Madam President

The question lingers about the nation's readiness for a female President.

As the United States has answered the question about the role of religion and race bearing upon qualification as commander-in-chief, the largest remaining barrier remains gender.

This is a question which verges upon the asinine. When the candidate offers an appropriate combination of confidence, competence and ideas which appeal to the majority of American voters, a woman will be elected president.

People who break barriers for elective office do not win without having a surfeit of talent. This was the downfall for Senator Clinton and Governor Palin in 2008. Failure had less to do with factors out of their control than it did with a pervasive image of neediness from Senator Clinton, and an overwhelming sense of Governor Palin's lack of preparedness.

Mrs Clinton had every advantage going into the 2008 presidential campaign. She had fifteen years on the national stage, a reputation as an effective lawmaker, and she was married to the last living President whose administration was considered successful. Clinton was holding the standard for a party resurgent owing to the opposition's bad decisionmaking.

The Republican party's bad decisions paled in comparison to Senator Clinton's. It took the Republicans five years to burn through the capital they brought to the table after 9/11. Senator Clinton had the Republican experience on the table and managed to burn through her political capital in five weeks, with people of her own party.

While issues were raised about President-elect Obama leveraging his race, some of it from former President Clinton, the correct assessment gets little play. Mr. Obama was the better candidate. His campaign was better organized. Obama's supporters brought more enthusiasm and generated better results.

However, one suspects that an opinion that no home is large enough for two presidents dwelled quietly in Bill Clinton's subconscious.

Until Republican Partisan Rush Limbaugh intervened and reinvigorated Hillary Clinton's campaign with his own fans and supporters, hoping to face Mrs. Clinton as a General Election candidate, her campaign was moribund. Mr. Limbaugh soon discovered that which did not destroy Obama just made him stronger.

Mrs. Clinton took advantage of arguments raised by Conservative talk to challenge Obama's character, while struggling to reclaim her front-runner status. This was a disaster for Republicans seeking a narrative change in October. This last desperate act of political gamespersonship, mated with a late-primary reference to the Robert Kennedy assassination likely cost Mrs. Clinton the Vice-presidential nomination as well.

Limbaugh's role in the 2008 campaign did not end by attempting to alter the Democratic race. He was also an early advocate of enlisting Sarah Palin as the Republican Vice-presidential nominee.

Note to Republican party: The next time Rush Limbaugh jumps, find out what from before following.

The Palin nomination briefly had the appearance of a good decision. She is a young, telegenic woman with experience as a State Chief Executive. The conservative base of her party was not enchanted with the moderate senior statesman nominated in spite of their best efforts to reclaim the party.

Mrs. Palin appears to have been ordered from ACME by one Mr. Wile E. Coyote, and mistakenly delivered to Senator McCain.

The Palin nomination seems a cynical attempt to reach out to disaffected Clinton supporters. Mrs. Palin, a former beauty pageant contestant and athlete, politically opposite to Senator Clinton, begins as an adversary. One could go as far as saying tormentor. It became a slap in the face, telling women that their looks and youth are more important than their intelligence and competence.

Mrs. Palin exuded poor preparation, arrogance, and defensiveness. There was a streak which voters regarded as blatant self-interest combined with an utter disregard for anyone not willing or able to advance her ambitions. Governor Palin may run again, but she is unlikely to advance in the primaries past Valentine's day.

The woman who wins the Presidency will be very dissimilar to either Senator Clinton or Governor Palin. She will be seen as a sister, a friend, someone who related well to the challenges of everyday americans. Her integrity, intellect, and preparation will be all but impossible to impugn for all but the most commited partisan. Those who dislike her will be forced to challenge her mainly on ideas, or declare that their feelings are personal. Her organizational skills will be stellar.

That person can be described in one word.

Oprah.