. That can sound like an excuse, and maybe it is, but the disparity is pretty incredible. What we need, what the wnba needs is support. We need people to come out and watch games. We need people to support the athletes who are playing it. Thats the way you grow a sport, and when women end up getting paid the same amount through sponsorship. See that sponsorship come across, make it as important as an nba game and we can get women the same amount of money as men are making. I appreciate that. Clearly theres a lot more we were hoping to discuss, but unfortunately we are getting the hook. Thank you so much for doing this panel. [inaudible conversations] please welcome the politico editor casey brown. [applause] thank you so much. I would like too, now i am very, very pleased to have secretary of transportation alain chow join us on the stage for a keynote interview, women in the Trump Administration. Secretary chal, please welcome her. [applause] secretary chal was one of my first interviews i did on the womens world podcast months ago and it was a great conversation. I really appreciated your candor about lots of things. We are pleased to welcome you back today. Thank you. Are there women in the audience who are immersed in policy, i would like to start there, with infrastructure. It is something that we thought would happen earlier this year, possibly a plan in the third quarter, maybe it will be tied to tax reform. Its september 5, almost the end of the year, whats up with infrastructure, this 1 trilliondollar plan we thought we would see by now . Youre going to see it, just not at the original time frame. We did come out with principles on may 25 and it was thought that the Affordable Care act would go first then tax reform and infrastructure. If anything, it shows the dynamics of the legislative calendar and time on the legislative calendar is the most precious commodity so after tax reform, first of all they just pass tax reform last week. We will now go out, theres going to be a conference so i do not expect infrastructure to come out until probably early next year. This is all part of the dynamic of the legislative process. Do you predict a bill will pass. I hope so because i think its really needed by our nation. We have crumbling infrastructures in this administration, the president has proposed a Spending Program and infrastructure that will include roads and bridges and also water, energy, broadband, healthcare to the Veterans Hospital so it will do a lot of good. I think if anything this proposal has the greatest. Potential of being bipartisan. When you say early next year you talking january, february, give me a date. We hope to get it out early january, but that depends on the legislative calendar that we are not in control of. To think healthcare will once again push it back . Is there a desire by the president to go back or do you feel like you have to go within the structure. Is not really within my lane. I have enough handling infrastructure. I hear you. We will see what happens with the legislative calendar. Youve had what i would call one of the most memorable lines of 2017. Really . I stand by my man, both of them. I wanted to go to that moment, partly because i was fascinated at how you handled that moment. To catch people up, this happened over the summer when the transportation permitting process where the secretarys boss was fighting with her husband. Will they werent exactly fighting. No they were not. It was a Healthy Exchange of views. [laughter] is that what we call it . We all have different points of views. I think you make a great point. You were there to talk about your issues, transportation and you stood in front of a group of reporters who asked you, you were caught in between. What were you thinking at that moment . Isnt that interesting. We were supposed to talk about my life story. If youre going to be in the public sector, you have to be prepared. Anything can happen. When i was first starting out, i got really rattled. Im Asian American and they said anything bad about me, i was afraid the New York Times would say alain chow disgraced her family and they would remember and then i learned that this is part of the democratic process which is soap precious to our heritage and our tradition and experience in the public sector, you just learn to roll with the punches and learn to anticipate different kinds of questions. And word of advice, they can ask the question. You have the choice as to what you want to answer. That is true. That is good advice. Too that point. I had a great interview with you in april. One of the reasons why i wanted to do this and accepted this invitation is because i thought what you and i both shared is a deep concern and desire to help empower women, younger women in particular. I do a lot of that. Ive meant toward a lot of young women. I think the world ahead of us has so much possibility and opportunity. How do we encourage women of all ages. Too that point, backstage i learned that you had parity when you are a labor secretary which is remarkable and a lot of your appointees are women. Im going to brag a little bit, when i was secretary of labor, 50 of the Leadership Team at labor were women. [applause] they were all confident and outstanding in their field. I think of my diverse background and how i grew up, i saw leadership in a different kind of packaging and it was okay. I was much more open to recruiting people who looked different and yet who were leaders. I went to visit iraq in 2004 and i went to a womens center, they had just gone through the war, many have lost their husbands they were trying to make a new living, new livelihood for themselves, and i was thinking of leaving them with something memorable that would really inspire them so my team and i took a photograph with all the Women Leaders at the department at the time and we gave that framed photo with these six women at the present and the women who are going through such difficulties, they were so dumbstruck. They could not believe that in a country called america 50 of the leadership were headed by women and they were not ancillary positions. They were worker training and Employee Benefits and over time, these were important, large offices. These women were so moved and so touched and gave them a great deal of hope. One of the women officials who accompanied me is laura and she is now the Senior Advisor for strategic medications. I also have with me Pam Somerville who was a Senior Advisor to the secretary for all things, and i have five women were heads of it administration. We have heidi king, and brandy hendrickson who is from indiana, Jane Williams who is head of federal transit, mrs. Hildebrandt who is cio of technology and kathy is head of federal Motor Vehicles administration. Thats an amazing lineup. What is the impact of that and what does it mean to have women in those positions . How does it change the conversation. I think its important for women to be at the table. I think more diverse perspectives is helpful in the government arena to come to the best policy decisions because, ive worked in the private sector and the Nonprofit Sector as well and part of the challenge of the government sector is that there are so many different stakeholder groups. We are a democracy so there is a cacophony of different voices sharing what they view as important to our country, to the department, to the public and how do you address all these viewpoints. That is difficult, but the first most important thing is you have to understand what your stakeholders are saying. If you are not diverse, you dont know what they are saying. Once you understand what different people are saying then you can begin to craft a solution that would try to address all these viewpoints. Having this point of view is important and it cant come, it has to come from people with varying experiences and viewpoints. When you are coming over here for your second cabinet post at transportation, how conscious are you when you are hiring for these thoughts to meet exactly what you said or is it just that you hope that you get parity for how do you consciously do it . I do Pay Attention to a. Again its not preferential treatment nor is it discrimination route but its understanding in my work i have to have people who think differently so they can tell me what reality is. The worst thing that can happen to the public arena is that you think you know reality and you really do not so when you frame the debate or the discussion of the policy, youre missing an important point that would not be the best policy for our country. What is your piece of advice for young women in washington looking to make it in policy and politics right now. No one couldve been further behind a ball and me. When i came to washington i was so naive. When did you come to washington. A long time ago in the Reagan Administration as a white house fellow. Im an immigrant to this country and i didnt understand so much about america so i was curious about the federal government, i wanted to know how it worked. I credit my parents with giving me a sense of curiosity. I didnt understand so many things, but i was curious and i wanted to find out in a responsible way so i came as a white house fellow, i was so naive. Someone came to lobby me about an issue and i was shocked. I said you want to change the law, thats what its all about you know. Then i wanted to volunteer for campaign and i didnt know anybody. I can even volunteer. They wouldnt accept me. Why. Because people want people they know to volunteer because they may not know you, they dont know your capabilities or how loyal you would be. You feel under estimated because youre a woman or a minority. And then i was young. They say all the time how do you make it if you are a woman minority. The young part very rapidly took care of itself. Then i would say if i thought like that, i would get out of bed in the morning. It would be too much, but i had such a great sense of adventure, i was interested in exploring, i refuse to acknowledge what i didnt understand until i understood it. That was kind of training to myself. I refuse to be confused until i understood what was going on. I basically had no friends, people were mean. I dont know anybody in this town thats so highly connected and i have nobody, i was connected to nobody. I was in nobody so nobody paid attention to me. Where did you start. How did you. But i was still excited about being in washington. Good lord. I get up in the morning and i can see the white house and i would like to work and i could see the Washington Monument and life was good. I was excited about what i was doing but people were mean but since i came from such a Strong Family background and i have five sisters and i cannot disgrace my parents or my community. I cant disappoint them. There were a lot of people who were supporting me and loving me and that gave me a lot of courage i thought okay, so if they fire me ill go back home and i was very lucky that i would have a home to go back to you. She didnt know anyone, people were mean, she wasnt connected, she volunteered. If i can start like that, you are surely better prepared, better connected and youll have wonderful futures. You have a sense of adventure, a sense of knowing your core values. When i got discouraged, i had a little picture of my fathers village in china and it was thatched huts and chickens and pigs running around and that was good because that mean they had money. I would say to myself, if they can go through an environment like that i thoroughly can prevail. There is something that inspired you so that when you get discouraged you can without that photograph or that touched stone or something and that will remind you all of the sudden whats really important and how you need to have confidence in yourself and then you just pick yourself up and go right ahead. Just to fastforward, youve served for president , even in washington for decades with the conversation that were having right now thats dominating Sexual Harassment, i just wondered if you have a me to moment. Of course. Of course. I