National Leader Talks Leadership in Pennsylvania
A Powerful Girl Scout Presence on Capitol Hill

	Congresswoman Pelosi inspires Girl Scouts across the country to leadership.

U.S. Congresswoman and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi tells Girl Scout supporters in Pennsylvania that Girl Scouts is "developing the next generation of leaders."

On April 4, 2005, Representative Nancy Pelosi, member of the Honorary Congressional Girl Scout Troop ("Troop Capitol Hill") and Democratic Leader of the United States House of Representatives, spoke to local Girl Scout supporters at the Girl Scouts of Talus Rock Council Annual Fundraising Dinner in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. Congresswoman Pelosi spoke at the request of Congressman John P. Murtha, who, along with his wife, Joyce, is a strong supporter of Girl Scouts. Congressman Murtha has secured a speaker for this dinner for the past 28 years.

Girl Scouts of Talus Rock Council was delighted to welcome Congresswoman Pelosi, who in 2002 became the first female party leader in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Leading Today

The Congresswoman spoke about leadership and what it is like to be a woman and a leader in today’s political world:

"One of the first things that happened to me when I was elected Whip, I went to the White House for a meeting with the President, it was the opening of the session for that particular year, to talk about the agenda. I didn’t even think much about it. I have been to the White House numerous times before. Not to be blasé about the White House, but Jack [Representative Murtha] and I work in the Capitol of the United States. They come here, we go there.

"… As soon as that door closed and I looked at the table, I realized that this was unlike any other meeting I had been to at the White House. In fact, it was unlike any other meeting a woman had been to at the White House. Here we would be consulting over what the agenda would be.

"… As the President began to talk, I began to feel squeezed in at my chair. It was if people were sitting there with me. It was getting tighter and tighter. I could just sense that every woman who had worked to promote women’s opportunity was sitting on that chair with me. Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton, certainly Juliette Gordon Low, were sitting on that chair with me, and many others. And all of a sudden I could hear them say: ‘At last, we have a seat at the table.’ And then they were gone. My first thought was: ‘we want more.’ And it drove home to me what my responsibility was, certainly my opportunity, but also the responsibility that I have. A reminder that we all stand on the shoulders of others."

Important Issues

During the speech, Representative Pelosi talked about her priorities in Congress:

"So with all of that, when I first came to Congress and now as Leader, when people ask me what are the three most important issues facing the Congress, I still and always say the same thing: our children, our children, our children.

"Their health, their education, the economic security of their families, a safe environment to live in, and a world at peace in which they can thrive. We see everything through that prism of the future, of the next generation, like the Girl Scouts."

The Promise of the Future

Congresswoman Pelosi went on to talk about her support of Girl Scouts as an organization that is "developing the next generation of leaders who will one day take their seats at the table." She added:

"Not only does Girl Scouts nurture the interests and abilities of girls today, it prepares them for being successful women tomorrow, in whatever manner they choose to define success."

She also cited Defining Success: American Women, Achievement & the Girl Scouts to illustrate the important role Girl Scouting plays in leadership development. She observed:

"In a recent survey, 4 in 10 women reported that they had been Girl Scouts, but fully 66 percent of women with significant career accomplishments had been Girl Scouts. Indeed, there is no higher tribute to the Girl Scouts than the legacies of your alumnae."

Changing the System

Looking to the future of women in the political system, she went on to say, "Some years from now we will look back and say, ‘Imagine there was a time when there were 60 some women in the Congress, 14 percent of the Congress, and of 12,000 people who have served in the Congress only 228 have been women. How could people have found that acceptable?’"

In addition to her role as the Democratic Leader in the House of Representatives, the Congresswoman also serves on the House Appropriations Committee and the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence. She represents the 8th District in California and has been serving in the House of Representatives since 1987.