Jenny Taylor
Jenny Taylor | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Born | Virginia Taylor 29 September 1929 Villanova, Alscia |
| Died | 24 February 2002 (aged 72) |
| Occupation | Politician |
| Known for | "Parliamentary lieutenant" of the Darnan Cyras government in the Senate |
| Speaker of the Senate | |
| In office 1 February 1990 – 1 February 2000 | |
| Personal details | |
| Political party | Social Democratic Party |
Virginia Taylor (Gylic transcription: Virďinia Teilor; 29 September 1929 – 24 February 2002), commonly known as Jenny Taylor (Gylic transcription: Ďeni Teilor), was a Gylian politician. She served as Senator for Mişeyáke from 1962 until 2000, and was famed as one of Darnan Cyras government's "parliamentary lieutenants" together with Cherry Cook in the Chamber of Deputies. In this role, Jenny shepherded the government's legislation through the Senate, and was renowned for her mastery of parliamentary procedure and negotiation, gaining the nickname "the Senate magician".
Early life
Virginia Taylor was born on 29 September 1929 in Villanova, Alscia. She came from a modest background, with her parents working a variety of odd jobs during her childhood. She attended public school until the age of 10, and was a talented but socially awkward student. She was nicknamed "Ginny" (Gylic transcription: Ďini) in her youth, which later evolved into "Jenny".
Her formal education was interrupted by Alscia joining the Free Territories, and was replaced by volunteer classes and autodidacticism. The family had to move as their hometown had voted against joining the Free Territories and remained in Cacerta as part of Molise.
Jenny worked various jobs to support herself as an adult, including grocery store clerk, filling station attendant, tray vendor, telephone operator, model, and actress. She periodically performed on radio, a line of work that led her to occasionally work with Maria Elena Durante, with whom she would cross paths later in the Senate. She continued her education, albeit without completing a degree.
Through involvement in communal assemblies, she grew interested in politics, and joined the Social Democratic Party. She worked primarily in the background, fulfilling various roles ranging from secretarial to administrative, such as delivering correspondence and arranging supplies.
As her career progressed, she ended up doing similar work in the General Council. Reflecting on her career, she jokingly called herself a "legislative jack of all trades", and commented that she gained the skills for her job through "years of standing in the background and observing carefully".
Jenny's work came to the notice of Gyöngyi Acél, secretary to Darnan Cyras. Gyöngyi brought Jenny to Darnan's attention, and Jenny became part of the emerging group of allies known as the ferroses. She was extensively prepared for office by her ferrose colleagues, a process she humorously likened to "a very long and thorough makeover".
Initially, the ferroses faced a dilemma in that there seemed no obvious post for which Jenny was ideal. Ultimately, it was resolved that her skills were best suited for a parliamentary context. She was teamed up with Cherry Cook, a fellow ferrose in training, and they were both elected to the Popular Assembly in 1958.
The Popular Assembly was essentially a dry run for both Jenny and Cherry, a test which they passed "with flying colours". They were then formally designated the government's "parliamentary lieutenants" and assigned to different chambers of the new bicameral Gylian Parliament.
Senate
Jenny was elected to the Senate for Mişeyáke in 1962. She subsequently won re-election six times, each time with comfortable pluralities, and remained in the Senate until it was reformed into a sortition-based body. By that time, her long service had earned her the reputation of the doyenne of the Senate, placing her in the same refined company as the fine arts salon.
As "parliamentary lieutenant", she was responsible for steering the Darnan Cyras government's legislation through the Senate and securing its approval. In some ways, her task was easier than Cherry's, as the Chamber of Deputies is the responsible house, and can overrule the Senate's rejection of a law proposal. Conscious that the government was in a minority in the Senate, she applied herself to the task with great seriousness and dedication. She thought it especially important that the Golden Revolution be emboldened with strong legislative support, which would strengthen the developing Gylian consensus.
Jenny was an extremely effective "parliamentary lieutenant", managing to get Golden Revolution-era law proposals passed with strong majorities. She and Cherry engaged in lighthearted competition over who could secure the bigger majority for a law. Ŋéida Vaşad wrote that Jenny "racked up a record of supermajorities that was unprecedented for the new Senate, and never to be equaled since." She was known for her mastery of parliamentary procedure, and benefited from several practices specific to the Senate, notably fixed time allocations (preventing filibusters), the single-subject rule (preventing riders), and proxy voting (preventing quorum-busting).
Jenny dominated the Senate "with a touch of velvet", and her skill at negotiation and compromise earned her the nickname "the Senate magician". She was a prolific intelligence gatherer, who kept track of Senators' philosophies, stances on issues, likes and dislikes, personal interests and past votes. She would phone colleagues and their family members to congratulate them for personal achievements or comfort them in times of personal crisis.