think that the dirty little secret that a lot of women have held for a long time. Many of us have experienced it. The environment is would you tell us a story . The person is still here and still around. All the more reason. [laughter] you will go through difficulties in your life and i hope you will triumph. When you triumph you need to help others along the way but you also must have the spirit. Things change, times change and its not worth my while to go back and revisit negative moments. I will fight for other women and he will stand up for other women but you have to let it go otherwise its too corrosive and its too negative and it does you up double injury because i hold you back. I can say, im sure many of us have been in circumstances, you Say Something thats important and has value in the conversation goes on and then somebody else picks it up and its a guy and he said the same thing you just thought you said in everybodys paying attention. I think its important not to get discouraged by that. You just jump right in and say Something Else. In many ways there are so many opportunities so dont get discouraged. To wrap it up, what are one or two things you would say you need to do to make sure the dynamics permanently change, that this event just a conversation were on to Something Else in ten days from now. This applies not only to the issue were talking about but i was involved with them in trafficking working with condoleezza rice, and i have always boasted women wherever i can and as i got into positions of greater responsibility, i was able to appoint a more diverse team. Whats the most tangible thing that we can do is make sure women are given opportunity. For me, i have found it to be helpful to give other women the opportunity. I think the environment is getting better. For women to speak up it shows they have more confidence in the system that will allow them to speak up. The other thing also, i think its important to work hard and prepare for and im still not very good at winging it, as you know, and i just feel better, i feel more confident if i am more prepared so thats for me. Thank you secretary chow. I found the stories to be quite uplifting. You work hard, you support people and i think a lot takes care of itself. Thank you for having me. Thank you very much. Thank you. [applause] when you overcome big and successful, take my phone call. Thank you so much, good luck. [applause] [inaudible conversations] thousands of women are using social media to identify sexual harassers. It happened to me, too. It happened to me, too. In less than 24 hours they have been over 12 million me to post on facebook and 650,000 tweets on twitter. I have been organizing since i was 14 years old. I have, for the last 16 years, really focused on women and girls of color. But during that work is when we realized that the girls we were working with were encountering Sexual Violence in various ways. I met a young girl when i was young, she was probably 12 or 13. She came to me and she told me the things that have happened to her. It was a thing i was repeating in my head, me too, i know what this feels like. What she was saying was so similar to my life. I was scared. I ended up sending her to another counselor who i thought could handle what she had to say better and would give her the services and figure out how to get her out of the home. But i did not tell her anything. For so many years ive written her letters apologizing, because it just feels like the work that you can do for somebody my partner and i decided we have to take a step and figure out what we can do. Me too came from this idea. We started doing the work. We would do workshops whatever people would let us. Libraries, churches, schools. Empowerment through empathy is the way we describe me to because it is a exchange of words between survivors. When i became a mother and had a daughter, and really stuck with me that i wanted my daughters to live in a world that recognized her and acknowledged her power. A lot of the work im doing in this world is to make her have a world that i want to live in. You can say youre not alone as much as you want, but the Empirical Data we have generated from this movement this is not about predators or individual people. If we keep dealing with the individual people who pop up it is like playing whack a mole. It is like look at this one, and the we are all like home i got i cant believe its another person. There are systems in place that allow Sexual Violence to flourish. If we dont change our conversation to become about patriarchy and privilege we will have the wrong conversation. Please welcome rachel. [applause] welcome to tarana burke, the founder of the me too campaign. [applause] oh wow. [applause] thank you. Thank you for having me. I have been covering sexualharassment from a capitol hill standpoint ever since the weinstein case came up. I was surprised to find out that you founded me too on a myspace page. On a myspace page and 2006. Take us to the day when that hashtag went viral. People dont want to talk about this issue. Those of us who work in Sexual Violence, we talk to each other and we go out and work hard. We are in our communities trying to amplify the voices of survivors. It is not a popculture issue. For me in particular, i found this working with black and brown girls in the south. You cannot get more marginalized than that. It had to have popculture dusty light of popculture to sign on it the light of popculture to shine on it, and im grateful for that because we have a National Conversation we have not had before. I did not foresee this in 2006 when we started doing this work. There was no such thing as viral, no such thing, i dont think twitter had started yet. That was not the vision, but we did have a vision to have something that people could connect to, that survivors could connect to that was simple. It showed an exchange of empathy so that people really connected. It is easy for somebody to say, when you are telling a story of any kind of trauma i am so sorry that happened to you. Even though the person is wellmeaning, there is a distance between you and them. This thing that happened to you and not me. The difference is, when somebody shares something that is the most traumatic thing that happened to them and at the end you can say me too there is an instant connection that happens. It is a liberation that you cant trade for anything in the world. There is no money that can help you have that feeling of having a connection with somebody that you are not alone or crazy, i am not an anomaly. These feelings that i have are real and genuine. That is what me too is about. Take us to that day. Did your phone blowup . Sunday morning, picture it. [laughter] i started having the notifications of my phone, not a lot, just a few. I checked the one and a friend sent me a message there is something happening on twitter, what are you doing . I said nothing in particular. She said i need to go online, people are talking about me too. I had videos out and ive been working on is a long time. When i went to look on twitter, it was in bible yet it wasnt bible yet viral yet, but people were talking. I was nervous at first. I do it for a very specific audience. I had not tackled Sexual Harassment in the workplace. I went through a wave of emotions. By the Late Afternoon i was more panicked about the idea that there was a mass disclosure happening in such a public way. While me too is about people disclosing and telling stories, i think we lose the idea that social media is the world. Once you put it out there it is in the world. I was like, what are these people going to do . There is a wave of emotions that happens after you disclose something so personal. I figured out i had to figure out how to insert myself into this conversation. It is a declaration and a disclosure that has some impact. When we use it, there is a theory of empowerment and empathy. I wanted to introduce that into the conversation. I was fortunate enough that these women, im a writer as well come i created a network of people that do social justice work and they immediately came and said we need to amplify your voice because people need to understand what this is about. Speaking of disclosure. I can tell you from my standpoint on the hill, in talking to these victims there is a fear that when they come for they will be blackballed and not able to get a job. Or as a sense that this watershed moment has not reached washington politics. Why do you think that me too has not had the political arena the way it is spreading a lot across the country . I think it has not hit a lot of arenas. The attention is great that i can go on television and talk about a lot of things. My going on television does not protect the women right now who are at their job fearful of that they could get fired. Whether it is capitol hill or mcdonalds. People keep asking me what happens after this moment. I am like, this is a movement. Movements are built over time. They are strategic, methodical, and for me this moment is a triumph in the overall movement. I think we should celebrate it as a triumph, but not forget that there is a whole lot of work that has to happen. There are laws that have to change, policy that have to be implemented. That is my commitment to the work. I love being here and talking to people and getting the message out, but i have a lot of work to do. Part of that is because it has not reached everywhere. Now that we have the spotlight the next thing we have to do is amplify this conversation and represent those people. What would you say that me too has taught you about mobilizing networks of women . Lets talk about women. [applause] i love being a woman, i love being a black woman, i love that we are always at the forefront regardless if there is a camera there or not. We are on the ground doing the work. This moment would not have happened without women. The bravery and courage of the women that came forward, and even the courage of the women who have not come forward. We should always acknowledge the fact that when you are a survivor of Sexual Violence, the thing that happens is that your choices taken away. Youre right to choose is taken away. A choice is a choice. Even if you choose not to disclose, that is a choice. That is a powerful choice that people should hold onto. I get messages all the time with people saying i really want to disclose but i am scared. I tell them dont, you own that choice. What this moment has done is given choice to women in ways we have not seen in a long time. Giving that power back to choose whether you disclose or not. Whether you stand up or not. [applause] we are almost out of time. I want to ask you about the younger of that you talked about in the video inspired all of this. You said that you write letters to her in your head, have you ever found her . Has she reached out, do you think you will, and what would you say to her . This child. I am 44. Shout out to the over 40 women. I have not found her. The odd thing is that iran that camp for almost 10 years. She only came that one summer. A couple of things i have realized in this moment. I was 22, and i think when i think about it i think about myself as an adult. I was 22 which is awfully young. I have a 20yearold daughter who is a baby. My baby. [laughter] what i would say to her, i would apologize for not being who or what she needed me to be in that moment. She is probably about 34 right now, so i would imagine that life has given her some lessons too to let you know that there are times in your life where you cannot show up the way you want to. I would also want her to know that that moment helped me spend the rest of my life being able to try to show up every time i got the opportunity. Tarana spoke at this video about how Sexual Harassment requires a systemic change. She will be on the next panel talking about that. Everybody give her a round of applause. [applause] please welcome the race card project founding director. Hello hello. Good afternoon everyone. I am the founding director of the race card project and for a whole