Although no official statements were made about her nomination or why it was abandoned, many have speculated that Taylor's romantic ties to New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, who has recently taken strong anti-gun and anti-smoking stances, may have contributed to the fizzling of her nomination.
"You know as much as I do," Taylor said about the situation, "whether you think it was the N.R.A. or the tobacco lobby or some cabal."
After attending Milton Academy and other northeastern preparatory schools, Taylor came to Dartmouth in the fall of 1973 as part of the second coeducational freshman class at Dartmouth.
"We visited Dartmouth on a beautiful fall day. I liked that it was rural. I liked that it was all guys; I had been in that situation before in the majority of my schooling," she said.
Dartmouth men, however, were not all as excited at the prospect of women at the College, Taylor said. She recounted that, despite mostly good experiences, her encounters during those transition years showed that some were still uncomfortable with the presence of women.
"Winter Carnival of my freshman year, I had my girlfriends come up for the weekend. Apparently, there were boys in the dining hall with placards; they were rating the girls who were unlucky enough to walk in. Fortunately, my girlfriends and I scored 10s," she said.
Taylor's time at male-dominated Dartmouth has served her well in the banking and investment industry, she said.
"Investment banking was definitely a man's world. You learn at Dartmouth to keep your head down and do your work," she said. "I learned not to get upset when men harass you; you give it back when you get it, and it stops soon enough."
After Dartmouth, Taylor went to Columbia Business School, still unsure that she wanted to pursue a career in business. While at Columbia, she worked part time at Smith Barney and got a full-time job there after graduation. After 20 years working for prestigious firms like Lehman Brothers, Smith Barney and Donaldson Lufkin Jenrette, she decided to explore the public sector. Taylor found once again that she would have to work her way up the ladder.
"I had been in the private sector a long time, so I was looking for a change. I decided to call up the Governor [George Pataki]'s office in '96 and see what was available," she said.
She ascended the ranks quickly, as Pataki appointed her as the Superintendent of Banks for the State of New York in 2003. Now, Taylor does not want to speculate on the FDIC issue or discuss her relationship with Bloomberg, she said, and she plans to heed her own advice by keeping her head down and doing her work.