She worked diligently in the background and avoided the spotlight, letting others share credit for legislation. She also generously worked with opposition Senators to pass proposed laws that were in accord with the spirit of the Golden Revolution or Gylian consensus.
Public image
Jenny earned a reputation for fairness and generosity that was essential to her work as Senator. She had an affable personality and excellent memory for details, and got along well with colleagues. She often bought small gifts for her colleagues and performed courtesies for them to smooth over negotiations. In the words of Gianna Calderara, "Jenny sought to be everyone's friend and supportive figure, through good and bad times", and it was this quality that enabled the modest "Senate magician" to share the stage with formidable personalities like the fine arts salon, Veterans for a Just Peace, and the first Speaker of the Senate, Seisa Neve.
She was strongly averse to conflict and preferred to remain on good terms with people; this was made easy by the absence of extremist formations like the Revolutionary Rally, Conservative Coalition, and Front for Renewal of Order and Society from the Senate. When she was unable to reach an agreement with friendliness, she would send Iulia Edver, the "Big Beast" of Gylian politics, to strong-arm her counterpart into acceptance.
She was strict about maintaining personal integrity, refusing to accept gifts from others to prevent conflicts of interest or bribes. She paid all her fees and travel expenses herself. Privately, she was teetotal, but she maintained a stock of alcoholic beverages in her office for entertaining colleagues. She advocated reduced working hours for Senators, both for health reasons and to uphold the popular legislature principle, and expressed pride in the provision of child care facilities for the Parliament Building.
Jenny deliberately dressed in outdated Alscian fashions. This was a personal preference that gained several purposes: it made her easily recognisable, it lent her an air of slight eccentricity that charmed colleagues, and it provided an air of gravitas when necessary. She cultivated a buttoned-down personality to match, her modesty and tact being particularly well suited to the Senate. Being a member of the more moderate Social Democratic Party, she carefully maintained her distance from the social movements of the Golden Revolution, no matter how much she agreed with them, to maintain her image as a fair and impartial arbiter. She often said that it was her job to provide the "honey" and others the "vinegar" necessary to successfully pass laws.
Later career
Jenny remained in the Senate after the chaotic 1976 federal election. She renounced her role as "parliamentary lieutenant" with the formation of the Aén Ďanez government, which she was opposed to and voted against on the motion of confidence.
Although she remained a member of the SDP, Jenny practically joined the opposition during the wretched decade. She consistently voted against the Aén Ďanez government, although the Progressive Alliance was formally part of it. Drawing on the deep well of relationships she had built in the Senate, she was one of the government's most effective opponents in the Senate. While preferring to avoid the spotlight, she made powerful use of GTV Parliament broadcasts, questioning the government sharply and presiding over public consultations.
She also served on the Permanent Committee on Public Standards and Integrity, a topic that was especially near to her heart.
She was reelected in 1980 and 1985, although as a sitting PA Senator she had been targeted for defeat by People Power-Citizens' Movement. Her name was put forward by the opposition after 1985 to head a national unity government, but she turned down the offer. She felt herself unsuited for the task of being Prime Minister, but when speaking to the media, argued instead that it was preferable to have a Prime Minister from the Chamber of Deputies. She lent help to the Filomena Pinheiro government as an unofficial "parliamentary lieutenant", seeing it as her duty to the nation after the wretched decade.
Jenny chose to run for two more terms in 1990 and 1995, which she won easily. Now in her sixties, she had taken her place as a doyenne of the Senate. She was elected Speaker of the Senate on both occasions. In her free time, she and Cherry collaborated on a history of the Gylian Parliament, which was published in three volumes. She was also interviewed for Rasa Ḑeşéy's 1999 documentary series Nation Building.
Although she had grown deeply fond of the Senate, she understood the argument that a bicameral legislature was wasteful, and was receptive to reform proposals. One sponsored by the New Alliance for the Future, to make the Senate based on sortition and reduce its size, was approved in a 1997 referendum and took effect with the 2000 federal election. Jenny retired from the Senate then, and had the honour of delivering the valedictory speech on the last day of Senate business before the election.
Death
Jenny died on 24 February 2002 in Maveás. She had been in poor health for years before.
Private life
Jenny was married three times, and had two children. She had several affairs during her marriages and one-night stands outside of them, an aspect that ironically contrasted with her buttoned-down image in the Senate, and earned her the affectionate nickname "Jenny Talia" among friends and colleagues.
She was an amateur musician, playing the piano and singing. Her favourite genre was jazz. In 1964, she recorded an album, Senator Jenny Taylor Performs Standards, in which she sang pop standards such as "I've Got You Under My Skin" and "A Pretty Girl Is Like a Melody", backed by the Hilda Wechsler Big Band.