lot of years i hosted a show on public radio called all things considered. [applause] today i get to do what i love best, which is to talk to interesting people about an important topic. We are here today to talk about Sexual Harassment and there are very few topics more important than that right now. I am thrilled to be participating in todays summit. I am sorry we have to have this discussion, but we do have to have this discussion. From hollywood to capitol hill, from tech to media, highprofile accusations of Sexual Assault have sparked a National Debate surrounding the realities of Sexual Harassment in the workplace. Today we are going to discuss what it will take to finally put an end to harassment in the workplace, what role will executives and leaders play in holding her traders accountable for their actions. What is the responsibility for the media and all of us in covering allegations and reacting to allegations before they have been proven in court . I want to introduce our panel. At the far end, congressman jackie spear from california. [applause] thank you for elevating this issue by using your voice. Chris is the managing director of icm partners. He is with us all the way from california. [applause] rachel is also with us. She is the ceo and creative director of we ghosts wethos. Tarana burke is the founder of the me too movement. Congresswoman i want to begin with you. We just heard in the previous section, we heard secretary chao said that women are coming for because they have much more confidence in the system. On capitol hill, we have not seen as many women come forward. It is a different type of conversation. There seem to be different impediments to gaining that trust for women where theyme too. Understand what is different about capitol hill. In congress it is a system that has been there to protect the harasser. The victims have been without resource. For example, the compliance the office of compliance to which the victim would report would have to go through 30 days of legal counseling, then 30 days of mandatory mediation, and then signing a nondisclosure agreement, and then 30 days of a cooling off period. All the while still working in that harassing environment. That is what i am trying to change with the me too congress act. [applause] how long has that system been in place . And what was it created in response to . It was created in 1990 five, 1995 called the congressional accountability act, and it was on the heels of the scandal in the senate with senator packwood. This would be a new system that would create accountability. As we have seen, it does not create accountability. There is a secret fund, the member is never identified, the result is habitual harassers are allowed to continue to operate. We are seeing it right now. How many women were involved in creating the process . I have a guess. I dont know. Since it was a predominantly male congress i would suggest very few. On the other side, not just women coming forward, but members of congress and staff talking about this. Do the tribal reality on the hill make this difficult . Democrats are reluctant to talk about the improprieties of former president s. Republicans are reluctant to talk with a Sexual Harassment charges made against our current president. Do tribal tendencies on the hill make it harder to actually make best put this issue on the put this issue on the table and figure out how to solve it . I think it does. That is why as we are contemplating a new system, i think we need to look at creating a third party function outside of congress, not populated by members of congress, so this issue of uncomfortableness that is associated with calling out a member of your same party is not there. The institution is special. Members of congress on special. We need to be treated like everyone else. [applause] people have stepped aside voluntarily or not. And that sense, it does the that members of congress are moving on a different or parallel attack in adjudication of these issues. What should happen with senator franken, congressman conyers, there are others, should these members step aside . Should they be asked to step aside while these allegations are examined . I liken this to a corporation. We like to talk about ourselves as the ceo of our office. In a corporation, if the ceo is identified as a sexual harasser, they dont wait until the next annual meeting so shareholders can vote on it. The board of directors determines, and typically what happens is that the ceo is out. No matter who they are or how great they are. What kind of icon they are. I think members of Congress Need to realize that we have a board of directors, whether we are going to call it the Ethics Committee or the actual congress, and we need to act. We cannot allow this to fester while two years go by until the next election takes place. We have a lot of work to do. I am optimistic because i do think that we have seen an age of new enlightenment. We cant let this moment go. We cannot let this just be a blip. It has to be a concerted effort. It has to be sustained. I have suggested that congressman conyers should resign, that senator franken should resign, and that congressman stronghold should resign chris, we talked about a wave of enlightenment. Does it still that way in hollywood . You personally run does it feel that way in hollywood . You personally run a company and have a lot of contracts that run across your desk and a lot of projects. What has changed in hollywood and is it a reaction, to you think it is the meaningful lasting change that will have an impact long into the future . I think that, first of all we are a private company. We have the ability when this happens we can deal with it quickly and we can get rid of the problems. We are not going to have somebody if the are creating an uncomfortable environment, they are just not going to be around. We can do that very quickly and easily. A lot of the stuff that has happened in hollywood and has come out, clearly with Harvey Weinstein that is criminal behavior and he should be in jail. There are things like that. That has really been put out so quickly, it is obviously then kept down for too long. It is going to be this title way that should have happened a long time ago and it is good that is happening now. What we need to do as companies is look at this and listen and figure out, what are the real things that we can do to create lasting change . That does have to happen. I think companies should reflect more the world around them. We represent tens of thousands of clients from all walks of life. We should reflect our clientele and the people around us. It is on us to listen a lot. The things i have personally identified for us to do, the culture of silence that i find incredibly troubling, the people are frightened for themselves to come out. I love the fact that people can come out and talk about this and are empowered by that. They are being recognized and that is a good thing. I think that is great. Mentor ship is the other thing i want to focus on. Things cant change overnight. We cant just snap our fingers and say all the heads of our company are going to be women. It takes time, but that requires mentorship. There are very strong women who have affected me and meant toward me mentored me. All of us mentor people in a much better way and really focus on mentoring women as well. What about men . You probably are a real role model for a lot of men and im sure that you have mentees. Can you show the conversations you are having with people right now but how to raise their hand if they have been or tiptoed in an area headed toward Sexual Harassment . What advice are you giving to people to make sure they understand the rules of engagement . What we did was poor women into leadership positions. Put more women into leadership positions. What do men, i know women need to be put in more positions of leadership and everyone in the room would agree, but what do men need to hear to understand this issue . Im not really for instance, in dealing with race in america, there is an expectation that people of color need to take a leadership position and that to dismantle a system that was not of their making it was put together by white people. With Sexual Harassment, there is an expectation that women will raise their voice and lead on this issue. Even though this is not a problem of their own making. What is the role of men in taking on this issue and using their voice as someone who is a leader in your industry, what kind of advice are you giving . It is listening more and being openminded and being protective in a way that people should be able to speak freely. Where a man might feel the power to speak freely about something, a woman might not feel that power. You have to be sensitive to that and understand that and create open lines of communication. When people do talk freely, they are not punished for it. On the contrary, they are rewarded for in a way. That is probably a bad way of saying it. I think that is something that is cultural. A cultural shift in the company, that is cultural in terms of how people look of how people look at the world, how people interact with each other, it is something everybody has to make commitment to together. It is something that we talk about a lot. It is a conversation and Culture Shift that takes time. It takes real commitment. As someone who has been in the news for a long time, this just in. If you have your phones on and you are following twitter or facebook you may know that congressman conyers announced that he is going to be retiring. He made that announcement 10 minutes ago. Just to keep our conversation current. You are not saying anything, but your body language is saying something. Your reaction to that . I was anticipating that he would be resigning and that is what should happen. Now the house will go to the process of investigating his conduct and the house is going to have to take action. It is not good enough to say in a year and a half for a year im going to retire. Harasser. Rial tarana . Is it Effective Immediately . He is stepping down. He is not resigning, he is going to retire at the end of his term . He is stepping down. Is that right . What is he doing . He will retire. He said effective today. We will clarify that. We have the hill and hollywood. The power balance is, there is quite an imbalance in Silicon Valley, in part based on numbers, and in part based on access and capital. In part based on a startup culture where women are tiptoeing into the industry. It is difficult to do this unless you have investors and get access to funding. Does that create a power dynamic and system of inequality, help us understand what is unique about Silicon Valley and the Tech Industry . There is a couple different scenarios that happen that should be addressed. The first one is the power dynamic between investors and founders. Whether those are firsttime founders, female founders. You create a success double environment for you to be vulnerable. Fundamentally, it comes down to the idea that we dont take women seriously. And the fact that in my experience, i had quit my job, i ramen, picking up side jobs if you are sitting there and you feel like a fool because you have spent time and energy doing something and you walk into a room to not be taken seriously about something that you have a vision for and that you need money for it. We talk a lot about vcs. There is somewhat of a systematic structure and how we handle the situation and we can ask to get rid of them and do something about it but what is not talked about is what we experienced as investors and the difference is these are high in net worth individuals that can do whatever they want with their money and say whatever they want. If they want to meet in a hotel lobby at 8 00 p. M. And you are desperate trying to get your business off the ground, you know every woman has that feeling of im going to go to this meeting and we will see how it goes and on top of that theres a culture of do whatever you need to do to get your business off the ground. You have the sort of