Let me say a few words about Geraldine Ferraro, who died over the weekend at age 75. Her political career by some standards was not hugely successful: she was elected to the House for three terms from a culturally conservative Democratic district in Queens; the ticket on which she was the vice presidential nominee lost the popular vote 59%-40% and carried one state and the District of Columbia; she twice lost Democratic primaries for Senate seats, 37%-36% to Robert Abrams in 1992 and 51%-26% to Charles Schumer in 1998. In her six years in the House she was a backbencher without major legislative accomplishments.