Women Rule

For our final episode of 2020, Anna is joined by Alicia Garza, the activist and co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. They look back at 2020 — a year when Americans endured crises from the pandemic to the economic recession, racial injustices and a highly contentious presidential election. Through it all, women have often taken the lead. And as we head into 2021, Alicia tells us how she’s looking to set the course in activism for the year to come.

For her final episode as host of "Women Rule," Anna Palmer is joined by POLITICO editor Carrie Budoff Brown and POLITICO Magazine deputy editor Elizabeth Ralph to talk about the strange year we’ve all lived through — from the presidential election to the global pandemic — and look forward to 2021 and beyond, and what all of it means for women.

Now that the 2020 campaign is over, Anna speaks with Parker Poling, the executive director of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which made substantial gains this year. Parker's job is a big responsibility — working with hundreds of campaigns, candidates, members of congress, donors and campaign staffers as the clock ticks down to election day. But Parker herself seems to take it all in stride. She talks about the wisdom she's learned over the years that allows her to do that — and the importance of being kind to yourself along the way.

"Women Rule" brings you another special episode of POLITICO's new podcast "Global Translations":  The pandemic and the rise of China are prompting Republicans and Democrats to turn to government power to grow industries important to America’s security and place in the world. “Industrial policy” is an idea long reviled among Washington policymakers. Hosts Luiza Savage and Ryan Heath talk to the people trying to make industrial policy cool again. Luiza Savage is the host of "Global Translations". Ryan Heath is a host of "Global Translations".  Annie Rees is a producer for POLITICO Audio.  Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO Audio.  Jenny Ament is the senior producer for POLITICO Audio.  Irene Noguchi is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio. Jennifer Harris  is a sentior fellow at the Hewlett Foundation, formerly at the US State Department during the Obama administration. Mariana Mazzucato is an internationally recognized economist and professor at University College London (UCL), and Founder/Director of UCL's Institute for Innovation and Public Purpose. Check out and subscribe to POLITICO's Global Translations, and China Watcher newsletters. Read Luiza Savage's article on the new industrial policy emerging in the US to counter China's ascent. Global Translations newsletter: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/global-translations China Watcher newsletter: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/politico-china-watcher POLITICO article: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/11/04/china-us-economy-industrial-policy-global-translation-433954

The 2020 race is finished. And while we don't know all the results yet, we know enough to say this: There was a big gap between what was expected and what ended up happening. Joining Anna to talk it all through is Ally Mutnick, a campaign reporter for POLITICO and expert on all things congressional elections.   Hosted by Anna Palmer Produced by Zack Stanton Executive Producer is Irene Noguchi

"Women Rule" brings you a special episode of POLITICO's new podcast series "Global Translations."  From closed factories to closed borders, the Covid-19 pandemic exposed the fragility of our systems, creating a period of scarcity where demand skyrocketed — from freezers to PPE — and we couldn't supply items fast enough. In this episode of "Global Translations", POLITICO hosts Luiza Savage and Ryan Heath take a deep dive with experts into global supply chains and what "decoupling" and "reshoring" are all about when it comes to America’s reliance on China and the rest of the world. Luiza Savage is the host of "Global Translations".  Ryan Heath is a host of "Global Translations". Annie Rees is a producer for POLITICO Audio. Kara Tabor is a producer for POLITICO Audio. Jenny Ament is the senior producer for POLITICO Audio. Irene Noguchi is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio. Adegoke Oke is a professor of supply chain management at Arizona State University. Tom Duesterberg is a senior fellow at Hudson Institute. He is an expert on trade and foreign policy.  David Wertime is POLITICO's editorial director for China and author of the China Watcher newsletter. Check out and subscribe to POLITICO's Global Translations and China Watcher newsletters, and Luiza Savage's in-depth piece on how the pandemic is forging a new consensus on globalization. Global Translations: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/global-translations China Watcher: https://www.politico.com/newsletters/politico-china-watcher Supply chain tug-of-war article: https://www.politico.com/news/2020/10/21/pandemic-forging-new-consensus-globalization-430605

