Trump’s ‘woman card’ comment gives Iowa City brother-sister team a winning hand

PHILADELPHIA - Oh, the irony.

It was Donald Trump who provided the inspiration for a pop-up business venture that is helping one Iowa delegate to the Democratic National Convention pay his way to Philadelphia and his sister's way to Italy.

'We had a stroke on insight when we heard the comment from Donald Trump and Hillary Clinton's response,” Zach Wahls of Iowa City said about The Woman Cards.

That comment was Trump's accusation that Clinton was 'playing the woman card.”

Wahls, 25, and his sister, Zebby, 21, decided to capitalize on it and came up with The Woman Cards, a deck of playing cards featuring 13 American women plus two jokers. Clinton is the face on the aces to represent 'one.” Other women portrayed in the deck include Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg, suffragette Susan B. Anthony, athlete Wilma Rudolph, artist Mary Cassatt, aviator Amelia Earhart, Beyoncé and civil rights activist Rosa Parks.

Zebby, who is working toward a bachelor of fine arts in painting at the University of Iowa, did the art work, which also is available in 18x24 inch prints. Zach is handling sales, including out of his backpack at the convention in Philadelphia. He also has been displaying his cards at a table in a concourse where many Democratic Party affiliates have been set up through the week.

'It's been brisk,” said Wahls. 'There's a lot of looking,” but online sales have shot up this week. It hasn't hurt that the Wahls' Woman Cards have received a lot of media attention.

He hears compliments on Zebby's artwork and Democrats like the idea the cards are made in America.

The brother-sister dynamic also resonates with many people who buy the cards, he said.

'It inadvertently plays into the theme of the convention - ‘stronger together,'” Wahls said.

'Working with my sister to make this happen has been hands-down the best part of this,” Wahls said.

He's using his share of the revenue to pay for his convention trip. Zebby plans to use hers to help finance her study abroad trip to Florence, Italy.

The siblings have had 12,500 decks printed and although they have been encouraged to create more merchandising, Wahls doesn't see that as likely. One suggestion is a second deck feature 54 individual women.

'That's four times the work for Zebby,” Wahls said. 'I'm headed to graduate school and Zebby is headed to Florence.” Wahls, a UI graduate, plans to get a master's in public affairs at Princeton.

For more information, visit http://www.thewomancards.com/.