Kirsten Gillibrand: I think we should be drawing down our troops, not...

Without your voice being heard in Washington, the decisions we make aren't as good. I would urge women to consider public service. And if you want to run, give me a call. I'll help.

Kirsten Gillibrand

decisions-we-make voice running

When we create hope and opportunity in the lives of others, we allow love, decency and promise to triumph over cowardice and hate.

Kirsten Gillibrand

hate opportunity promise

When a woman has the opportunity to speak truth to power, it's important that she does, even if it's just trying to get a crosswalk in her neighborhood. That's how social change happens!

Kirsten Gillibrand

important opportunity trying

If we are going to out-innovate, out-compete, out-educate other countries, it's going to be women who make a difference, it's women who are going to lead the way and you know, until women get that rightful place and decision making and leadership and growth, America won't realize all her potential.

Kirsten Gillibrand

differences country america

If I had a daughter, I would tell her certain things. I would tell her that it’s great to be smart, really smart - that being smart makes you strong. I would tell her that emotions are powerful, so don’t be afraid to show them. I would tell her that some people may judge you on how you look or what you wear - that’s just how it is - but you should keep your focus on what you say and do. I would tell her that she may see the world differently from boys, and that difference is essential and good.

Kirsten Gillibrand

daughter powerful strong

Typically, [a victim of sexual assault] go home, take a shower, call their best friend, and evidence is lost. They say, "I can handle it." And they let time pass. And then, either the guy starts harassing them again or they see him do it to somebody else. Having that power on the first day is so important.

Kirsten Gillibrand

guy important home

Most of my friends that I know now [were sexually assaulted] stayed silent. And I see that still happening today. A lot of women will stay silent and not share what happened to them.

Kirsten Gillibrand

silent share today

A strong mentor can help a young woman find and advance in the career of her dreams that otherwise may have seemed impossible.

Kirsten Gillibrand

careers strong dream

My hope is that in the future, women stop referring to themselves as 'the only woman' in their physics lab or 'only one of two' in their computer science jobs.

Kirsten Gillibrand

labs jobs two

Women's voices aren't heard often enough. Congress should reflect the population, but with only 20 percent women in the Senate and 18 percent in the House, it just doesn't.

Kirsten Gillibrand

population voice house

Each campus should absolutely investigate the use of alcohol, the prevalence of alcohol, and its role in sexual assault. We know that predators will use alcohol as a weapon. We know they will use drugs as a weapon.

Kirsten Gillibrand

drug alcohol roles

Why the confidential advisor provision is so important, because most women - the first place they go is online: "What do I do if I'm raped?" There's no knowledge about "How do I proceed?" in a way that's going to protect them.

Kirsten Gillibrand

important way firsts

I might want to do a hundred things in a given day, but I know I have to pick up my kids between 5 and 6. That is the most important thing. So I fit in everything else around that. I know what needs to be done, and then I know what I want to get done.

Kirsten Gillibrand

important kids needs

We should be cultivating our female workers. The truth of the matter is that women just see problems and solutions differently, and that's valuable.

Kirsten Gillibrand

female problem matter

The story we hear over and over again is: Boy in science class, very nice to the girl, says, "Please come to our party on Saturday night." She, of course, shows up. He hands her two, three, four, five drinks. She becomes so inebriated he says, "You can sleep it off in my room. It'll be safe." Or, "I'll walk you home." It's all premeditated with the intention of having sex with that woman without her consent when she's passed out. It's a huge issue.

Kirsten Gillibrand

nice girl sex

I have since talked to some of my girlfriends sexual assault and found out that they had their own experiences that they never shared at the time. It was never talked about it. And I think it's because of that normal response - you feel badly, you feel responsible, you feel guilty, you feel like you did something wrong, you feel ashamed.

Kirsten Gillibrand

normal girlfriend thinking

One of the things that Claire [ McCaskill] and I are trying to do is put systems on campus in place so that a survivor knows who to talk to - that there's somebody who's an expert on their campus that will know all their options from day one and really empower them to make their own decision about what they want to do.

Kirsten Gillibrand

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I find that when you open the door toward openness and transparency, a lot of people will follow you through.

Kirsten Gillibrand

transparency doors people

I believe transparency in government is key to restoring our nations faith in its elected leaders.

Kirsten Gillibrand

government keys believe

I don't think clients you represented as an associate are relevant ... I think how you vote is relevant.

Kirsten Gillibrand

vote clients thinking

I think we should be drawing down our troops, not only in Afghanistan but the remainder in Iraq and Syria, and then give Congress the opportunity that if they believe we should be in combat missions in any of these countries that we actually file a new authorization for the use of military force.