This year, J.Crew is closing all of its stores and offices on Election Day in an effort to encourage its workers to vote. It’s not a move you’d expect from a major corporation. But Jan Singer isn’t your typical CEO. In fact, she didn't even want to be a CEO when she started out — and her (mostly male) superiors were quick to say she couldn't be a CEO unless she changed who she was. She didn't. And now leads one of the most iconic fashion retailers in America. We talked about her journey as a leader, what she's learned from listening, and how the pandemic is shaping J.Crew's outlook.   Hosted by Anna Palmer Produced by Zack Stanton Executive Produced by Irene Noguchi

You may know her as the star of “Ugly Betty” and “Superstore,” but right now, America Ferrera is focused on the 2020 election. As the co-founder of She Se Puede, she's working to boost the political participation of Latinas throughout the country. We talked about that, her political awakening as a 9-year-old and her participation in the "Time's Up" movement in Hollywood.

Julie Conway is the executive director of VIEW PAC, a group dedicated to electing more Republican women to the House and Senate. She joined Anna to talk about the 2020 campaign, her tips on how to fundraise successfully, and how the wave of Democratic women elected in 2018 is making it easier to recruit Republican women this year.   Host: Anna Palmer Producer: Zack Stanton Executive Producer: Irene Noguchi If you’re a fan of the show, please subscribe to Women Rule on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Rate us and leave a review. You can also join the Women Rule community by texting WOMEN to 66866.

Erin Hill is the executive director of ActBlue, the tech platform powerhouse behind most small-dollar online donations to Democrats. They've raised more than $6 billion since 2004 — including around $3 billion in the 2020 cycle alone — and have helped Dems solidify a lead in online contributions. We talked about all of that and more: How small-dollar donors are changing politics, how the pandemic is changing small-dollar donors, and what all of this could mean for the future of politics. Anna Palmer is the host of "Women Rule." Zack Stanton is the producer. Irene Noguchi is executive producer of POLITICO Audio.

Jennifer Horn is the former chair of the New Hampshire GOP. But these days, she's better known for the Lincoln Project — the group of anti-Trump conservatives who support Joe Biden. She joins us to talk about 2020, her journey in politics and the barriers she's encountered in her own runs for office.   Hosted by Anna Palmer Produced by Zack Stanton Executive Produced by Irene Noguchi

Andrea Mitchell, the NBC News journalist and television icon, joins Anna to talk about what she's learned over five decades of political conventions, how life has changed for women reporters and where she sees things going from here.

Angela Duckworth, a Penn psychology professor and host of "No Stupid Questions" from Freakonomics Radio, on the coronavirus pandemic and the unseen psychological reasons that explain why we act the way we do. Duckworth is known for her research on “grit” and self-control — both of which are important characteristics to have when you’re living through times like these. She’s aware that we’re all struggling with those traits right now. And she knows that understanding that — as well as having the self-control to extend empathy to those who, for instance, ignore expert advice in the middle of a global pandemic — will make life a little bit easier for everyone.

Our guest today: Nina Garcia, who in addition to being the editor-in-chief of ELLE Magazine, serves as a judge on “Project Runway.” Her journey to fashion-icon status was an unlikely one: She was an immigrant who came to America to get an education, fell in love with the fashion world, and worked her way to the top after starting out at the very bottom. "I didn’t know anybody here. I didn’t really have any contacts. I had no connections," Garcia tells Anna Palmer. "It was just a big, glamorous industry, and I didn’t really see myself — there were no other Latinas doing it." Throughout her career, Garcia has shown an ability to adapt to new situations — whether that’s taking a chance on a new TV show that would later become a smash-hit, working in the publishing industry at a time of massive upheaval, or staying on top of a fashion world that is built upon the idea of constant change. Anna talks to Nina Garcia about all of that and more on today's episode of "Women Rule." POLITICO's "Women Rule" podcast is produced by Zack Stanton. Irene Noguchi is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio. Special thanks to Bob Auld for helping us out with recording in New York. If you’re a fan of the show, please subscribe to Women Rule on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you get your podcasts. Rate us and leave a review.  And please share our episodes on social media. You can also join the Women Rule community by texting WOMEN to 66866.

