Could the new millennium see a woman taking the helm at the White House?

It is looking far more likely now Elizabeth Dole is edging nearer to making a bid for the US presidency.

The wife of former Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole has resigned as head of the American Red Cross. Although she stressed she has made no definite plans about what comes next, her future aspirations were certainly hinted at.

"Soon I will be considering new paths and there are exciting possibilities. I will choose one and pursue it with all my might," said the 62-year-old in her resignation speech.

And in the other corner is First Lady Hillary Clinton, who is said to have her sights set on a vacant Senate seat in New York.

So would America be better off with a woman president?

With all the scandal that Bill Clinton has brought to Washington, observers say that Mrs Dole's strong religious and traditional family values could work as an antidote.

Her husband Bob Dole thinks she would make an "excellent" candidate:

"I think she's suited for the presidency and has the background, the experience, the temperament, the intelligence, the integrity - things that people will be looking for in 2000," he said.

Hillary Clinton also has her supporters. A spokesman for New Jersey Senator, Robert Torricelli, thinks she would be a "very formidable candidate".

They are both Ivy League educated, and considered shrewd and intelligent women, but is it a job for a lady?

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Is it time for a female US president?

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