Rosa DeLauro

We already shared the highlights from our week in Charlotte at the Democratic National Convention, including our Town Hall. But another highlight for us was how many of our women spoke at the Convention. It was truly remarkable to watch the women we’ve spent all year championing take the stage and inspire a whole new audience. We also loved the speeches from some of our candidates in past cycles. EMILY’s List women really are rock stars.

Tammy Duckworth

As Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi said last night, being a woman will no longer be a pre-existing condition in America! With Speaker Pelosi at the helm, the House passed historic health care legislation last night, and many of the women we helped elect played a critical role in ensuring better coverage for American women and families.

First, I would like to extend a warm and generous welcome to my new colleague in the House, Judy Chu of California. I look forward to having Judy in our caucus, and I am sure she will bring a strong voice to Congress and continue the progressive legacy of her predecessor, Secretary of Labor Hilda Solis. It’s always great to have another Democrat and another woman joining our ranks on Capitol Hill.

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On the 48th anniversary of the Equal Pay Act, women still only make 77 cents on the male dollar. This fact was brought to our attention in a discussion we attended recently sponsored by EMILY’s List’s Senator Barbara Mikulski and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro on pay equity.

We're glad to see that our women in Congress know when to stand up and say that enough is enough.

This week, Cong. Rosa DeLauro (CT-03) called out Joe Lieberman on his attempts to stall health care reform, saying:

"No individual should hold health care hostage, including Joe Lieberman, and I'll say it flat out, I think he ought to be recalled. ... We don't have the luxury to hold up a bill that could make a difference in people's lives. This is what we were sent here to do."

If you didn’t notice from the pink uniform accents on display during the NFL football games a few weeks back - October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Breast cancer is the second most diagnosed cancer among women after skin cancer, and kills more women each year than any other cancer except lung cancer. All cancer types combined are responsible for almost a quarter of deaths among women, eclipsed only by heart disease. It’s a pretty big deal, and we would all be well served to know what puts us at risk and what we can do about it.