John,

As you may have read in the last email I sent out about Barbie, I did not grow up as a Barbie girl.

But on Saturday my staff and I went to see Greta Gerwig’s Barbie and it's safe to say my opinion about Barbie changed significantly.

In Barbie, the character Gloria, played by actress America Ferrera, delivers an impassioned speech after witnessing the iconic doll Barbie come to life—only to suffer an existential crisis about her place in the world as a powerful, smart, attractive woman:

“It is literally impossible to be a woman…we have to always be extraordinary, but somehow we’re always doing it wrong.

“You have to be thin, but not too thin. And you can never say you want to be thin. You have to say you want to be healthy, but also you have to be thin. You have to have money, but you can’t ask for money because that’s crass. You have to be a boss, but you can’t be mean.”

I never wanted to be the stereotypical woman in politics— always serious, with the pantsuits, no makeup, the typical haircut brushed to perfection, everything just so and in place. A polished focus-group Politician Barbie™️, if you will, but that's not me.

I have curly hair. I laugh and smile a lot. I love embracing everything about being a woman. I am a loving mother, I'm smart, savvy, funny, kind, thoughtful, strategic, and a problem solver. I am a get it done girl, like most women I know. I am a big thinker, and I like making a big impact. I care about everyone. I stay up at night thinking and conducting research on how I can help more people when I am elected. I think and work on my campaign meeting people and creating solutions for Americans more than anyone running for this seat.

But to be a woman in politics (hell, just being a woman) is to be scrutinized with a giant magnifying lens and measured by a unique double standard that simply doesn’t apply to men. I've been told I'm too pretty, my nails are too long, heels too high, lips too bright, etc. etc. and my response always is, "There are people suffering, starving, and homeless in America. Don't you think our time is better spent serving them than commenting on my looks?"

I’ve always wanted to embrace all of who I am. And while everything America Ferrero said is true about being a woman in politics, the real tragedy is those feelings apply to every woman everywhere, in every walk of life.

So in the spirit of Barbie, and striving only to be my full, authentic self, I'm not afraid to ask you for money. And while I may at times be bossy, I'm never mean—except when I call out Jim Jordan.

Despite all of the challenges of being a woman running for office against one of the most toxic men to wield power, I am unafraid and unabashed because you are with me and we’re going to change how this game is played by getting the job done and winning it our way, together:

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Although I didn’t grow up as a Barbie girl, it’s safe to say I am one now.

Thank you for hearing me out, and for working to make our society and our country a better place. I will give the final word to Ferrera:

“I’m just so tired of watching myself and every single other woman tie herself into knots so that people will like us. And if all of that is also true for a doll just representing women, then I don’t even know!”

In Solidarity, 

-Tamie