It's not the gender; it's the candidates

I read with interest Connie Schultz' opinion piece in the March 6 issue of the Herald. She mentions her three granddaughters in the context of once again having to wait for the possibility of a female president. The two female candidates she mentions in the article are Hillary Clinton and Elizabeth Warren. The implication of the piece is that since these two candidates failed in their attempts to gain the White House, we as a society are still mired in the muck of not accepting the idea of a female President.

Contrary to this idea, I believe the United States is ready for a female president. The problem has been with the candidates. The two examples presented in the opinion piece were, I believe, terrible candidates.

The one disparaged whole categories of American citizens with her remark about "deplorables" and the other candidate attacked the very economic and political foundations of our democracy that, although flawed, have made America strong.

I have three daughters, and I believe they will very soon see and hear a female candidate who respects the American people and the American way of life. The candidate will respectfully but firmly express her views and state her positions in a way which will resonate with millions of Americans and carry her to the White House as the first female President of the United States. Nikki Halley anyone?

Tom Paulsen

Wheaton