15,000 at Women's Conference

While her husband, Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, is battered by dismal popularity polls, California first lady Maria Shriver had no such trouble Tuesday as she presided over the nation's top gathering of women, a who's who of America's most-influential entertainers and political figures. S.F. Chronicle

Shriver welcomed nearly 15,000 women gathered for the annual nonpartisan Women's Conference at the Long Beach Convention Center, which attracts major corporate sponsorship and newsmakers from entertainer Alicia Keyes to former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright, news anchor Katie Couric, Elizabeth Edwards and blogger Meghan McCain.