The Washington Examiner: The Republican plan to change the ‘war on women’ narrative needs work

BY ASHE SCHOW | JULY 13, 2014 | 4:15 PM 

How are Republicans planning to fight the “war on women” narrative so rampant among Democrats and the left?

In a word, “messaging,” but it appears that’s as far as their strategy goes.

A group of conservative women, mostly members of the Republican Study Committee, met Friday to discuss issues facing women today and how the GOP can better explain how its policies could help.

“The problem here is not necessarily conservative policy, it's our messaging,” Kim Strassel, a columnist for the Wall Street Journal who was moderating the panel said.

And the panelists agreed.

The bright spot of the panel were the non-member panelists.

Then there was Amber Barno of the Independent Women’s Forum, the only panelist to talk at length about the real war on women.

“The war on women does not exist in America,” Barno said. “There's a real war on women – I'm a former OH-58D Kiowa Warrior helicopter pilot; I served in Iraq and Afghanistan — and I saw real oppression of women. It is out there, around the world, and women have more freedoms and opportunities and liberties and choice in America that most people couldn't even dream of around this world.”

Barno also spoke about the problem of Republican men saying ridiculous things (think Todd Akin) that gets them in trouble.

“It has to be on the forefront of candidate’s minds of how they can message to women and relate to them and let them know that women’s issues matter to them,” Barno said.