Anna's joined by Padma Lakshmi, the author, model and activist who hosts “Top Chef” on Bravo and whose new show, “Taste the Nation,” is now out on Hulu. Padma said she decided to do the show after thinking about what a central role food plays in American culture and everyday life — and how the people behind the food we love are so rarely given the chance to tell their own stories.   Padma’s work away from the culinary world has put her on the forefront of a host of issues: civil liberties, immigrant rights, and raising awareness for endometriosis — a medical condition that millions of American women have, and which has struggled to receive the funding and attention it deserves because of societal assumptions about women and health.   All that and more on the newest episode of "Women Rule." "Women Rule" is hosted by Anna Palmer and produced by Zack Stanton. Irene Noguchi is the executive producer of POLITICO Audio.

Bestselling author Curtis Sittenfeld joins Anna to talk about her new novel, "Rodham," which imagines a world where a young Hillary Rodham decides not to marry Bill Clinton. Though this isn't Curtis's first book, it is her first book to be released during a global pandemic — which presents its own challenges. We get into all of that, and more.

Teresa Carlson, VP of Amazon Web Services, and Dionna Dorsey, the owner and designer behind District of Clothing, join to discuss how businesses are pivoting because of the coronavirus pandemic and how the fallout from the protests over the killing of George Floyd are impacting their companies.

Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal represents Seattle, one of the most hard-hit areas in the country during the coronavirus pandemic. Via Zoom, she and Anna talked about that, why she thinks the economy isn't quite ready to reopen, and what she wishes the Trump administration got wrong in its response. Beyond that, she discussed her history-making path to the Congress, why she often finds leadership lonely, and "the poor men who are so afraid of our talents as women."

In this special bonus episode, Melinda Gates, one of the world's most active philanthropists and public health advocates, joins Anna to talk about the coronavirus pandemic, what she wishes the Trump administration would do differently in its response and the things that keep her up at night.

Today, a break from all things “coronavirus,” as Anna Palmer talks with fashion legend Diane von Furtstenberg. They sat down back before the stay-at-home orders began, when she was in DC to present Ruth Bader Ginsburg with the annual DVF Awards' lifetime achievement prize. And though a whole lot has happened since then, Diane’s advice still rings true for how we can approach life and its challenges. Fashion legend DVF on life, leadership, and why, even now, she feels imposter syndrome.

A conversation with Fidji Simo, head of the Facebook App, on tech, coronavirus and Facebook’s response to misinformation and anti-quarantine protests. Simo is the 34-year-old who is in charge of Facebook's app — which has 2.2 billion users. She joined to talk through not only how the company is responding to Covid-19, but her own unpredictable journey to the upper echelon of Silicon Valley, and what she's doing to open the door for more women to follow.

We talk coronavirus with Dr. Janis Orlowski, chief health care officer of the Association of American Medical Colleges, who explains, among other things, the huge shortage of N95 masks the U.S. now faces amid the Covid-19 pandemic.

Joanne Kenen, the executive editor of POLITICO’s health care coverage, walks us through the COVID-19 outbreak, America’s slow response and what we should expect in the weeks and months to come.

She’s the co-founder and CEO of one of the biggest e-commerce subscription companies in the world. Katia Beauchamp joins us to talk about how she figured out what she wanted to do, the value of starting wherever you are, and what she does to declutter her thinking.

On this special "International Women's Day" episode, Anna is joined by Dr. Natalia Kanem, head of the UNFPA. Her job is to help protect and promote access to sexual and reproductive health and health education throughout the world — especially for girls and women.

The Fox News host gets real about #MeToo, the 2020 election and what it’s like as the only woman of color to anchor a weekday news show on any major cable network.

She’s a teacher, mental health advocate and part of one of America’s most famous political families. But does Amy Kennedy have what it takes to oust an incumbent Republican congressman in one of America’s most closely watched 2020 races?

Kathryn Murdoch opens up about her famous Fox News-owning in-laws, the existential threat of climate change, why politics is so broken — and why she plans on spending $100 million to fix it.

