Sen. Kelly Ayotte (R-NH) and National Republican Committeewoman Ronna Romney McDaniel joined Michigan Senate hopeful Terri Lynn Land on a tele-press conference Friday to denounce what the campaign called "the offensive and sexist campaign" Peters and his supporters are running against Land.
Earlier this week, Democrats took to Twitter to attack the former secretary of state for mentioning that she was a mother on several occasions during an hour-long radio interview.
McDaniel likened the comments to Democrat strategist Hillary Rosen’s in 2012 attacking her aunt, Ann Romney, for being a stay-at-home mom. She also called on the Gary Peters, the Michigan Press, and Michelle Obama to condemn the attacks on Land.
“It is troubling to see Gary Peters claim over and over that he is an outspoken supporter of women, only to have him remain silent as Terri is attacked. Does Gary Peters believe that moms have no business caring about foreign affairs, health care or earning a paycheck?” she asked.
"With the First Lady in Michigan today, we certainly admire Mrs. Obama as a great mom for raising her daughters under unimaginable pressure, and we believe, and I certainly believe, that Mrs. Obama would not condone the rhetoric that we’ve heard that is being used against Terri Lynn Land in terms of her role as a mom and how that would inform her decision making in the U.S. Senate," Ayotte said.
As a mother of two, Ayotte said it’s imperative that there are more women elected to the Senate because they bring important experience and perspective.
“So when I ran, and I continue all the time to talk about the experience of being a mother and what that means to policy decisions in Washington,” she continued. “Moms bring an incredibly important perspective. In many households, moms are the primary or sole breadwinners. They are making so many of the important decisions on family finances, on health care, and to me to see stereotypes being pushed, or to see Terri being criticized for referencing her experience as a mom, and how that would inform her decisions as a policy maker, you know, I can’t believe that we are even here, that we aren’t beyond this.”
Land went on to explain her track record of success in public service.
Elected Kent County’s first female county clerk and register of deeds, Land was able to modernize the office, cut costs, and pave the way for a better work-life balance for working parents. And as secretary of state she implemented the same programs, in addition to developing a new one designed to help female managers. By the time she left, she explained, there were more female managers than when she began.
“Now Congressman Peters has tried to criticize my record for working for women. But I’m not going to be lectured by a man who pays the women on his staff 67 cents on the dollar compared with male staff. And I’m not going to be criticized by a man who allows his staff to disrespect the moms in Michigan,” she said.
“Congressman Peters and his allies are trying to make folks think that I don’t have what it takes to be a U.S. Senator because I’m a mom. Well I think it’s very important to bring that perspective to every job that they have. And it’s very important that you have more moms in the U.S. Senate when they think about the issues that are affecting us today,” she added.
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