dynamic between power, emotional manipulation and on top of it the objectification of you just walking around. I am a woman and im an openly gay woman and you would think i am a woman and im an openly gay woman and you would think that would deter something. But no, no. So, you know women are sexualized and you put two women together and you are hypersexualized. You are running up against all these barriers and you were trying to on top of just simply trying to figure out how to which is hard enough in itself. We talk about Silicon Valley and the investor dynamic in the other thing to touched down is you touch on is the dynamic within the Actual Company and the policies and the sword of call to action right now we need new policies. We need to enforce the policies that we have. The only way to do that is to show people that there are compromises. The only way to create an open environment for women is to let men know there are consequences for these actions and women will only step up and come forward when they know something is going to be done. Why would i speak up if not and on top of it you have to get 10 women together just to take down one predator so there are a bunch of different dynamics. I think the investor situation is the one thing he and enough in and of itself that Silicon Valley needs to hold a mirror to itself and really think about what are the policies they have, are they enforcing policies and creating environments for women that are safe . Sometimes you can create policies that are so difficult. The same dynamic. It protects the company. Not the victims. You have raised your voice to talk openly about this but there are some things you cant. There are disparagement clauses and gag rules. Is that a policy in and of itself that people are not allowed to talk about this issue , that there is comfort on the part of the company knowing that we dont have to talk about it if we can settle out of it . Theres a difference between dont talk about this issue most people know this is wrong. Most people know Sexual Harassment is wrong but they will say to you, well, that sucks. You are looking for what do i do about it and nobody is going to tell you to do anything about it. That silence comes from women who dont know anything but silence and it comes from men who were saying we dont want to ruffle any feathers. For me, most predators are not for me, most predators are not stupid. He did everything in person. I have no written evidence. I just have my experiences in my head, so that idea that i cant name names, i cant really even remove him from the environment because the way it was set up in the way it was approached. All women have i think right now and what is really powerful is the Whisper Network. That has unequivocally taken a lot of people out of power because you were able to coordinate and warned people. And just warn people. Hey, im going to this meeting. What does anybody know about this guy . We talk and we know. Theres a Whisper Network and that is easily the most powerful tool we have. Its good to know that women have the Whisper Network but its also sad that women have to whisper about this while the men who are responsible for this kind of behavior are still sitting in their positions. What else can or should women do if they find themselves in this situation . Who should they talk to and should they keep a record . You say there was no paper trail. How do you create some sort of trail so if you raise your hand and say me to that you have some sort of dossier that you can move forward with . I was just talking about this the other day another function. People have to get desperate keep track people have to get a way to keep track of everything and write everything down and email yourself and tell your friends. You have to create your own body of evidence. Email yourself so you have date stamps and time stamps on it. The same thing you would do with any issue you have a work is the first thing people will tell you is documents. You may not have something official and you may write it in when the opportunity strikes, you are ready to have something to say to add your voice to the chorus or even if you are the first one. You created the me too movement before it was a hashtag. I think everyone has seen the hashtag in their news feeds. Are hashtags useful and would have helped the men men had a if there was a askyoursister, askyourmother, askyourcoworker . Obviously, it works. It brings awareness. We have enough Empirical Data to show the world nobody can say no i have never heard of that. If you engage in social media and you are zero wait and on the computer you have heard of it. It could help for men to have a but the thing that bothers me have a hashtag but the thing that bothers me so much when we talk about, i almost said a bad word. You are a human being. I want a hashtag to be a human. [laughter] [applause] it bothers me that men dont have to train other than not to touch another mans when you go to a meeting. You dont have to say look out for that guy, he might hit you hit on you. You dont have to be trained to do that. I am a human being, dont touch me and dont talk to me in an inappropriate way. I dont know how we legislate that and i dont know how we shift the culture. That conversation has to be about empowering because this is about privilege and power and how people use it. Privileges and going to go anywhere anytime soon but its how you use your privilege. You have to use it to serve other people if you have more privilege for them. I think you people people understand that concept and interact with people and being a human being. To understand before all of these allegations surfaced and before the me too movement loss , did we understand where we were . we watched as a society seven seasons of madmen thinking we were watching something that took place in the past when maybe that was not was actually happening. Do we underestimate how much progress we have made on this issue . I think the problem is that, culturally, there is still that tension that allows for people to say i dont believe her, but that she is not telling the truth. We have to flip that where the presumption is that she is telling the truth because we do know anyone who comes forward is going to be badgered and is going to be put under a microscope. More often than not, they will be blackballed. Thats interesting because our judicial system in which someone is innocent until proven guilty. But this is not a judicial undertaking. This is a Workplace Environment where someone is violating the civil rights act, title vii that says you have the opportunity to work in a hostile free Work Environment and that you should not be subject to severe or pervasive Sexual Harassment. We have talked about this but theres a spectrum and only a t a certain point does it become criminals. Because again there have been no consequences for anything on that spectrum, we have lumped everything together. Anything from the death by a thousand paper cuts a little bit of sexism here and there to full on sexism to harassment whether that be verbal or other to assault which is criminal. , to your point, there is a certain point where you reach the judicial part of it but there are a lot of things in between that need to be handled in their need to be consequences for those actions. Most of the times the consequences fall to the woman. We are we are going to movie off e you off that team or shuffle things around. Or meetings with women. Dont get me started with that. I think we are at a point right now, a Tipping Point where we are angry and i think we need to give ourselves the space to be angry and then we can have more nuanced conversations about how to approach each and every one of these things on a casebycase basis. Women are driving the conversation. How important is it to deal with things on the lower end of the spectrum that might be considered boorish behavior to deal with that because thats often a gateway to more aggressive, more harmful behavior . I think its allimportant and i think it really just goes to leadership. If you see the senior people acting like assholes, the lowerlevel people will feel like they are empowered to do that, too. It needs to come from the top and people know how to be good normal people. I believe that and i think it just needs to be reinforced and it needs to be stated as a core value of your company. I think it needs to be important. Be cautious of how you are affecting someone else and understand that and talk about it. We represent a lot of powerful people in the world whether they are men or women and i think im really proud of that and i think the company has an obligation like us to make sure that internally we reflect that as well. I mean, i agree with you about the anger and people need to get this out because ive seen it and i have seen it for years. , its really important to to me in the position im in now to make sure we deal with that and we created an environment where that doesnt change. We create an environment where that does change. Its something that i want everybody to be proud of and we want people who work there to be proud of it and i think its important that it comes out now and its important that people show leadership and mentorship. Not just the women, but also the men. I know that sounds simple and i know its a bigger issue than that. People know how to be good to each other. When we think about the spectrum of Sexual Violence, it starts with Sexual Harassment or boorish behavior. That create a culture. It really bothers me that people keep talking about Harvey Weinstein as a Sexual Harassment case. He sexually assaulted women. Thats not chasing someone around the desk and not pitching someone in the office. He has committed crimes multiple times in their systems in place that allowed him to. The culture of his company protected him. People are invested in capitalism and invested in the money and the power and not invested in the women who suffered at the mans hands for 30 years. Its really important that the boorish behavior is important because that opens a door for behavior that allows people to touch folks. It has to be dealt with and cultures have to shift early on and those things have to be sought out in the workplace in the streets and organizations and in Congress Wherever they exist. They open the door to allow this type of behavior to happen. Many people have gone through sexualharassment training it , has to be done by tuesday and sit on your computer you sit in a classroom. That obviously has not been effective, so how do you effectively change the culture . I think what chris said is important about leadership. People have to model what the culture and the company is. Not just on the computer and not just reiterating it every couple of years. You cant laugh at rape jokes. You cant tolerate oh hes just like that. You cant tolerate those things. There has to be zero tolerance around the way we respect each other and work with each other. Have leadership set an example for what well deal with an art in our company and put women in charge. [applause] lets talk for just a minute about the Industries Women who work in retail and women who work in manufacturing, women who clean the hotels in this hotel. Clean the rooms in this hotel. Do they have adequate support or understanding for the challenges they face and as we talk about this Movement Overall are we spending enough time looking at their challenges . Okay. For me, my work has always been centered around the most marginalized. We have to start with those women. You have to start with the most marginalized and work your way out. Im not just talking about men who have privilege. If you are Woman Working in the workplace and there are powers in place to protect you and there arent for the women cleaning the office, you are not doing her job. If im in a place where im not going to have myself protected and not make sure everybody who is vulnerable is protected. Thats one of the ways we do that. I think its also important for us to appreciate that the module that you see on the computer is