MJ Hegar doesn’t back down from a fight — whether in combat in Afghanistan, or pushing the Pentagon to revise old sexist rules, or being denied a meeting with her member of Congress, or running for U.S. Senate as a Democrat in deep-red Texas.

‘An adrenaline addiction with an overdose of patriotism’: MJ Hegar

Join POLITICO’s Anna Palmer on the Women Rule Podcast as she takes you backstage with women bosses for real talk on how they made it and what advice they have for women looking to lead. New episodes every other Wednesday. Women Rule is produced by POLITICO in partnership with our founding partners Google and the Tory Burch Foundation.

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For our final episode of 2020, Anna is joined by Alicia Garza, the activist and co-founder of the Black Lives Matter movement. They look back at 2020 — a year when Americans endured crises from the pandemic to the economic recession, racial injustices and a highly contentious presidential election. Through it all, women have often taken the lead. And as we head into 2021, Alicia tells us how she’s looking to set the course in activism for the year to come.

‘Change comes by rolling up your sleeves’: Alicia Garza, co-founder of Black Lives Matter

Anna is joined by POLITICO's Carrie Budoff Brown and Elizabeth Ralph to talk about the strange year we’ve all lived through — from the presidential election to the global pandemic — and look forward to 2021 and beyond, and what all of it means for women.

Breaking down 2020 with Carrie Budoff Brown and Elizabeth Ralph

Now that the 2020 campaign is over, Anna speaks with Parker Poling, the executive director of the National Republican Congressional Committee, which made substantial gains this year. Parker's job is a big responsibility — working with hundreds of campaigns, candidates, members of congress, donors and campaign staffers as the clock ticks down to election day. But Parker herself seems to take it all in stride. She talks about the wisdom she's learned over the years that allows her to do that — and the importance of being kind to yourself along the way.

‘Push yourself, but take it easy’: NRCC’s Parker Poling

Presenting "Global Translations": How can the US compete with China Inc.?

The 2020 race is finished. And while we don't know all the results yet, we know enough to say this: There was a big gap between what was expected and what ended up happening. Joining Anna to talk it all through is Ally Mutnick, a campaign reporter for POLITICO and expert on all things congressional elections.

‘An adrenaline addiction with an overdose of patriotism’: MJ Hegar

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