GOP Reaching Out To Women

By Jonathan Karl/CNN

WASHINGTON (Mar. 1) -- In the corridors of power, a new conservative voice is emerging: a woman's voice.

"We're trying to get out there and say women, especially young women, are up for grabs and the Republican party has a message we think is appealing," says Leigh Ann Metzger (66K AIFF or WAV sound), communications director for House Speaker Newt Gingrich.

Metzger is the eyes, ears and a spokeswoman for Gingrich and gets high marks from her boss. "Leigh Ann is having a tremendous impact," he says. "She's worked in the White House. She's one of the few people who have experience both in the White House and in the highest office of the Congress (198K AIFF or WAV sound)."

Since the 1960s, the Republican party has had a problem attracting women. By a margin of nearly 10 percent, women have supported Democrats more than men. Metzger has banded together with like-minded women to change that. They face a problem: the public perception of Republicans. April Lassiter, a congressional aide, said the view of the GOP is "cigar-smoking, old white men. I think that perception is changing, however ."

Juleanna Glover of the conservative magazine The Weekly Standard said: "One of the problems is that when American woman look at the Republican party they think its cold and heartless...It's not that at all (99K AIFF or WAV sound)."

The group, which just held its first fund-raiser in Washington, hopes to shift focus from divisive social issues like abortion to the economic message of the Republican party.

Lassiter is the lead singer in an alternative rock band, but she is also a top aide to House Republican leader Tom DeLay of Texas.

"Republicans are getting much better about issues that affect all Americans. There are no male or female issues. I mean, is agriculture a female issue? I don't think so," she said."

Said Metzger: "There's a lot of women out there who agree with us on crime and education and we've got a big job ahead of us just to get the message out."

As the 1996 presidential campaign heats up, the gender gap shows no signs of disappearing. Polls show women more likely than men to vote for President Bill Clinton in November. But something is changing. Now more than ever, ambitious, articulate women are rising to positions of power and influence in the Republican Party.

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