Gender Gap Widens

Democrats are poised to shatter two more notable glass ceilings in the coming year. Fresh off their success in adding women like Elizabeth Warren and Tammy Baldwin to the US Senate in last month’s election, the nation’s two largest cities are both a good bet to elect their first ever female mayors in 2013.

Incumbents Mike Bloomberg of New York and Antonio Villaraigosa of Los Angeles are both termed out next year, with the former likely to be replaced by NYC City Council Speaker Christine Quinn and odds being the latter will be succeeded by either LA City Councilwoman Jan Perry or Controller Wendy Greuel.

Greuel (left) and Perry (center) of Los Angeles, and Quinn of New York (right).

So while that’s happening, what, you ask, are Republicans doing to improve their lot among the American women who—along with Latinos, young people, LGBT folks and anyone who suspects the earth may be more than 5,000 years old—just administered an electoral drubbing to the GOP?

For starters, as stunned journalists have been reporting this week, there’s the incoming power structure for the House of Representatives:

Res ipsa loquitur.

In addition, the Speaker, Majority Leader and Majority Whip of the GOP House are also members of this reliably consistent demographic. (Their three counterparts among the senior Democratic leadership are, by comparison, comprised of a woman, a white guy and a black guy.)

In addition, there’s the lynch mob in hot pursuit of UN Ambassador Susan Rice. Determined to scandal-pimp Benghazi into somehow getting some traction, dangit,  GOP neocons seem unconcerned about the fact that they’re going after the wrong person.

The one silver lining for Republicans after this year’s election is the party’s possession of 30 of the nation’s governorships. So perhaps progress is being made at the state level in narrowing the gender gap?

If by “progress” we mean continuing the jihad against contraception, reproductive health and other, ongoing obsessions with lady parts in states like Ohio, Virginia and Mississippi, then the answer is a resounding “yes.” (Can the next rape redefiner be far behind? Nobody puts Crazy in a corner.)

Update: The GOP House leadership, after a week of bad press about its “male whites only” problem, has frantically addressed the issue in a way that shows they really, you know, get it. Damage control has come in the form of Michigan’s Candice Miller, who’s been quickly recruited to chair the House Administration Committee, despite never having served on said committee.

What weighty matters of state, you ask, are within the purview of said committee?

Among other things, it oversees the House cafeteria.

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