GOP Rep. Elise Stefanik Slams News Outlet For ‘Outrageously Sexist’ Segment About How Her Pregnancy Could Affect Her Work

Photo by Andrew Harrer-Pool/Getty Images.

Rep. Elise Stefanik (R-NY) slammed a local news outlet in Vermont’s coverage of her upcoming maternity leave as “outrageously sexist.”

“Wow. It’s 2021. This is a real TV clip aired in #NY21 this evening,” she tweeted late Friday. “A local news station thinks it’s appropriate for two male “journalists/analysts” to question whether a pregnant woman or new mother can effectively legislate in elected office.”

“In terms of leadership, will her absence though — physical absence — on Capitol Hill hurt her role in the Republican Party?” asked reporter Darren Perron. “There seems to be you know two Republican factions in the party: the Elise Stefaniks and the Liz Cheneys, for example.”

SUNY Plattsburgh political scientist Harvey Schantz answered,”At a personal level, there’s always talking and backstabbing and coalition formation among members of the party, but it really shouldn’t interrupt Stefanik’s standing within the party.”

Stefanik called out specific quotes from the pair’s conversation that she viewed as sexist:

• “as someone who wants to be scarce after having a child and also in the short run up before”
• “someone who is not up to full time engagement on the floor of the House or the office buildings and committee meetings do their job”
• “While she’s not at full energy at her job”
• “Her physical absence on Capitol Hill.”

“What an outrageous disgrace from two sexist male commentators,” Stefanik concluded. “Women viewers deserve a full apology from WCAX. This is sadly why more women choose not to run for office.”

Several women supported Stefanik’s comments, with one noting that the segment’s topic was “ridiculous.”

“I suspect Elise Stefanik and I disagree about nearly everything, but on this point, I couldn’t agree more: long segments on whether new moms can effectively serve in Congress are sexist and ridiculous,” wrote Christina Reynolds, the VP of Communications for EMILY’s List, a PAC supporting pro-choice women candidates.

“I too am a working mom,” tweeted RNC chairperson Ronna McDaniel. “The comments made about [Stefanik] are sexist and shameful.”

Former GOP Rep. Scott Taylor (R-VA) echoed Stefanik’s comments, calling the conversation “contemptible.”

“You owe the Congresswoman, indeed all women, an apology,” he added.

Iowa Rep. Ashley Hinson (R) weighed in as well, writing: “It’s absurd that Elise has to deal with this. Elise continues to show women that they can run, win, and do the job better than anyone as a working mom.”