FIRST BLOOD: HOW THE RED CROSS WOUNDED A RESUME

The scene repeats itself over and over on the campaign trail. Elizabeth Dole stands by, beaming, while her host, using talking points prepared by her staff, praises her work as president of the American Red Cross--in particular her role in leading its "most ambitious" effort ever, the "total transformation of the way the Red Cross collects, tests and distributes one half of the American blood supply."

While no one expects full disclosure on the campaign trail, there are crucial elements missing from this image. One of them is that Mrs. Dole's heroic restructuring campaign was largely forced on her by the...