woefully inadequate and we have got to change the requirements so its interactive , it relates to the industry and that its something that comes from the top. I think we have all said that. If the message is very clear from the top then you will see behavior change. We have heard a lot of lament about the number of men who have left their various industries and the talent range of powerful drain of powerful men. I want to hear in hollywood, on capitol hill about the talent drain of women who cut their sales, who just said i cant deal with this, who were less ambitious than they would have been or have been the walking wounded for years and sometimes decades carrying this around. Will we ever be able to measure the talent drain of women whose jobs, whose lives in their workspace were cut short because they face this kind of harassment . I am haunted today by a story that appears in one of the papers about woman who was working for congressman farenthold. She received an 84,000 settlement that came out of the secret fund in the u. S. Treasury. She was absolutely blackballed. She was told before she filed the complaint that she would be blackballed and she hasnt been able to get a job. No wonder that 70 of women who are sexually harassed dont come forward because they need a job. And that is the dynamic that has to change. We have got to make it very clear that someone who comes forward is going to have support and whistleblower protection so that they can in fact feel free to come forward and not be blackballed from an industry in which they want to work. You have been a whistleblower to some degree. You have chosen not to name names, even though you have said you know there are other people on capitol hill. Explain to the audience why you have chosen not to do that and tell us about the reaction that you have perceived on capitol hill. I imagine you are saying things that people wish they would rather not have to talk about. You are dragging this issue into the spotlight, forcing people to talk about it. Whenever you are going to air the dirty laundry you are making people uncomfortable. I would say that in terms of the people that i know that have sexually harassed, i have said i am here to protect the dump. Best protect the victim to protect the victim. If the victim is prepared to come forward and i have encouraged the victim to come forward, its got to be their decision in these two cases that im talking about. In terms of what im hearing , its amazing. Its almost like this huge burden has been lifted from women in the house. I got stopped at trader joes twice by women on the hill that said thank you so much for what you are doing and then they told me their stories. Ive had women come to me that work in the capital and the stories they tell are so repugnant. Imagine having someone come up to your desk, unzip their pants and stick out their penis. And she is afraid to say anything because she is a single mother and she needs the job. Congress, we have a problem and we have got to fix it. Have you ever considered approaching the men involved to tell them i know about this and you should think about this . My concern is if you sign a tell them i know about this and nondisclosure agreement and you now have already told me about it and i tell the member then conceivably you have violated the nondisclosure agreement. I want you to each think about a specific thing. Theres a longterm solution in and then theres a shortterm solution. For now, lets think about the shortterm solution so they can take on individually or the industries you represent that and then theres a shortterm solution. For now, lets think about the shortterm solution so they can take on individually or the industries you represent that could be done by friday or by the end of the month or by 2018 to really make a difference in dealing with this issue and. I think say it again. Solutions we can have the things you can do right now. Im an organizer by training and i think we have to organize around this issue. The women who are prepared not to force anyone who doesnt want to, but those who are prepared to come together. One of the things me to does is o does is identify people. Talk to your friends and talk to the women in your office. If you see someone with a have hashtag, have lunch with them and say lets talk with it. You want to do something even if theres just support. To see what actions can be taken by people who you know who have come forward is something that can happen immediately. Besides looking for allies whether its in your work industry, in your church or organization, whatever it is, find likeminded folks and allies. A woman in the work place has an army behind her. Absolutely. For me, there are two things. For women, we need to listen to our own voice. I think the emotional aspect to all of this is we have been conditioned over decades to tell ourselves it wasnt that bad or its not a big deal im making a big deal out of this. This is one of my favorite things Michelle Obama has said that women are taught not to , listen to their own voice and it keeps us from fighting a fight we believe in. That is an actionable thing just tweeting your inner dialogue to not be so hard on yourself to try to grapple with whats happening and recognize it and realize im not alone in its and its ok and changing that inner dialogue is something we all have to work on. We have been conditioned to dismiss ourselves. For a man, there is a lot of work that guys need to do. I would say i dont need you to defend me when im in the room. I will defend myself. What i need is for men to defend me when im out there. Men have access to the spaces in and the pockets in which the behavior really drives. Really thrives. We witness it as women but we know behind closed doors how much worse it is and we need men right now as allies not for a pat on the back but to do the hard work behind closed doors to call up their friends and call out their coworkers to say to them i dont appreciate you speaking that way about women , and that is not an easy thing to do. That is absolutely not an easy thing to do. I think men have a lot of work to do in that area. If you are not defending us while we are not there you were are not doing anything. [applause] as the man on the panel, i want you to add to the question of what we can do. Thats a tough one to follow. [laughter] i think rachel has ginned it up for you to address what man en can do. I will just speak specifically about what we are doing as a company because we can only affect what is right in front of us and by doing it that better for us we can make an example for everyone hopefully. We made a commitment like they said a cultural shift will take time. We have a company thats over 50 women but not in leadership positions. So, as far as Department Heads go, we have 40 then as farce women. As far as the board goes, 30 of the board are women. Our job together is over the course of the next two years hopefully to mentor enough people so they come into those jobs as leaders and on the board that they have earned it. I dont mean earned by putting them through the paces. Its from the standpoint that we spend time together. They will succeed in those jobs. I think thats super important to put them in those jobs and make sure they do great. I would just say there are going there are not going to be a lot of those backroom conversations because you want to have a conversations and the men should be worried about what the women are saying in those conversations. In my opinion they work really well when they are in balance and any balance to be put into this stuff. Thats what we are trying to do and im really proud that we are making progress in that way and hopefully it will be something that years from now people will be talking about. [applause] i would say two things. Its very important to talk about it, to talk to other women about it, to empower each other, to recognize that as a bystander you can be very powerful in supporting another person. Im looking up here and seeing women rule. We dont rule. We are only 20 of congress that , but things are changing. The largest march in the history of this country took place on january 21 because women and men across this country watched. [applause] there are more women running for congress than ever before, 356 women are running in multiple numbers in the same race and more women are contributing than ever before. This is an opportunity that we cannot let run through our 356 women are running in hands. We have got to be there to speak up, to vote, to run and to transform the body politic in this country. [applause] thank you very much. Thank you for using your voice. To the women in the audience, thank you very much for being here. There are certainly people in this room who perhaps have not found the words to raise their hand or to put behind a metoo, but know there are a lot of people working on this issue and getting into this issue. It isnt just a story in the headlines right now but its something that will be with us. Thank you very much congressman speier and tarana. [applause] headlines right now but its something that will be with us. Thank you very much congressman [inaudible conversations] please welcome chevron Vice President , stacy olson. [applause] thank you. I am stacy olson with chevron, and im so happy to be this here this morning. Before i make my remarks, we will watch a short oneminute video. Its a story about doers. This is lauren. Shes a doer. An expert in Science Technology engineering and math. This is a neat. This is sydney. Shes a doer, too. Meet sophia. She has a big dream. Theres no telling where the doers lead. The fact is girls do remarkable things with s. T. E. M. This generation may change the world. [applause] im excited to be part of the conversation about empowering the next generation of women. Women in government, women in business, and women in media. As part of that conversation, i want to make sure we also talk about empowering the next generation of women in s. T. E. M. , thats science, technology, engineering, and math. In my 30year career as an engineer working for Global Energy company, i have worked in six Different Countries on five different continents. Ive seen have the energy we produce has the power to build the economy and lift people out of poverty and create the products that we rely on in our everyday lives. Today, i am based in pittsburgh , and lead chevrons Business Unit devoted to developing natural gas from shale and in pennsylvania, ohio and west virginia. Its a part of our country that has one of the largest natural gas fields in the world. A little more than a decade ago , we didnt think it was possible to produce this resource. In fact, my job wouldnt exist if it wasnt for Major Technology breakthroughs and advancements in science in the last 20 years. I have a personal goal to encourage more women to pursue stem fields. When i think about the next 20 years, when i think about the global challenges we face now and in the future its going to take scientists to come up with solutions and i want to make sure that more women are part of these solutions. I read a study recently that said unless things change in the u. S. , we will come up short by 1 million stem professionals over the next decade. Women hold about half of all in the jobs in the u. S. , but only slightly more than a quarter of stem jobs. At chevron, we realize the success of our business depends on a diverse workforce. Our philosophy is investing in education along the continuum starting with k12 education programs. Over the past three years, we have invested more than 100 million in education in the u. S. And more than 340 million globally. We are supporting stem programs for thousands of businesses around the world and in our own backyard. In the appalachian basin, 20 million over five years to support education and training throughout the region, including many rural areas. Our focus is to inspire women in and underrepresented students to pursue good careers and arm them with the skills they will need to be successful in the future. In addition