Hilary would be excellent president, says Bill

Former US President Bill Clinton said today that his wife, Hillary, would be an excellent choice as the first female leader of the world’s most powerful nation.

In an interview with Japanese TV, Clinton said he did not know whether his wife, the senator of New York state, has any plans to one day run for the presidency, which has been held by 43 men but no women.

“I don’t know if she’ll run or not,” he told the network, but added, “She would make an excellent president, and I would always try to help her.”

Hillary Rodham Clinton has said she plans to run for re-election as New York senator in 2006.

Speculation has periodically surfaced, however, that the 57-year-old former first lady may have her sights set for the presidency in 2008.

Results from a US poll released last week showed that six in 10 American voters believe the United States is ready for a female president.

Fifty-three per cent thought Hillary Clinton should try for the job, according to the survey by the Siena College Research Institute and sponsored by Hearst Newspapers.

“If she did run and she was able to win, she’d make a very, very good president,” Clinton said. “I think now she’s at least as good as I was.”

Clinton was in Japan on a three-day visit to attend an international forum organised by the Asahi newspaper and to promote a Japanese-language edition of his best-selling memoir “My Life”.