When you sit down at a restaurant to eat, there are so many things that need to happen that never occur to you. That’s where Kimberly Grant comes in. She’s the CEO of José Andrés’ company, and before that, one of the top executives at Ruby Tuesday. Kimberly joined Anna to talk about what makes a restaurant a success, the weird spat between her boss and Donald Trump, and why sterling credentials aren’t always a match for real-world experience.

Live from the Women Rule summit, Anna speaks with "One Day At a Time" star Isabella Gomez and showrunner Gloria Calderón Kellett about TV, Trump, Latinx representation, the stereotypes they wish would disappear, and how Hollywood is changing for women.

She's the most powerful woman in America: Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi. At the Women Rule Summit, she sat down with Anna to talk about the impeachment of President Donald Trump, her decades-long effort to get more women elected to Congress, and why simply having a seat at the table isn’t enough.

Lolwah Al-Khater is the face of Qatari diplomacy. She’s also an introvert with a fear of public speaking, and the first woman ever to hold her position. We talked about how she manages all that — on top of the formidable portfolio of issues she deals with every day in the Middle East.

She flew 89 combat missions in Iraq and Afghanistan. She was the first woman in the Marine Corps to fly an F-18 in a combat mission. Now, she’s home in Kentucky, hoping to beat the odds and bring down the most powerful man in the Senate. But to do that, Amy McGrath will need to convince a great many Trump-supporting Kentuckians to cross over and support her, too.

Amy Howe, the president and COO of Ticketmaster North America, joins Anna Palmer to discuss the “obligation to dissent” that makes her speak up in meetings, what her years as a business consultant taught her about being a successful manager and boss, and how we might be getting that whole “work-life balance” thing all wrong.

MJ Hegar doesn’t back down from a fight — whether in combat in Afghanistan, or pushing the Pentagon to revise old sexist rules, or being denied a meeting with her member of Congress, or running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat in deep-red Texas.

You know Susan Rice as President Obama's national security adviser and UN ambassador. But there's a lot about her you don't know — like the time Donald Trump hugged her and said she was treated unfairly about Benghazi; or the moment she, as a young Clinton administration official, flipped off Richard Holbrooke; or her time helping lead America's foreign policy despite being a 32-year-old with a baby on her hip; or what it was like having a dad who grew up in segregated South Carolina, and whose daughter was few black kids growing up in Washington DC's most elite schools.

A year after the death of her husband, Sen. John McCain, Cindy McCain joins us to talk about the value of civility, her struggle to be taken seriously as a woman in Washington, and the side of her that you probably don't know — ranging from her time as special education teacher working with the children of migrant farmworkers, to the critical role Jill and Joe Biden played at the start of John and Cindy's relationship.

It's an important skill to have. Just ask Jamie Jones Miller. She was a college athlete, then worked as a lobbyist before a career on Capitol Hill, where she rose to become a chief of staff. Now, as the top lobbyist for the Defense Department, she has to walk a fine line — being strong and forceful but also empathetic and congenial.

When you conjure up an image of a c-suite executive, you probably don’t envision a smiling, friendly person. At first, Kate Lewis didn’t either. And that was a problem as Lewis started taking on jobs in the publishing world with greater and greater responsibilities: By nature, she has a smiling, friendly disposition. But she didn’t see very many people like that in the corridors of power. “In the magazine industry, there are a lot of—there’s an image, right, that you need to be a high-fashion person, that you need to have been a journalist in the trenches,” said Lewis, the chief content officer for Hearst Magazines. As a young, ambitious woman, she emulated them—thinking doing so was key to her thriving in the notoriously fast-paced New York publishing world. Instead, she had a realization that changed everything: What if being herself—that smiling, friendly person—actually made her a better leader? “I found my success when I became who I am. And that’s hard,” Lewis said during an interview for POLITICO’s Women Rule podcast. “I became comfortable with just being Kate. And that enabled me to have more candid, more deep, more real conversations with the people who were either going to hire me or were going to manage me or who I was going to work with. And I think that has made me more successful.” At Hearst, Lewis oversees some of the most enduring and recognized magazines in America, including Cosmopolitan, Country Living, Good Housekeeping, Elle, Marie Claire, Popular Mechanics, Harper’s Bazaar and Elle, to name a few. “Even though wisdom may be, you know, not to be the goofball, and to … not openly question yourself or open yourself up for debate, I think that has worked out really well for me,” Lewis said. “I think it’s coupled with the fact that I am decisive, and when I see the path, I go after it, and that I am capable of being critical, and all those things.” “To me, that is the best strategy,” said Lewis: “Just be yourself and trust that that’s enough.”

