To avoid sexism in writing, the grammar instructor advised us against using an exclusive gendered pronoun. She corrected me when I refer to an employee as a he instead of a he or she, which is too cumbersome. She pointed out that he would be correct if the company employed only male employees. Then I read this sentence in The New Yorker from Rebecca Mead:

The next President, whoever she is, will in any case have a smaller role to play in determining education policy than did her predecessor: the bipartisan Every Child Succeeds Act, which reduces the role of federal government in decisions related to schools, and grants larger autonomy to the states, was signed into law by President Obama almost a year ago.

Is Mead endorsing Hillary?

Editorial Board:

[W]e do not endorse Hillary Clinton’s exemplary leadership during her 30 years in the public eye. We do not support her impressive commitment to serving and improving this country—a commitment to which she has dedicated her entire professional career. Because of unambiguous tax law, we do not encourage you to support the most qualified presidential candidate in modern American history, nor do we encourage all citizens to shatter the glass ceiling once and for all by electing Secretary Clinton on November 8.

Right on!

David Leonhardt addresses the Republicans:

The best path is the hardest one. Only an unambiguous rejection of Trump will banish Trumpism for 2020 and beyond. Only a lopsided loss, with millions of Republicans so repelled by him that they vote for someone they never imagined they would, sends the message that bigotry, lying and authoritarianism violate Republican values — your values.

This is not a surprised endorsement, the entire piece is worth reading. The editors:

The election of Hillary Clinton is an event that we will welcome for its immense historical importance, and greet with indescribable relief. It will be especially gratifying to have a woman as commander-in-chief after such a sickeningly sexist and racist campaign, one that exposed so starkly how far our society has to go. The vileness of her opponent’s rhetoric and his record has been so widely aired that we can only hope she will be able to use her office and her impressive resolve to battle prejudice wherever it may be found.

The possibility of electing a woman president:

The election of a woman to the Presidency will have myriad reverberations in the life and the institutions of this country. President Obama’s election certainly did not end the saga of racial conflict and prejudice in the United States, but as a distinct step forward it opened up the world to countless young people. Similarly, electing a female President means imagining new possibilities: that a woman might survive that gantlet of derision to hold power with confidence, without apology, to enlarge our notions of authority and hasten an age when a female President will no longer be exceptional. Just as President Obama was able at certain moments of glaring injustice and crisis to focus the country on matters of race in a potentially lasting way, Hillary Clinton, who has emphasized in her campaign and throughout her political life such issues as early-childhood education, paid family leave, and equal pay, could also change the nation in deeply consequential ways. That’s a thrilling possibility for all Americans.

Editorial Board:

[W]hat sets Hillary Clinton apart is dogged courage, a tenacious strength to get up every morning and keep going that even Trump acknowledged in their second debate.

She is smart, assiduous, earnest, disciplined, prepared. Her orientation is less ideological than it is problem solving. She seizes on a problem and is relentless and creative in searching out solutions for it. She may not articulate passion, but her work ethic fairly glows with it.

She is open to advice, compromise and collaboration. If she can’t get a whole loaf, she’ll willingly accept half.

These are appealing attributes for someone who wishes to occupy the Oval Office.

For a quarter-century, Clinton has been the focus of unabating, vicious political attacks, many brought on by her own shortcomings, but most the result of some combination of exaggeration, conspiracy theory, jealousy and yes, to no small degree, sexism.

For all the shock and awe feigned over the Democratic campaign documents stolen and exposed by WikiLeaks, we’re more amazed by what they don’t show than by what they do. Just imagine the embarrassment for any large organization that would have its private email and unguarded thoughts suddenly strewn bare. All those Clinton campaign emails, almost nothing there.

Clinton, we tend to forget, has made her way in what before her had been largely a man’s world. And still is. For anyone to question her stamina, well, that’s just nonsense. In fact, it’s not only baseless; it’s offensive.

You don’t achieve what she has achieved, in the harsh environment in which she has achieved it, without great stores of energy and resilience. You don’t forge history, carve out a path that never before had been hewn, without tirelessness and bravery.

Editorial board:

A vote for Hillary Clinton is a historic choice for a woman who is fiercely committed to using government as a force for good, who is capable of working to strike a pragmatic balance among competing interests and who brings a lifetime of experience to one of the toughest jobs the world has to offer.

Editorial board:

If voters want a president with potential to inspire their daughters and sons, Clinton possesses more of the requisite qualities.

The Democratic nominee has proven she can play well with others; in the Senate, two-thirds of her bills were co-sponsored by Republicans.

Editorial board:

We believe Mrs. Clinton will build upon the Herculean efforts of President Obama to boost employment, education, diversity and economic opportunity. She is the right person at the right time to lead this nation.

We encourage you to vote on Tuesday, Nov. 8, for Hillary Clinton as the next president of the United States.

Editorial board:

This election cycle has seemed interminable from the outset, and the outcome a long-ago foregone conclusion. But the one saving grace of this endless race for the White House is that, in all likelihood, it will end with a tough, qualified woman serving as president of the United States: Clinton, who we endorse wholeheartedly.

Editorial:

Americans should vote for Secretary Clinton as an able and proven politician. A Trump presidency would be bad for America and dangerous for the world, so a vote for Secretary Clinton is the most effective way of preventing it.