Conservative women muscled a meeting with former U.S. Sen. Olympia Snowe on Monday.
Snowe, a Republican who represented Maine, was in Minneapolis for a $500-a-plate luncheon fundraiser for Women Winning, a nonpartisan group that promotes pro-choice women candidates.
Jennifer DeJournett — the president of Voices of Conservative Women, a group that promotes women candidates solely on their stand on economic issues — said she felt she couldn’t attend the Women Winning event.
But, as a huge fan of Snowe, she managed to snag a half-hour of Snowe’s time after the luncheon.
“We talked about what appeals to women and what women of the center-right need to do to appeal to women,” she said.
Republican state Sen. Karin Housley and Republican state Rep. Jennifer Loon joined her.
De Journett made a point of noting that Loon had voted yes on gay marriage, Housley had voted no: “See, no discrimination on social issues.”
DeJournett said that Snowe observed how politics in the last decade has centered more on personality and less on policy. “We all agreed that has hardened the dialogue,” DeJournett said.
Would Voices of Conservative Women want Snowe, a promoter of abortion rights, to headline a fundraiser for them?
“We didn’t have time to talk about it,” DeJournett said, “but we would love to have her.”