Alabamians rally with Concerned Women of America in support of Brett Kavanaugh SCOTUS confirmation
Nearly a hundred conservatives from throughout the Birmingham area braved the Alabama summer heat to join Concerned Women for America (CWA) — the nation’s largest public policy women’s organization — on Thursday, August 23, 2018 for a rally on their national bus tour. Gathered outside of Hoover Tactical in Hoover, Ala., the CWA team joined with local conservative leaders to rally conservative Alabamians to use their voices encourage Sen. Doug Jones to support Kavanaugh’s confirmation. This was their only stop in Alabama before heading south to Tallahassee and then Jacksonville, Florida rounding out a national bus tour that will end in Washington, D.C. “This is the moment conservative women and evangelical voters have been waiting for and a huge reason why they voted for President Trump,” said Penny Nance, CEO and President of Concerned Women for America in a press release. “This in an historic moment for our nation, and I could not be more proud to stand alongside conservative women across the country in support of Judge Kavanaugh,” continued Nance. “Judge Kavanaugh is uniquely qualified, fair, and impartial and fulfills President Trump’s campaign promise to nominate a constitutional conservative to the Supreme Court.” “It is so important that everyone be involved with this confirmation process,” said one of the rally’s speakers, former State Rep. Paul DeMarco. “The public sentiment has been supportive of this nominee because he is so well-qualified to sit on the Supreme Court. And our United States senators need to hear from the citizens of Alabama that we want to see Brett Kavanaugh confirmed as the next Supreme Court Justice.” The large crowd was among the largest crowds of the entire CWA tour a signal that organizers hope will send a clear message to Senator Jones. “We had a great crowd out today to show that support and we appreciate Penny Nance for bringing their bus tour to Alabama,” DeMarco added. The event also drew the attention of Republican Women of Shelby County President Dawn Ray, who’s been affiliated with CWA for over 30 years and supports their mission of protecting and promoting “Biblical values and Constitutional principles through prayer, education, and advocacy.” Ray attended Thursday’s event and said she believes Kavanaugh “is imminently qualified” and “is the right person for the job” on the Supreme Court. “Kavanaugh has vast experience and a record to support his position as a Constitutionalist. I.e., he has and will interpret the law as the Founder’s intended and believes in the Separation of Powers. The judicial branch was intended to interpret and not create law, which is the legislature’s responsibility,” Ray explained. If confirmed by the U.S. Senate, Kavanaugh will sit on the court for life, or until he chooses to retire. “The confirmation of Judge Kavanaugh should matter not only to Alabamians, but to citizens of all states,” Ray added. Notable attendees included State Reps. Jim Carns, Matt Fridy, and April Weaver. Jefferson County DA Mike Anderton, Constable Gilbert Douglas. As well as the Jefferson and Shelby County GOP Chairs. Representatives from Kay Ivey’s reelection campaign were also on hand as were ALGOP staff.
Concerned Women for America’s Penny Nance addresses Republican Women in Birmingham
A group of approximately 100 Republican women from across Alabama met in the dining room of the Vestavia Hills Country Club Thursday afternoon to hear a much-anticipated address from Concerned Women for America president and CEO Penny Young Nance. A fixture on cable news and Capitol Hill, Nance’s work with CWA has earned her the respect of liberals and conservatives alike for her ability to graciously engage with those on both sides of the aisle. Facilitated by former Alabama State Rep. Paul DeMarco, Nance’s conversation at the Alabama Federation of Republican Women’s luncheon covered everything from her new book to what conservatives should do if Democratic nominee Hillary Clinton wins the White House in November. “This is our Esther moment,” Nance told the crowd, referring to the Old Testament story of Queen Esther, whose uncle told her she was likely made queen for “such a time as this.” “Women should never be caught in a conversation where they’re looking down at their shoes because they don’t know what to say,” Nance said, urging women to “first pray, then prepare,” to adamantly defend their beliefs in the public sphere. Nance spent much of her time talking about the need to fervently address the issues surrounding sexual assault, rape, and sexual exploitation. One of CWA’s core issues is fighting sexual exploitation, Nance explained, and as a victim of attempted rape herself, she is personally sensitive to the issue. “I don’t know why I was spared,” she said, “but what I do know is I have a national platform I can use to help other people, and that’s what I intend to do.” Calling sexual exploitation and assault a “least of these issues,” Nance said the core of the problem is one of moral decline. “We’re in the middle of a moral crisis in this nation, and the evidence is all around us.” Nance also condemned politicians and bureaucrats for failing to implement policies that will actually protect women, specifically citing the Debbie Smith Act. Named for a rape victim who had to wait six years for her “rape kit” to be tested, the law was supposed to grant money to state and local law enforcement agencies to clear the backlogs of medical tests needed to bring rapists to justice. That money, Nance asserts, never made it to its intended target. Nance also addressed her belief that the 60 million evangelical and devout Catholic American women need to stand together to support Trump, if for no other reason than the one to four Supreme Court justices the next president will appoint. Even if Trump isn’t elected, she believes conservatives must keep the pressure on the U.S. Senate not to appoint pro-choice justices or federal judges. She went on to criticize the political left’s tolerance of radical islam, saying “Islam gives women no power, but the left won’t condemn them. … There’s so much to be said for honestly looking at the ideology and its treatment of vulnerable people, and also the ignorance of the left and its refusal to admit the hatefulness and evil of [radical Islam]. At the end of the discussion there was only time for one question from the audience, which came from a young African-American man who asked her to bring her message to communities of color where he said women are being mistreated and disrespected by men. Nance responded by explaining her belief that the growing disrespect for women in low-income communities isn’t a color issue, it’s a failing of the church. “Income inequality is rooted in family inequality,” explained Nance. “Churches have failed, men have been told they don’t matter, and we have a hurting world and a hurting country, and children and women are harmed in the fallout.” The first, most important group to address this, she believes, is the church, because “we are one in Christ.” Attendees of the lunch received a copy of Nance’s recently published book “Feisty and Feminine: A Rallying Cry for Conservative Women.”
