Dole Offers Passion, Commitment
After she leaves the Red Cross in two weeks, Elizabeth Dole plans to travel, meet with people across America, weigh her options, and say a few prayers.
A former Cabinet secretary and the wife of 1996 GOP presidential candidate Bob Dole, Mrs. Dole stepped down as head of the American Red Cross on Monday and said she would consider running for the White House herself in 2000.
A former U.S. secretary of labor and transportation, Dole, 62, has long been seen as a potential candidate to become the first woman president of the United States.
Her husband, former Senate majority leader and defeated Republican presidential candidate Bob Dole, has long been urging her to run.
"I want to consider different options but certainly one of them is a run for the presidency," she told CBS This Morning Co-Anchor Mark McEwen Tuesday.
"The Red Cross is based on a tradition of trust with the American people and a part of that trust is that we are not involved in politics in any way. In order to give it serious consideration, I really need to move outside the Red Cross, where I won't have those restrictions."
All of Mrs. Dole's political skills were on display at the Republican convention in 1996, when she waded into the audience with a microphone to deliver an electrifying address that broke new ground in political speechmaking.
Those skills were evident again Monday as Mrs. Dole delivered a polished and gracious speech, and accepted praise and applause for her eight-year stint as president of the American Red Cross, during which she revived a struggling organization.
"My whole life has been in public service," she said Tuesday. "I'm not stepping down from public service. I'll do something in that area. But I really want to give it serious thought."
She had high praise for the Red Cross, calling it a group of "people who are committed to making a difference in the lives of others."
If she ran for president, she said, she would offer voters a sense of commitment and passion.
"I've seen suffering that will haunt me the rest of my life. I have some ideas which I hope would be helpful. I feel that you've got to have vision, real commitment, and passion, a concern for making a positive difference for others. And you've got to be willing to take the bold approach, to take some risks in terms of long, hard schedules."
Mrs. Dole said she knows the downside of a national campaign, having accompanied her husband in his 1996 bid to unseat President Clinton. But she still termed the experience the highlight of her life.
"I met so many wonderful people all across America, it was just a joy," she said. "People would come up to me and give me a scripture or devotional book or something uplifting, something inspirational. I have huge boxes of all these materials."
Mrs. Dole ducked a question about whether the current White House sex scandal involving former ntern Monica Lewinsky created a climate favorable to a woman candidate.
"I don't really want to comment on that now, Mark. Maybe on down the road we can talk more of the political side of things. Right now, I'm leaving the Red Cross, that's what we're focused on, wrapping up at the Red Cross."
But she did say that she has no fear of the scrutiny that comes with with public office, claiming her "life has been an open book.
"My husband has been in politics for years," she said. "He's run for the presidency. And I think that clearly we're used to the fish bowl in our lives. Our lives have been an open book throughout our careers."
Political analysts believe that with her broad appeal and wide name recognition, Mrs. Dole could be a serious candidate if she decided to contest the Republican nomination.
If she decided not to run, she would certainly remain an attractive vice presidential choice, having come close to being selected as former president George Bush's running mate in 1988.
Ironically, the early favorite for the Republican presidential nomination in 2000 is Bush's eldest son, Texas Gov. George W. Bush.
As 1999 begins, the pace of the upcoming presidential campaign is beginning to heat up. Last week, Arizona Sen. John McCain established a presidential exploratory committee.
New Hampshire Sen. Bob Smith, regarded as a long shot for the nomination, opened his presidential campaign office in Washington, D.C. Monday and said he would make a formal announcement after the impeachment trial of President Clinton.
"Americans want character and integrity from their leaders," said Smith, who chairs the Senate Ethics Committee.
Missouri Sen. John Ashcroft, a favorite of Christian conservatives, announced Tuesday morning that he would not run for president.
Vice President Al Gore, the overwhelming favorite for the Democratic nomination, quietly registered his campaign organization last week.
A native of North Carolina, Dole is a Harvard-trained lawyer who served under six presidents beginning with Lyndon Johnson, who was in the White House from 1963 until 1969.
In 25 years in government, she served as a member of the Federal Trade Commission, a senior staff member in the Reagan White House, and twice in the Cabinet.
Former President Ronald Reagan named her to be transportation secretary in 1983 and she served in that post for more than four years, longer than any of her predecessors.
She served as labor secretary under Bush from 1989-91 before leaving to head the Red Cross, where she won wide praise for her efforts to reorganize what was then a troubled organization.
Norman Augustine, head of the Red Cross board of governors, said Dole had a "truly amazing blend of compassion and the ability to make tough decisions."