Madam President / Women's History Month

There's a prevalent (false) media narrative that the Democratic Party lacks a bench of candidates who could run for president. The truth is, many prominent Democrats are not interested in running in 2016 because the party has coalesced around a strong candidate who is incredibly popular--Hillary Rodham Clinton. Clinton is unique in that she brings a breadth of experience to the table that is unmatched in recent years. Also, the prospect of making history as the first female president is exciting to many people. While I am solidly in the Ready for Hillary camp, in honor of Women's History Month, I'd like to showcase a dozen phenomenal Democratic females other than Hillary Clinton who could easily make great presidential candidates in 2016 if she declined to run.

Tammy Baldwin

2013 - Present, U.S. Senate (Wisconsin)
1999 - 2013, U.S. House of Representatives (WI-2)
1993 - 1999, Wisconsin State Assembly
1986 - 1994, Dane County Board of Supervisors

• First openly gay U.S. senator

• Advocate for single-payer health insurance

• Former member of the House Progressive Caucus

• Sponsor of  National Breast and Cervical Cancer Early Detection Program

Maria Cantwell

2001 - Present, U.S. Senate (Washington)
1993 - 1995, U.S. House of Representatives (WA-1)
1987 - 1993, Washington House of Representatives

• Former Chairwoman of the Senate Small Business Committee and Senate Indian Affairs Committee

• First woman (along with Sen. Debbie Stabenow of Michigan) to defeat an incumbent senator

• Strong privacy advocate, including Internet privacy

• Sponsor of the Clean Money, Clean Elections Act, and later strong supporter of the McCain-Feingold campaign finance reform bill

• Led effort to black drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in 2005

Diana DeGette

1997 - Present, U.S. House of Representatives (CO-1)
1993 - 1997, Colorado House of Representatives

• Served as Chief Deputy Whip for the Democratic Caucus

• Co-chair of the Congressional Diabetes Caucus and Pro-Choice Caucus, as well as Vice Chair of the LGBT Equality Caucus

• Served as Assistant Minority Leader in the Colorado House of Representatives

• Author of the law known as the "Bubble Bill" requiring women in Colorado unobstructed access to abortion clinics and other medical care facilities 

Kirsten Gillibrand

2009 - Present, U.S. Senate
2007 - 2009, U.S. House of Representatives (NY-20)

• Served as Special Counsel to Andrew Cuomo while he served as Secretary of Housing and Urban Development

• Helped lead the effort to repeal Don't Ask, Don't Tell in 2010

• Proposed legislation removing military sexual assault cases from the military chain of command

• One of three original sponsors of legislation to legalize medical marijuana

• Introduced the FAMILY Act in 2014 which would provide for paid sick leave and maternity leave

Christine Gregoire

2005 - 2013, Governor of Washington
1993 - 2005, Attorney General of Washington

• Implemented early childhood educational programs and higher math and science standards

• Signed a gay civil rights bill that protected sexual orientation and gender identity in cases of discrimination in 2006, a domestic partnership bill in 2007, and same-sex marriage bill in 2012

• Board member for the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and breast cancer survivor

Amy Klobuchar

2007 - Present, U.S. Senate (Minnesota)
1999 - 2007, County Attorney of Hennepin County

• Named Attorney of the Year by Minnesota Lawyer in 2001

• Vice-Chair of the Joint Economic Committee

• Former legal adviser to former Vice President Walter Mondale

Barbara Lee
1998 - Present, U.S. House of Representatives (CA-13 / CA-9)
1990 - 1996, California State Assembly

• Former Chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus and former Co-Chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus

• Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus on HIV/AIDS and the Congressional Out of Poverty Caucus

• Only member of Congress to vote against authorizing military use in 2001 after the 9/11 attacks because she believed it was too broad

Patty Murray

1993 - Present, U.S. Senator (Washington)
1989 - 1993, Washington Senate
1985 - 1989, Shoreline School District Board of Directors

• Taught preschool and a parenting class prior to her career in politics 

• Current Democratic Caucus Secretary, a role she's held since 2007

• Former Chairwoman of the Senate Committee on the Budget and Senate Committee on Veteran's Affairs

• Chaired the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee from 2001-2003 and 2011-2013

Janet Napolitano

2009 - 2013, U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security
2003 - 2009, Governor of Arizona
1999 - 2003, Attorney General of Arizona

• Current President of the University of California

• Served as an attorney for Anita Hill and as a U.S. Attorney for the District of Arizona, she was involved in the investigation of the Oklahoma City Bombing

• Named of the five best governors in the U.S. by Time magazine in 2005

Loretta Sanchez
1997 - Present, U.S. House of Representatives (CA-46 / CA-47)

• Her younger sister was elected to Congress in 2002, and they became the first pair of sisters to serve simultaneously in Congress

• Major focuses while in Congress have been education, crime, economic development and protections for senior citizens

• Holds a degree in Economics and was a financial analyst before entering politics

Kathleen Sebelius

2009 - 2014, U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services
2003 - 2009, Governor of Kansas
1995 - 2003, Insurance Commissioner of Kansas
1987 - 1995, Kansas House of Representatives

• Named of the five best governors in the U.S. by Time magazine in 2005

• Helped eliminate a $1.1 billion debt she inherited as governor 

• First woman to chair the Democratic Governors Association (2007) and delivered the Democratic response to President George W. Bush's final State of the Union address in 2008

Jeanne Shaheen

2009 - Present, U.S. Senate (New Hampshire)
1997 - 2003, Governor of New Hampshire
1992 - 1996, New Hampshire Senate

• First (and to date only) woman to be elected both governor and U.S. senator

• National Chairperson of John Kerry's 2004 presidential campaign

• Co-authored the Medicare Transitional Care Act aimed at providing follow-up care for discharged patients to reduce re-hospitalizations

• Taught high school before entering politics