This week, Republicans released the names of the representatives who will chair House committees in the upcoming 114th Congress, starting in January. That nearly all of the new chairmen selected are exactly that—men—is not a particularly good look, given that the GOP doesn’t have a great rep when it comes to supporting women’s issues.
“Notably, none of the new House committee chairs are women,” The Hill reports.
“Current House Administration Committee Chairwoman Candice Miller (R-Mich.) remains the only female on the roster of panel leaders, which was announced earlier,” the news site explained.
The group responsible for interviewing candidates and voting for who will fill the chair posts is the House Republican Steering Committee—a panel that consists of “elected leadership, top committee chairmen and regional representatives,” The Hill report explained. In other words: top GOP brass.
The nearly all-male selections did not elude women’s advocacy groups.
“Despite a year on the campaign trail pretending to moderate their image on women’s issues, it’s clear when it comes to the ‘new GOP,’ women can expect the same old same old,” Marcy Stech, the national press secretary for EMILY’s List, a group that advocates for pro-choice Democratic candidates, wrote in an email to reporters.
“They’ve selected an all-male slate of House committee chairs (again)—save the ‘Housekeeping Committee,’ which they’ve graciously allowed a woman to helm,” Stech noted.
“Women voters,” she added, “will be watching and holding these Republicans accountable."
Read more at The Hill.