Jeanne Shaheen in Council on Foreign Relations
On Foreign Policy:
Public cares about rights of women & girls in Afghanistan
It's important to point out that the United States is the first that has actually codified this Women, Peace, and Security Act. We know when women are at the table that negotiations are 64% less likely to fail; that agreements are 35% more likely to
last for 15 years or more. There is good data to show that having women at the table, which most of the women here would agree to, really makes a difference in terms of how peace is negotiated, conflict is negotiated, and then how lasting it is.
I've had a chance to quiz our military leadership there about this. Every time I've had a chance to do that, they have reaffirmed the commitment to Afghan women and girls. As I talk to people in New Hampshire, where the war in Afghanistan is not
uppermost in people's minds, whenever you talk about Afghanistan the first thing people talk about is are we going to keep our commitment to the women and the girls in Afghanistan. The public cares about this issue.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations: 2020 New Hampshire Senate race
May 18, 2020
On Homeland Security:
Support military spending, but don't undercut diplomacy
One of General Mattis'--my favorite quotes from him is his saying, if you don't fund diplomacy efforts you've got to give me more bullets because I'm going to need them. We are in the process of dramatically plussing-up the military, and I support that
effort. But at the same time, we have been undercutting our diplomatic efforts in terms of personnel, in terms of funding. The idea that we would cut the State Department 30%, given what's going on in the world right now, makes no sense at all.
We know that women, when they're on peacekeeping forces, are better in dealing with conflict in lots of ways and not engaging in sexual violence and helping to address those issues. I think the more we can encourage women to be in those roles, the
better, because it puts women in a place to make decisions that are important. It's one of the reasons I'm a big supporter of making sure that we opened up our military here in the United States to women at all levels.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations: 2020 New Hampshire Senate race
May 18, 2020
On Principles & Values:
Women's experiences different not better or worse than men's
As women, we have different life experiences. They're not any better or worse than men's, but they're different. When we're at the table, we bring that perspective. It's really important to have that perspective at the table.
If we don't have that perspective, then we're missing half of the population in the world. So it's really important to make sure that women are represented.
Source: Council on Foreign Relations: 2020 New Hampshire Senate race
May 18, 2020
Page last updated: Mar 16, 2022