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Although campaign officials say that every time Hillary appears in a state her husband's popularity rises, some of them fear that she is developing a gender gap. Women may be tougher on another woman who seems to have it all: a high-powered career and a family, brains and looks, especially one who has the mansion, the servants and the drivers to make it look easy. Anne Reingold, media director of the Democratic National Committee, has a retrograde explanation: "All the men I know want to sleep with her. All the women want to scratch her eyes out."
Politics is highly susceptible to backlash, and trailblazers do not often win popularity contests. But women who want more choices should think hard about being harsher on Hillary Clinton than they would be on a Barbara Bush. If the only nonconflict profession for a presidential spouse is no profession at all, many people might give up their career so that a spouse could seek office without raising questions of impropriety. Or potential candidates for any high office might not run, rather than ask their mates to give up a rewarding job. If that prospect forces a re-examination of the issue, it may soon be possible for politicians' spouses to work outside the home without arousing suspicions -- even if home is the White House.