to investing in education, i believe role models and mentors will play an Important Role in filling the stem pipeline. Over the course of my career, i have seen a shift in the representation of women in business and government but i think we need a lot more role models today, especially in stem. When i began my undergraduate degree, i majored in petroleum engineering. You might say i bucked a trend. I was a woman pursuing engineering before we really talked about stem as a thing. For me, my mom was my role model model. She has a Computer Science degree and mba and a law degree. She served as an elected judge for 12 years. I didnt grow up in a home with stigmas or stereotypes. All i knew growing up is that i was smart and if i worked hard i could do whatever i wanted. When i graduated from college, my first job out of school was as a drilling representative on a rig in the gulf of mexico. In those days, by job title was more traditionally known as the company man. I was often the only chevron employee on the rig and i was often the only woman on the rig. I worked seven days straight with 75 men. Despite what you may be thinking , this was one of the best experience i ever had. I had a lot of responsibility for someone new in a career. I got used to being way outside of my comfort zone and i had the confidence that helped me say yes to new and exciting opportunities that came throughout my career. In those early days on the rig, the men i worked with supported me. They helped me learn the business and they wanted to see me succeed. This is an attitude ive encountered throughout my career at chevron. I know that many women are not as fortunate to have the same experiences or role models that i have had but that is exactly why we need more women and men to support women. We need to send a message to the next generation of young girls that says you are smart, you are talented, and with hard work you can do whatever you want in this world. Then we need to show them what those opportunities look like. I have two daughters. Im happy to say that they are in college and both of them have chosen to pursue stem fields. This is the one piece of advice i give them and i give to any young person. Get a role model. Find someone who can inspire you. Seek out Accomplished Women in your field and talk to them. Do research on the internet. Read books about successful women. To everyone here, i say, be an intentional role model and mentor. You dont have to be perfect have an impact. You just have to be delivered. Deliver it. You just have to be deliberate. Encourage women to get outside of their comfort zone and support them along the way and make sure others in your organization do the same. Over the course of my career, i have seen a change for the better and when i think about my daughters, i get excited for them and im optimistic about the future. The challenge of getting more women involved in stem and advancing them throughout o ur organization is not simple. One organization or one company or person wont solve this alone. Its up to us for this Bright Future but with the efforts to mentor and support, i am confident we will succeed at empowering the next generation. Thank you for your time. [applause] please welcome a chief International Affairs columnist, susan glasser. [applause] wow. I can see nobody came this morning. [laughter] i want to thank everybody for turning out this morning. Im delighted to see what an incredible institution this has become in however many years we have been doing this. We are all a part of an important conversation today about how we can come together to understand the problem of Human Trafficking. These are all four leaders in different ways. I want to introduce the participants in this next conversation to everybody and then we will jump right in. I imagine Everybody Knows senator marco rubio. We have to thank you for joining us today and for being wildly outnumbered. Thank you, marco rubio. [applause] next is the former director of the u. S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement service. We thank you so much for joining us this morning. [applause] Kate Bosworth actor, filmmaker we will talk about the issue of Human Trafficking. We encourage her. Thank you for joining us. [applause] and most importantly, barbara, who has shown us that survivors of Human Trafficking can come and take the lead in the movement to stop it and the. We are honored. [applause] everybody here is an activist. Im glad in many ways about this incredible moment about what is happening in our workplaces and how we can take back control of them and also the continuum in which it exists. Thats why im glad we are able to talk about it. Barbara, you are the only one on the panel who can speak directly to what its like in the to have the experience of being trafficked and also in washington, why cant we fix this . What do our Law Enforcement officers need to do that they are not . If i could answer that question, we could all just go home. You mentioned Law Enforcement. When i was a 12yearold for being trafficked in the streets of new york for over a decade, i was arrested but the traffickers were never arrested, so training for Law Enforcement and identification. So maybe that person is a victim, maybe they are not a criminal. So many people theyve never heard of it. They dont think trafficking happens in the United States. Awareness and education. I dont have a magical answer. I wish i did. You mentioned backpage. Com. Thats a moment to bring in senator rubio. It seems we have gotten more sophisticated on capitol hill. Youve been an activist on this issue for some time in terms of proposing legislation for specific things. Tell us what are the steps forward that are happening. We are creating a better understanding of what youre speaking about. What is the end result . The end result of trafficking is slavery. People who are forced to work with little or no pay and then physical and psychological confinement. Labor trafficking is in a enormous problem as well. The numbers are even bigger. They are often related. They are vulnerable. The third aspect is the method by which people are being trafficked. Back page is an example of a place where you are able to advertise these services and hide behind the notion that we dont know what that is. Not only do they know, it is profitable for them. Its my hope this legislation can pass. Theres a bit of an impediment that is procedural, but i know they are working through that. How do you interact with the victim . We find too many Law Enforcement they happen trafficked into that situation and they treat them the way you would someone you arrest. That doesnt work for someone who is psychologically shattered and in fear. Whose mind is controlled by the individual who put them there. That requires a longerterm Awareness Campaign on our part to better train Law Enforcement and attorneys across the country. Just quickly, you mentioned this new legislation. Youre getting real pushback from the Tech Companies. They make a lot of money on this stuff. It is not free speech as far as youre concerned . Free speech you cannot argue you are protected by free speech and the ability to facilitate in the legal activity an illegal activity. Industry doesnt like any sort of regulation. I understand. This is a significant amount of your revenue and you will face criminal liability for facilitating it, of course they will give an argument they know for a fact that theyre facilitating the trafficking of human beings and their are making money off of it and they dont want to be held liable for it. We have an objection to bringing it to the floor. We can unanimously pass it. Theres a way to do it. You can bring it for a floor vote. This has been unusual outpost of bipartisanship. Dont ruin it. [laughter] i dont want to let you in on the secret here. I do believe Elizabeth Warren and marco rubio are cosponsors of a measure. [applause] to better train Law Enforcement to identify it. Law enforcement what is your view . Im not so sure that Law Enforcement israel helpful in this area that is is real helpful in this area. One of the most Important Missions of ice everyone focuses on immigration area. There is a core of ice agents who focus on investigations of criminal activity, including sex trafficking. Trafficking of all kinds. To say that in 2017 ice had about 1000 indictments nationwide and thats just those who passed the federal test of this is a case we cant take every case this is a case that has National Impact and this is a case involving a lot of people. Theres a network involved. We can have a better impact if the feds take this. I just dont know how much of a message it sends when so many of our traffickers theres an International Aspect to this. Im thinking of one case in particular. Businessmen were being catered to in dallas. The women had been brought over thinking they would get an education and good paying jobs once they got out of school. Instead, they were working in a bar and living in the second floor of this traffickers home. One of the saddest things i had was when we discovered the records, which he kept meticulously in his garage. Thank you very much. Countless women who had gone through that secondfloor bedroom who we were never able to find. We were able to find the 12 that were there at the time. We do go after the perpetrators and we put them in prison. The most important thing is it is victim centered. You cannot extend the investigation when the victim is being threatened. We have certain views here. We have forms like this where we can discuss what the public can do to help. I want to get back to this issue of how victims get caught up in the Law Enforcement net. How much do you think this current immigration crackdown we are having an United States might end up having a trafficking component or engineering people who are victims of trafficking as well . Sometimes the traffickers might have Legal Immigration status but be leading those who dont. Exploiting those who dont. The issue you always have is coming forward its not a leap of faith to say someone who is in the country illegally, they are not going to want to report a crime where they are the criminal. I dont have numbers on it, but i believe theres a negative impact when you have this push towards everybody whos out there i read the other day something about the person whos running ice right now in an acting capacity said you should be afraid if you are in the country illegally. That doesnt spur someone to come forward. [applause] its one of the leverage points that a trafficker will use against the victim. No one knows youre here. Sometimes you hear about threats to families back home. Number three, in many cases they are far from home. If youre going to go to the authorities, whats going to happen . You will get sent back. Sounds like a good subject for an oversight hearing. I was programmed to believe that everybody everything was my fault and my idea, that i would be arrested, and i was arrested. Victims dont tell identify as victims. Self identify as victims. Nobody goes into a Police Station and says help me, im a victim of sex trafficking. Nobody has time. I want to bring you in. This story you are telling is a story of immigrants caught up trying to come across the border illegally and what happens. Tell us about your new film and what inspired you to make it. I feel really grateful to be here. Thank you all for having me. I am new with this subject matter. Im learning a lot and im really grateful for everyone here to learn from them. My husband and i made a movie called nona. His mother is from mexico. She came across the border when she was about four. Its a personal story for him in many ways and for me as well. We had heard this story of a house in los angeles that had been busted as a sex trafficking house. There were 44 known houses in los angeles alone and we couldnt believe that in our own backyard around the corner where we lived that this kind of thing was happening and nobody knew about it. The more we spoke about it with other people who were educated people, so