She started out as an intern and worked her way up to become the president of entertainment and chief marketing officer of Univision. But before all that, she was a girl growing up in the Bronx — the eldest daughter of two Spanish-speaking immigrants, which gave her a foot in two worlds. As a kid, she had to translate for her parents — especially after her father died suddenly when she was just 15. She says those responsibilities coming at such an early age are common — and where others simply see hurdles, she also sees the start of her trajectory as a business leader. Now, Jessica Rodriguez is one of the most powerful Latinas in media. And she wants to help make the c-suite more diverse — which means, in part, making people see their own strengths.

She was the first woman to lead a diplomatic mission in Saudi Arabia. She was the U.S. ambassador to Malta. Now, Gina Abercrombie-Winstanley is trying to open up the diplomatic world to more women and people of color.

In the 2018 elections, the number of GOP women in the House dropped to its lowest number in 25 years. That’s where Rebecca Schuller comes in: Her newly formed super PAC is aimed at increasing the number of Republican women in Congress.

How do you get to be one of the most powerful women in the tech world by the time you're in your mid-30s? Maher is the head of the Wikimedia Foundation, the group that runs the fifth most popular website in the world: Wikipedia. She joins to talk about women in tech, fake news and what she discovered when she became a boss.

She went from being a paralegal and receptionist to a CEO, self-made billionaire and member of the president’s cabinet. Linda McMahon, the former CEO of WWE, former head of the Small Business Administration and current chair of America First Action — a super PAC dedicated to supporting Donald Trump’s 2020 campaign — shares what she learned along the way.

Before joining Congress, Houlahan served in the Air Force, led a major sporting-goods company, taught high-school chemistry, and was a non-profit executive. She shares what she’s learned along the way — and how she became comfortable taking on totally new challenges, time and again.

Refinery29 co-founder and executive creative director Piera Gelardi on what she’s learned as a former art-school student who became a heavy hitter in the online publishing world — including how she got comfortable asking questions in business meetings, managing a work-life balance when you work with your husband and growing up in a family business.

Katie Sturino, the founder of Megababe and blogger behind “The 12ish Style,” opens up about pushing the fashion industry to become more size-inclusive. It is, by now, folk wisdom on the Internet: Never read the comments beneath a news article. They can be filled with sexism, racism, cruel mockery and ad hominem attacks. Avoid them at all costs — especially if the article is about you, or you’re a woman, or you don’t fit a very narrow range of acceptable body types. Katie Sturino ignored that advice. She doesn’t regret it. In fact, she credits it with inspiring her “a-ha” moment. Four years ago, after being the subject of an article about personal style and “how to get dressed as a curvy woman,” Sturino took in readers’ reactions and was surprised by what she saw. “I read the comments of women, and they said, ‘Oh, my god, I’ve never seen my body on a fashion blog.’ ‘Oh, my god, I’m a size 14, and I didn’t think I could wear shorts,” Sturino said in an interview for POLITICO’s Women Rule podcast. “It was this thing where I realized that it was my job, this was — I was being called to this.” Since that realization, Sturino has become the serial entrepreneur behind a small style empire that focuses on the women who are often ignored by the fashion industry. “I think that there’s this misconception with designers, where you’ve got 12 people sitting around a boardroom, none of them are over a size six, and they’re like, ‘We’re dressing all women,’” said Sturino. “That is how they think.” Sturino wants them to think again.

