Hillary Faces Gender Hurdle in Iowa

Gender bias may topple Hillary's Iowa bid and hurt her image as shoo-in for the Dem nomination, the Christian Science Monitor reports. She calls the state a "special burden" and was "shocked" to hear Iowans had never elected a woman governor; analysts say she's downplaying her hopes in the state, where she holds a slim six-point lead over Edwards.

A memo leaked from Hillary's campaign called Iowa "our consistently weakest state" and urged pulling out—advice that Hillary rejected, instead amping up her campaign and buying TV ads. But one poll has more Iowa caucusgoers, 41%, rejecting her than either Edwards or Obama. "Are [Iowa] women comfortable voting for another woman?" asked one female voter. "I think a lot of them are just not there yet." (More Hillary Clinton stories.)