White House Senior advisor Valerie Jarrett is dreaming of a United States Congress composed entirely of women.
In an interview with Betsy Fischer Martin, Jarrett encouraged all women to get out of their comfort zones and challenge the current notions that pervade society.
In order to change the world, she suggested, more women interested in politics should “be willing to put yourself at risk for getting your feelings hurt.”
“A lot of good people are turned off by the nastiness of politics,” she said. “And we need more people, particularly women. Just imagine what we would get done in Congress if it was comprised of a majority of women.”
Jarrett also admitted that she was terrified of public speaking, but has since learned to overcome her fears.
She also explained why she has learned to shut out her political critics, thanks to the example set by President Obama.
“He has really forced me to stop looking at the blogs, Twitter and everything else that evolves around that 24-hour news cycle — but at the same time, he has helped me be willing to take constructive criticism and feedback,” she said. “Figuring out what is important to hear but not getting consumed by that cycle is the real challenge. He is better at it than I am.”