NOW Political Action Committee Proudly Endorses Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton for President of the United States in 2008

Gathered here today at the historic home of Alice Paul and the National Woman’s Party, surrounded by great women of the past, we are celebrating this Women’s History Month by both honoring the past and looking to the future. We truly are living in historic times, days our foremothers knew would come, as long as new generations of women’s rights activists – and voters – carried on their work. And carry it on we have, with U.S. women enjoying freedoms and opportunities that our great grandmothers only dreamed of.

Today, the first woman speaker presides over the U.S. House of Representatives, and Harvard University has its first woman president. Firsts are important, because they open doors for those who follow – but our real goal is to have every first followed by seconds and thirds and fourths, until having women in leadership is so common that it isn’t even remarkable any longer.

At this time in our history, this country needs strong, experienced and principled leadership to restore faith in our government and repair its credibility at home and abroad, and to end the destructive policies that have eroded our civil liberties and increased injustice and inequality in our society.

Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton is just such a leader. She has a long history of support for women’s empowerment, and her public record is a testimony to her leadership on issues important to women in the U.S. and around the globe. She has eloquently articulated the need for full economic, political and social equality for women in every institution of society, taking action throughout her career – as a lawyer, community leader, First Lady, Senator and candidate for the presidency – to advance the civil and human rights of women and girls.

That is why I am proud, on behalf of over 500,000 contributing members of the National Organization for Women, to announce the NOW PAC’s enthusiastic endorsement of Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton for president of the United States.

NOW PAC’s “Make History With Hillary,” campaign will organize and energize women’s rights supporters across the country – urging women and men across this nation to stand up and say “I’m Ready” for a woman president – for this woman president.

I know I’m ready for a president who can turn the country around, and point us in the direction of equality, justice and opportunity for all.

For 30 years, NOW PAC has worked tirelessly to help elect feminist candidates to federal office and increase the representation of women in our government. Through “Make History With Hillary,” NOW PAC will provide training, tools and resources to our hundreds of thousands of supporters, so that they will be informed and equipped to work as volunteers at the grassroots level to elect feminist candidates and make our dream of a woman president a reality.

At the national level, NOW PAC will work to increase public awareness of the extraordinary career, accomplishments and leadership of Senator Clinton. Our members will conduct voter registration drives, make phone calls and go door to door to encourage women to vote as if their future depended on it, because it does. Finally, we will help elect feminist candidates to the House and Senate who will work with President Clinton to undo the damage done by the Bush administration.

Here in the home of Alice Paul – one of the brave leaders who helped win women the right to vote in 1920 – I am honored to stand beside the candidate I hope will be the first woman president of the United States of America, but not the last. A woman who can turn things around and get us back on the right track.

This is the legacy we can leave to our daughters and granddaughters: a dream realized and a new dawn for all who share the dream of equality and justice.

Read more about Hillary Rodham Clinton on the issues.

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Contact: Caitlin Gullickson, media[at]now.org, 202-628-8669 ext 123