many of them would say, what is Human Trafficking . Something needs to be done about this. The only thing that we have to speak out on our platform is art. So we decided to make this movie, which is about a girl from honduras and she is trafficked through los angeles. My husband took a crew of about eight people and photographed the movie himself. He filmed starting in honduras and made his way guatemala all the way through mexico and then i met him in tijuana. I was producing the movie in los angeles. A lot of people ask me, what was it like to be a producer and also a wife on that movie . The subject matter was much bigger than ourselves. One moment got me quite nervous. He was in guatemala and i was here in washington, d. C. Speaking with a group starts ed by Hillary Clinton 20 years ago. There were two women from guatemala that i met. I told them about the movie we were making and they said your husband is in guatemala now . Do you know what happen yesterday . There were about 30 women rounded up who have been protesting and essentially they were killed. I called my husband and made sure everyone was okay and i told them what happened. We felt so overwhelmed by telling a story that not many people know about it and it fueled us more to be involved in this issue. It started as a pure place and i think the movie is about human beings, i think we lose sight the more were introduced to a subject matter. The humanity of this it is not a statistical problem although the numbers are high it starts with a sister, daughter, mother and niece but for the grace of god as it can be any one of us, so that is what our movie is about and why i feel it is so important to tell it. I see you nodding your head. This is a story about immigration but also something that literally happened to you right here. Originally, im from fairfax. I hesitate because i left fairfax when i was 12. I ended up being under the influence of a trafficker in new york for over a decade. I was arrested and i was every type of violence you can imagine, i experienced. I became addicted to heroin. Im a cancer survivor, uterine cancer. It is a result of being trafficked, hpv. The reason i escaped from new york was i pulled myself into a drug rehab clinic when i was 22 and heavily addicted to heroine and the intake person who was just supposed to intake clients went above and beyond her scope of work and looked me in the face and gave me i contact and for the first time, i dont know how long, maybe my entire life, treated me like a human being. She sent me on a job interview, i didnt get the job. If i would have gotten the job it would have been a miracle. , she found out family members were living in nearby philadelphia. I left and i never went back until 2013. So, taking the time and treating people like human beings i know counselors and social workers under one else does and everyone else, you have clients, but you have to slow down. Its overwhelming to think about how there could be a girl in Fairfax County right now, 20 minutes outside of the beltway experiencing this. You mentioned heroin. I want to ask one more policy question. You mentioned heroin and the fact that you became addicted as part of this whole cycle of abuse you were experiencing. This has become a much discussed crisis. Have you seen senator rubio or sarah in any of the conversations around the policy issues that this is being factored into our discussion about how to respond to the Opioid Crisis . Certainly not enough. Its one of the leverage points used against the victim. This person is now suffering from that disease as well. The trafficker is the person who possesses that substance. Along with the other things we have talked about, im not diminishing the number of people trafficked into the country. There is a significant number of people to mastech lee clean, runaways, young girls who find themselves in a vulnerable situations. There might be a young girl in fairfax, there most certainly is. Probably more than one. Learning about kids in the foster care system, who are being targeted, that is important to be aware of and they will be found trafficked and put straight back into the foster system and you can imagine these are children that are so vulnerable already not having parents or any kind of foundation, than have gone through this sick cycle of abuse, straight back into the foster system. There needs to be a scenario in which people are helped for this type of situation. Have a sense of feeling good. I ran away many times and went through the criminal Justice System and the foster care system but i felt to the cracks because and that is what happened to me. There is a lot to unpack here. Help us with your questions. Ladies. Im having a hard time seeing so i will go to the front. For sen. Rubio, how is cosponsored . I work with running it starts. For senator rubio, how is cosponsoring a bill with Elizabeth Warren and working across the aisle on this issue . Do you get support from other republicans or some of your coworkers or is that something that is hard to do . I get that question a lot because the vast majority of americans only see political figures in their interviews on television. These are real human beings. We interact with one another. We agree on a lot of things. By the way, one of the most sought after things in the senate is bipartisanship and youre almost always on any issue, always looking to bring in a leave from the other party to work with you. It is not the first issue i worked with elizabeth on. We worked on and mia veterans issue a couple weeks ago. Anytime you have a bipartisan sponsor it increases your chances of getting a result. On an issue like this it doesnt have natural partisan confines. It is very productive. The only thing i will say is, this is a sad state of affairs in some way about the way politics is practiced and covered. The more controversial it is the more likely you are to know about it. If everyone agrees on, you probably wont hear about it. What are people fighting over . The coverage this bill has gotten, there are people against it for privacy reasons. It is a conflict driven environment. That is why you do not hear enough about it. There is plenty of conflict. On this issue there shouldnt be and if there is it is more ideological on the privacy thing than it is on the broader need to be helping people. The conflict is between Tech Companies and sponsors. Im not here to defend Tech Companies. On this issue, the big platforms are not the issue. There are general organizational groups that dont like any sort of regulation that touches internet and speech on the internet. It is a new area that we will continue to have to work there. I saw one in the back. Yes, maam. [indiscernible] it turns out i supported them after promising them knew these is. What are you doing to make sure in this age of trump, people are promised these is because of trafficking that they get them . [applause] on the first point, no matter what administration, if Something Like that happens the people that did it should be investigated and fired a discipline. For anything that leads to loss of life. The job of an ice agent is to enforce the law but not to endanger the people or lie. All those facts proved to be as they were, it is my sense these individuals would be fired but they would be potentially disciplined. It has to be factbased. I dont want to go off of initial report. The dream act is important, i have long supported it for people who did not commit a crime, they are brought here by others. When they were young. They have grown up in our country. They are the profile, college graduated, high school graduated, speak english, and professional opportunities, they are the profile people who some are arguing we need to move immigration toward. How do you achieve it . In our Constitutional Republic in order to get a bill passed you need 60 votes in the senate and a majority in the house. To do so it is my opinion that if you want to make a permanent change in law, not daca as a bridge but a permanent change in law on the immigration status of people, they will have two that with a permanent change of some sort in enforcement. That is the only way you get 60 votes in the senate. We have this conversation yesterday with senator durbin on the floor. He talked to me about it. I believe there is a majority in the house and senate that want to achieve Something Like it. The disagreement is how to achieve it. You are seeing new voices, new senators, like North Carolina and oklahoma, they have become involved in the issue that were not a couple years ago. That is a positive development. Sarah, i want another question but i want to ask you, your background, is there something happening to your former agency that concerns you now . Do you think this would have happened in a previous era . A couple things. [laughter] i think she wants to talk. Facts that are reported sometimes are not always accurate. I know that is a newsflash. [laughter] but there was a newspaper i really admired and read every day in my private life until they started reporting facts as facts which were not that. I would encourage you to be, what is the word . Critical and vigilant in your reviews of News Coverage on things. You have to be careful. One of the things that was reported was that there was barbed wire around the Family Detention Centers and guards, armed guards with ak47s that were aiming them at children to keep them, that never happened. The retraction appeared several months later buried in the newspaper. I dont read that newspaper anymore. I lost faith. I think, i just volunteered to the senator free of charge. My services to work on any, i am also a lawyer. To work on any kind of legislation we can do which i think has to become rancid. You cant piecemeal. We will kick the can down the road for six months and extend daca for example. I think you agree with that. Share. The sixmonth extension . That there has to be a full effort as opposed to one sliver of the immigration issue. It has to be solved. The only debate, can you do it in a massive piece of legislation which is difficult or through a sequence. But you will never saw the immigration issue unless you deal with all of it. Some issues are driven by the fact that the Legal Immigration system is too complex and expensive. It is all intertwined. I know we can run over but i want both of you to promise you will come back to next years women world summit and tell us how this collaboration to rewrite americas immigration laws goes. They can very much. [applause] to both of you. Thank you very much. This is been a fantastic conversation and this year, it is great, were ending every panel by a lightning round. We know youre sitting out there and especially saying, what can i do . How do i process . What do i do with this . A lightning round. Barbara . What would you say to these wonderful women in this audience about what they can do . Being here is something you can do. Listening and opening your mind and to all the other communities out there and everyone else listening, taking time to learn about the issues and the gaps between policy and practice. To learn about what is needed. Educate yourselves. Time i know no one has that but we all have to slow down and take time to learn about what is happening. What we can do to make a difference in what is missing in our particular communities and states. You dont have to make a plug for your movie. Youre very sweet. Actually i will echo what you just said. Education. The most important thing one can do. I still feel very intimidated honestly to be here with such educated people and knowledgeable people. Im very committed to knowing more and staying open. I think it is very important to listen to the survivors of the situations to really understand a solution. It is difficult to speak without any kind of personal experience to what a solution maybe. You had a saying . Nothing about us. Without us. I think that is important. [applause] i work with a group, for really understanding those groups and educating yourselves on the groups on the front lines of helping