Brooke Shields Likes Hillary’s ‘Versatility’

Brooke Shields, for one, wouldn’t mind seeing a woman in the Oval Office after the 2008 presidential election. “I’m always convinced, at the risk of being—and I love men—but I think women are incredibly capable, and it seems that their talents and their intellect seems to be a little more varied, I should say,” said Ms. Shields, 42, in a purple Donna Karan dress. The Ivy-League actress, who will star in Candace Bushnell’s new TV show, Lipstick Jungle, was the special guest host last night at Saks Fifth Avenue’s “Viva La Cure” benefit for women’s cancer research. The party was held in the subterranean Sea Grill at Rockefeller Plaza, where guests then spilled out onto a carpet in middle of the ice rink and ate and drank on the pink island while hired ice skaters twirled and sported around them.

“So I think I would welcome that versatility. I think there is a multi-tasking ability that women have and an appreciation for things without a risk of being maudlin,” Ms. Shields added.

Asked what unique traits, if any, a woman might bring to the presidency if one is elected, actress Gretchen Mol opened her eyes wide. “Female power? It depends on the woman, actually, it really does. It’s not just about having a woman, it’s about having someone that can lead this country and bring us into a different place than we are now,” she continued, “It really does depend on the woman, but hopefully—it really is a cliché to say—but I think of women as not being particularly hawkish, so to speak. But then again, that’s not always true,” said Ms. Mol, 35, who was wearing a black-and-brown Jason Wu dress with a bright red band around the waist.

Amanda Peet, meanwhile, thinks that “there are a lot of sort of misconceptions about Hillary being cold and condescending, so I don’t know that she’s going to have this aura of compassion and maternal empathy more than, say, Barack Obama or even McCain, should he resurface or whatever,” said Ms. Peet, 35, in a peasant blouse and loose black pedal-pushers. “I’m working on being a mother,” she added.

Howard Stern’s ex-model fiancée, Beth Ostrosky likes the idea of a female president, because she, unlike a man, would understand “women’s issues, first-hand.” Wearing a black dress, black Jimmy Choos and clutching a black quilted-leather Chanel purse, Ms. Ostrosky, 35, went on to say: “I would love for Hillary to be the next president. I am definitely a Hillary supporter!”

Largely outnumbered by female guests at last night’s event, Saks C.E.O. Steve Sadove and Rescue Me star Mike Lombardi, were happy to offer their thoughts on the issue.

“A woman could bring a lot to the white house from perspective, in terms of different perspectives, but I think it’s not about women or men, it’s about quality of thinking and ideas and who’s going to be able to bring about the kind of change that’s needed in terms of moving the country forward,” Mr. Sadove said diplomatically in a black suit.

After massaging most of his girlfriend Maria Helena’s body on the elevator ride to street-level, Mr. Lombardi, 31, who was wearing a black leather jacket, turned to the Daily Transom and said: “Being the women who bear children, obviously they come from a different perspective than we do. So I think a lot of different views and opinions, for sure, yeah.”