A Presidential candidate needs to have a clear idea of where she wishes to lead the nation, as it strives to improve itself in a global economy. She needs to be pragmatic, and... well, check out the list of qualities that contribute to a successful Presidency in links to the right.

So, is there a woman who fits the bill? According to Dahlia Lithwick at Slate.com, "...we are already blessed-as even the naysayers concede-with a bullpen that's both deep and wide. It features female talents such as Kansas Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, Washington Gov. Christine Gregoire, Arizona Gov. Janet Napolitano, Sens. Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and Claire McCaskill of Missouri, Condoleezza Rice, and former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman."

I began this study in my Hub titled Viable Female Candidates for President in 2012 or 2016 found at http://hubpages.com/hub/viable-female-candidates-for-president-in-2012-or-2016.

I intend to research each of these women, beginning with Christine Todd Whitman, in my quest to find a viable female candidate for 2012 or 2016.

Christine Todd Whitman is co-chair of the Republican Leadership Council (RLC), which she founded with Senator John Danforth and Lt. Gov. Michael Steele. The RLC’s mission is to support fiscally conservative, socially tolerant candidates and to reclaim the word Republican.

According to their website, "...the political organization the Republican Leadership Council... advocates for the historic Republican principles of liberty, individual responsibility, and personal freedom. RLC-PAC's vision is a Republican Party that is unified by the basic tenets of fiscal responsibility and personal freedom, but that allows for diverse opinions on social issues by its members."

Whitman served as Governor in New Jersey for seven years until George W Bush invited her to join his cabinet and administer the Environmental Protection Agency in 2001- an appointment that lasted two short years. (Watch video to the right.)

According to Wikipedia, "On June 27, 2003, after having had several public conflicts with the Bush administration, Whitman resigned from her position to spend more time with her family.

"In an interview in 2007, Whitman stated that Vice President Dick Cheney's insistence on easing air pollution controls, not the personal reasons she cited at the time, led to her resignation. At the time, he pushed the EPA to institute a new rule allowing large polluting plants to make major alterations without installing costly new pollution controls. Refusing sign off on the new rule, Whitman announced her resignation. Whitman decided that President Bush should have an EPA administrator willing to defend the new rule in court, which she could not bring herself to do. Federal judges later overturned the new rule, saying it violated the Clean Air Act."

In her role as President of The Whitman Strategy Group (WSG), a consulting firm that specializes in energy and environmental issues, her vision appears focused on creating a healthy global environment for the future- as expressed in remarks she shared with the 8th World Congress, Council on Tall Buildings and Urban Habitat in Dubai, United Arab Emirates on March 4, 2008. (See link)

In her speech of 1200 words, Whitman used the word sustainability eight times:

"Is the solution to climate change to build cleaner-burning cars? More energy that doesn't create harmful emissions? More recycling? It is all of this and much more. And when it comes to buildings, which account for nearly half of all energy consumption, the imperative is clear. From the materials we use to build, to the architectural design of those structures, to the way we provide power and water to those homes and businesses, to the efficient use of technology to reduce waste, we must take a holistic view of sustaining our communities, new and old. Long-term sustainability must be at the root of every decision we make about design."

Whitman was invited to kick off a speaker's series at University of Virginia's Business School. Her humor and her insightful remarks on Thomas Jefferson and the Climate of Politics can be found at http://www.virginia.edu/flashaudio/darden/whitman_050921.mp3 (see link)

Whitman was born in 1946 in New York City. She graduated from Wheaton College in 1968 with a B.A. in government.