find solutions to these major issues and really listening to the survivors i think is very important. The blue campaign, heart of the campaigns efforts to raise awareness, go online and you will find all kinds of tools to take back your communities. Governmental organizations, to inform people what to look for. It is very much a hidden crime, behind closed doors and you have to know what to look for including Law Enforcement. Do everything you can to convince people this is real. It is not an urban legend. A lot of things you associate with Human Trafficking are a product of it. Even in the diplomatic corps in washington we have had instances of that. These are not isolated cases. It is much more widespread and closer to where you live than most people imagine. Do everything you can not just to become fully informed but to let others know about it as well. What a great conversation. I want to thank everyone here and thank all of you for this. [applause] [no audio] please welcome and ann palmer. [applause] my name is anna palmer. Im very excited about this next conversation we will have. Im thrilled to be joined by sue, we will your personal stories about starting businesses and get insights about how we can ourselves further our own careers and im joined here by gloria who is chairman of Story Partners and heather podesta. When we were talking about this panel, the thing i said is i want this to be the real talk panel. A lot of people come up to us, they wanted vice about they want advice about how to take that first appeared how did you get the guts . Was there a moment when you knew you would start your own firm . My mom raised me to believe i could do anything and i didnt know i wasnt supposed to be in the room. Or sit at the table. I just sort of flu through those, what is she doing . Why is she sitting at the table . When i decided to start this, i was talking to a former Business Partner and he literally said, how are you going to support yourself . I thought, what you dont know, i had mentioned it to my former mentor a few weeks before and he had sent me a contract, a two year contract. My mom recently passed away and she had left me a small inheritance. That states me financially and gave me the courage to start the firm. Once my mentor had put his faith and belief in me and my mom, having passed away and saved this little bit of money to give to me, i knew i couldnt let them down. It was a real motivator. Im sure many of you have felt somebody put great faith in you and you are not going to let them down. You were going to work hard and make them proud and do the unthinkable because they believed in you. I think that was a real motivator for me, that other people really believed in me and thought i could do something. It is 2006. Nancy pelosi has just won back the house. I see a huge market opportunity. No one knows. Ive been a partner at a law firm. I had clients, like gloria, financial concern was a real one but had money saved away. I knew i had hustle. I knew i was hungry. You need that event where you are like, i am going for it. For me, that event was a holiday party, almost, 11 years to the day. Where, i see the chairman of the law firm where i am working talking to a client that i brought in. I stride over there feeling very pleased with myself and the chairman says, isnt heather our most beautiful partner . And talented. You go into the last line, you spend the rest of the evening smiling and seething and for me, i gave notice 10 days later and went for it. [applause] another big thing that all of us in this room have gone there is that moment where you have to enter into a room like this, you might not know anyone. Last night at a reception, you dont have your friend that is coming from the office with you. You are on the scene, you are constantly networking. What is your advice, have you strategically take that on . You need a strategy. Walking into a room and blindly handing out Business Cards is not going to get you where you need to go. I see a lot of people do that. I try to know who will be in the room ahead of time. I make sure i do some homework. I might get the guest list. I will see what want to connect with, a client, i want to make sure they are meeting the right sort of people. If i need to touch base with a reporter because we are working on a story, i will seek them out. The key is, strategy. The second piece of that is to have, authentic connections with folks. What i try to do is find out from people, what is keeping them up at night . What are they concerned about . How can i help them . Is it with a contact . Maybe i just read something that could be beneficial to them and i want to share that with them. Maybe theyre trying to meet someone and i know i have a good connection and i can make that happen. When i get a Business Card from somebody at an event, i follow up. If i dont follow up that night, i follow up the next day with something that is meaningful. That will extend the relationship and not say, onetime deal. Agree with everything that gloria just said. A couple things to think about. It is a mindset when you go into a room full of strangers. As gloria said, knowing who is in the room, recognizing their face, knowing something about them, you can start the conversation. The mindset, everyone should feel like they are the hostess of the party. This is my party. Im not paying for it but all of you are my guests. It is my job to make you feel as welcome as possible. Another part, dress to start the conversation. I am always, i love clothing, but i also know if i go out there, someone will say it gives people a way of approaching you and you become approachable as well, especially with glorias awesome tshirt. Ambition. [applause] i love it. This segues into another question. We get this a lot. Networking turns into business development. Men seem to have the leg up on that. Playing golf, the culture in drinking in washington. What can they take away from this conversation . Listening. Really understanding what a potential client might need and then telling them how youre going to help solve their problem. And understand it is the beginning of a conversation. Oftentimes, it is almost like, are you single . If you are single, lets date. Whoa. That is a big merger of interest. To understand that to bring in a client is a cultivation exercise and it takes time. One of the mistakes i see is pushing for a quick answer. Are you going to hire me . As opposed to, show value. Let them see how smart you are. Let them understand how your different from other folks in the industry. Also, and i know gloria also believes in us, be a concierge. We are in the business of taking care of peoples problems. Oh your kid needs an internship . Lets work on that. There are any number of ways to start the conversation and you have to find ways to keep the conversation going. Part of it as being a good person and remembering birthdays. I saw this article and thought you would be interested. Always remember, the old adage, when you chase, they run and when you run, they chase. I like it. I think in making sure potential clients know that you are all in for them. Youre not just going to get them in the door and look for the next client. Investing in people fully without any intention of a return so they know that you are really investing in them for the right reasons, not that youre just investing in them because they are going to hire you and a soon as they hire you you are moving onto the next investment. I will say, my first client in 1989, 1993, and 2010, i have invested in them over the years and they have invested back. Having those longterm relationships with people, people know you are all in, you have their interests ahead of your own. That youre always paying attention. Finding out things they might not know and you are a conduit of information for them. I think when you put those things together and you out hustle everyone, you put the numbers in the right column for your firm. I would just say this. Heather, when she started her firm, we have mutual clients, he said early in the start, no one is out hustling like her. I want that person on my team. People have said that about us in the firms i have had. I think that reputation and protecting that reputation and telegraphing that appropriately is very important. I want to talk about something women dont like to talk about which is money. Both of you fundraise. How do i ask for a raise . I think a lot of women struggle with this, so maybe, they are similar skill sets . Make a case to an employer, they need a raise . My grandmother used to say, if you dont ask you dont get. You have to put your hand up. A lot of folks didnt ever ask for the order. My boss told me you have to ask the question. You have to help people get to yes. Sit down and make your case and figure out where the opposition to a raise might come from. Have good answers for that. If the answer is no, not now. You have to find out how you get to yes. What will it take for me to become a senior vp . What will it take for you to buy a table at the fundraiser i am chairing . How do i get to yes . How can you help me get the yes . Because what you want to do is have the client, the prospect, you want them to buy into your success. To buy in to saying yes to you. It is just a matter of time. Getting to the matter of the raise which all of us have struggled with, oftentimes, the emphasis is put on the day, the meeting, the asking. If youre focused in that way, you will not get your raise. This is about developing a strategy, like anything in washington, it is a lobbying campaign. Right now we are in the middle of the soon to be tax conference. As a tax lobbyist would i go to brady at this point and say, hey, i want this at this last moment and please Pay Attention to me . No. You would have developed a strategy months earlier, and created your storyline. Why should you be given a raise . What have you been doing . Documenting that but also educating folks above you and other folks in the organization. It is really important to have validators who are like, glory is amazing work, did you know she did x, y, and z . To create this thoughtful approach to establishing your own storyline, telling your storyline. One of the biggest things i see as an employer, i see people doing good work. But if they dont tell me they are doing it, i dont know they are doing it. I am not a mind reader. Im actively engaged so i can see what is going on but my folks have learned, they have to manage up to me. They have to tell me what they are working on. In that way they are creating their own brand, their own storyline. When we have that meeting, i know exactly what they have done. In that meeting, you should be straightforward. You should be factbased. Nothing should come as a surprise to the person sitting across the table from you. Things not to do . Dont be needy. Dont be entitled. Dont negotiate against yourself. Dont equivocate. There is so much more to unpack there. Unfortunately, we are wrapping up this panel. I know you all will be around so feel free to introduce yourself to gloria and heather. With that, we leave this for lunch. Thank you so much. [applause] we encourage any of you at this time to network at the table. The marketplace is open. Next, your calls and comments on washington journal. Next, newsmakers. And the campaign to impeach President Trump. And a speech by new york city mayor, build the blah zero. Billild the blah zero de blasio. I have been attacked. Q a,night, on cspans former Democratic National committee chair, donna brazil talks about her life in politics and her memoir, hacks. Hillary was very excited. She had left this young state senator who was running. She told my good friend. We were on the third floor and she said she knew barack obama. I did not know barack obama. I know a lot of other people like harold washington. And rod beck and rahm emanuel. But i had never heard of barack obama. Of 2003. M that spring let me say this the rest is history. Q a, tonight at 8 00 eastern on cspan. This morning, the author of the book gatekeepers discusses