As editor-in-chief of the Bustle Digital Group, Kate Ward oversees some of the web's most popular news outlets, including Romper, Elite Daily, and Mic — pretty amazing for a company that started out of a Brooklyn apartment. Ward shares what she's learned in the journey from start-up to major success — including why Bustle gives its employees a financial stake in the company.

Since founding Framebridge in 2014, Susan Tynan has raised more than $67 million in funding for her company. How did she do it? By learning at every step of the way and learning to trust her own instincts. Anna sat down with Susan on stage to talk about the specific lessons she's learned from launching her own startup, how to get over the hump in starting your own business, and what it's like to be a professional woman pitching mostly wealthy, white, male investors.

The name Anna Wintour immediately calls to mind an image of a woman at once both cool and cold, her face framed by an perfect bob haircut, her eyes inscrutable, hidden behind oversized sunglasses. You imagine the mind behind those glasses — the mind behind VOGUE, the woman whose hard-charging leadership style was the basis for Meryl Streep’s titular character in “The Devil Wears Prada.” But if you’re able to escape the gravitational pull of that image, you’ll find something else: A model of how women can lead, and a cautionary tale of the double-standards they face once they do. “They’re caricatures, they’re stereotypes,” said Amy Astley in an interview for POLITICO’s Women Rule podcast. “This is a businessperson successfully running a business. It’s not easy. And some of those things that were heaped upon her, you don’t see it heaped upon men as much.” Astley is the editor-in-chief of Architectural Digest and a longtime Wintour protege who has led AD through something of a renaissance — dramatically expanding its digital business, launching new products and rejuvenating the century-old magazine’s brand. Working in the world of style and fashion journalism, Astley sees her role as reflecting on the culture and illuminating why certain things are important to society. And that makes politics an unavoidable topic — even if you’re not intentionally being political. “I had Ricky Martin on the cover [of AD] with his husband and his two kids … in their house in LA. They were barefoot, casual. I didn’t really give it two thoughts because to me, they’re just a fabulous couple — beautiful family, great house,” said Astley. “I had a lot of letters thanking me for just presenting them as a gay couple without putting any politics around it or pointing it out in any way, and it didn’t really occur to me that we would single them out in any way; to me, they were a family. That’s political.” She came to the job after 13 years as Teen Vogue’s founding editor-in-chief — a position she was hand-picked for after a decade spent at its parent publication, Vogue. Astley credits her success at the top of the publishing world to the lessons she learned from Wintour’s example. “Anna is not only the hardcore businesswoman, but she is a person who works all the time … and I have tried to bring that to all my jobs,” said Astley. “You see that she’s in it with you working really, really hard. We all know of bosses who, like, don’t really come to work. And it’s not a positive.” “I really learned watching her be relentless: Keep trying things; do new things. Don’t worry if people say negative things about you. If something fails, carry on,” said Astley. For Astley, one of those “new things” was launching Teen Vogue in 2003 with a decidedly different perspective than other publications aimed at girls and young women. “My thinking was feminist, to be honest. I wanted the magazine to be about the life and the well-being of the young woman,” said Astley. “It wasn’t about how to kiss or … silly quizzes or how to dress to attract boys. I didn’t want any of that. I didn’t want it to be about how you are in relation to men; how you attract them, how you make them happy, how you please them. [That’s] so dated, but that is still what teen magazines were largely doing at that point. Young women responded, and the magazine quickly became one of the most-circulated in the publishing world and blazed a path for the rush of woman-positive media that followed — which Astley credits to the generation of people who followed her and “were able to deepen and continue that work.” In that way, Astley herself became a model for young women pursuing leadership, much as Wintour was for her. “I know what my staff thinks about me and they know what I think about them. I think they’re the best, and I support them and I feel that comes back to me, and that’s why I’ve had a good career and have been able to make good products,” said Astley. “My team that I built, they know that I’m working hand-in-hand with them, and they know that I respect them and care about them. … It’s that simple. Respect, it all comes to respect.”

Live from SXSW in Austin, Congresswomen Terri Sewell and Veronica Escobar tell us about the unsolicited advice they've received as women running for office, what it's really like to wage a campaign for Congress, the very real barriers that women face in politics, and the best advice they've ever received about raising money.