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Barbara Lang on the need for more women in Congress ~\n\n"Women tend to try to solve problems, and not as much as the politics . . . I\u2019ve talked to a number of women that are in Congress and say, \u201cWhy are you there?\u201d They\u2019re not there to be on a power trip. They\u2019re there to solve something."\n\nBarbara Lang, Former President and CEO of DC Chamber of Commerce in studio with Our Town host Andy Ockershausen\n\nAndy Ockershausen:\tHi. This is Andy Ockershausen and this is Our Town. I have the absolute total pleasure to talk to a wonderful, wonderful woman who's been a very dear friend for many years. Unfortunately, she's out of the spotlight right now, but she ran our Chamber of Commerce better than anybody ever did before or since. Welcome Barbara Lang to Our Town. \nBarbara Lang:\tAndy, thank you so much. Delighted to be here. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tWell, you are a big part of Our Town and we try to ... Started this program to talk about all the good things that are going on in Our Town. A lot of them don't know about them. You know them because you live with them, but Our Town is exploding and we're all part of the explosion, what we see at the wharf, what we see at the yard, what we see that's going up on Connecticut Avenue. Isn't it wonderful thing?\nBarbara Lang on Life in Our Town at the Time She Started with the DC Chamber of Commerce\nBarbara Lang:\tAbsolutely it is. I went to the Chamber of Commerce right after 9/11 and that was a time when we weren't sure what was going to happen. Washington was like an armed camp. The airports were closed. Retail was suffering. All the hotels were laying people off. The thing I used to say is, "My goodness, are the locust coming next," because we had all the murders that were happening, the Montgomery guys that were the sniper shootings and people were scared to death around that. \n\tThere was so much happening and you just thought are we ever, ever going to recover from this? By God, now you look at Washington and the suburbs as well, because it all goes to make this region such a dynamic place. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tOur Town has exploded with so many great things, and you made many of them happen Barbara. How in the world ... You were working for Uncle Sam and then you left that and went into the private sector. Is that correct? \nBarbara Lang:\tI really only had-\nAndy Ockershausen:\tFannie Mae?\nBarbara Lang:\tYeah, but Fannie Mae was private. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tThat's correct. I know that. \nBarbara Lang:\tIt's private, but people thought it was government owned, but it was a private New York ... Publicly traded on the Stock Exchange. But prior to that I was with IBM for 25 years. So I spent 25 years in IBM.\nAndy Ockershausen:\tNot in this market though, right? \n25 Years at IBM - The Road to Our Town\nBarbara Lang:\tA little bit in this market, yeah. I started in Jacksonville, Florida. I then moved to Atlanta and then to Washington. I spent a total of 25 years at IBM and then Fannie Mae recruited me and so I went in as a vice-president and chief procurement officer at Fannie Mae and spent 10 years there, then went to the Chamber of Commerce.\nAndy Ockershausen:\tYou're too young for that Barbara. \nBarbara Lang:\tOh, aren't you sweet? Thank you. You keep saying that. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tI'm trying to think of the name ... Kent Cushenberry? Do you remember that name?\nBarbara Lang:\tKent Cushenberry? I worked for Kent when he headed up community relations. That was one of my last two jobs with IBM. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tHe was a very dear friend, a very dear friend. \nBarbara Lang:\tYeah. He was great and sorry to see him go. He's somebody that left here all too soon.\nAndy Ockershausen:\tOh yeah, he was young.\nBarbara Lang:\tHe was a young man. \nAndy Ockershausen:\tBefore him there was a man ... What's our favorite sports announcer, Timmy Brant. His father had the job before Kent did way back. Tim Brant, do you remember him? \nBarbara Lang:\tYeah. I know the name, but I did not know him.