US President 2008: Hillary Clinton or Condoleezza Rice?

Billboards posted everywhere about the US now try to persuade Americans to vote actively and honestly at the election in 2008.

Photo: US President 2008: Hillary Clinton or Condoleezza Rice?

When Bill Clinton’s presidential office was over in 2000, American political observers unanimously stated that in the nearest future his wife Hillary would gain enough political experience in the Congress and run for presidency. However, skeptics stated that even though American women are universally considered emancipated, they are still not  emancipated enough to run for presidency or become the president.

At the same time, Hillary Clinton was elected a Democrat senator from the state of New York, and she said her law-making activity was quite enough for her and she would not run for presidency at all. But today the situation seems to be radically different. In fact, US’s Democratic Party has scarcely a charismatic and widely popular politician who would be a real competitor to the Republican Party candidates. Today, the Democratic Party and majority of female Americans believe it is a good idea to have a woman on the presidential post.

In addition to Hillary Clinton, the Democratic Party has two more candidates to run for presidency in 2008, New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson (he used to be the secretary of the US Department of Energy in Clinton’s administration and US steady representative in the UN) and ex-governor of Virginia Mark Warner. But political observers think that Hillary will easily leave both of them behind even during primaries, the election when the Democratic Party is to determine its single candidate for presidency. It is said that if Hillary Clinton wins presidency, she could have any of the two Democratic candidates as the vice-president.

The idea of the Democratic Party to promote a female candidate to the presidential post suggested that the Republican Party should do the same. At the time when the Bush clan would like to promote George Bush’s junior brother Florida Governor Jeb Bush, experts state that he would hardly win the primaries not to speak about the election fight with the Democratic Party’s candidate. It was decided to speak about presidential ambitions of the current Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Aged 51, Rice is not involved in any scandals, is working hard, travels about the world with explanatory missions and is absolutely devoted to the family of the present-day president. It means she would be able to follow the current tough line of the Republican Party in case she wins the presidential campaign. But soon the very idea to promote Condoleezza Rice as a candidate to the presidential post somehow faded away. Rice herself was not very enthusiastic when spoke about her perspectives as the US president. She would rather like to become the president of the University of Stanford that shoulder the responsibility for the entire world and be surrounded by men thirsty for authority. And also, no matter what one speaks about race tolerance in the American society, it is unlikely that the American electorate would unanimously agree to have a black president. The Americansocietythinks it is normal when black officials hold governmental positions but this tolerance will hardly work in case of a black president.

Followers of the Republican Party are not that inclined to support a female candidate at the coming presidential election. While feminism is widely spread in the US, it does not mean that the society would love to have women on the top positions of the governmental hierarchy. So, in this connection it is believed that Senator John McCain from Arizona and ex-governor of New York Rudolf Giuliani stand a good chance to be nominated as candidates for presidency from the Republican Party. At that, if any of them wins Condoleezza Rice may be appointed vice-president in case she at all agrees to be number two in the government.

It seems that Hillary Clinton is not afraid of these conservative views of majority of the US electorate. She gained considerable political and lawmaking experience during her husband’s presidency and when being a senator, so she knows perfectly well what and how is done in the White House and its lobby.

Besides, Hillary Clinton is holding a safe position to criticize the present-day Republican administration. She is not among the executive authority and thus is responsible neither for the continued Iraqi war nor social programs in the sphere of health care and education. The electorate supports Hillary’s harsh criticism of the White House’s foreign policy. But nobody knows what she would do on the top position in the government where everybody expects decisions and strategies from her, not mere criticism.

Seven years ago, US influential organization M.I.S.S. Foundation opened a project to promote the idea of a woman president in the nearest years. At that, nomination of a female candidate for presidency was basically connected with the sexual scandal where President Clinton and Monica Lewinsky were involved. As everyone remembers, the scandal nearly resulted in an impeachment of the American president and the Clintons’ divorce.

The scandal gave rise to four-month debates all about America involving some 200,000 citizens, basically American women, who made up a short list of five women who as they believed could run for presidency in five or seven years. Originally, the short list consisted of about 50 female candidates who had achieved by that moment great success in politics, economics, business, science and culture. Even when the short list was that big, Hillary Clinton was still on the top of it.

Hillary’s husband is now holding the position of a UN tsunami recovery envoy. It is said that by the end of the current year he may come up as an alternative candidate to the position of the UN secretary general. Hillary’s daughter Chelsea is working in a New York law companies. So, Madam Clinton has enough time and opportunities to be focused on her own ambitious career.

Moskovsky Komsomolets

Translated by Maria Gousseva
Pravda.Ru