Is she running or is she ain't?

The question of whether Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., will toss her hair band into the ring of presidential contenders persists like any well-placed rumor.

The only spoken obstacle is one of p-p-p-rinciple. Hard to say without stuttering, isn't it? That is, she promised New Yorkers she would fulfill her six-year Senate term.

But then we hear through the carefully cultivated grapevine that constituents have said they'll forgive her if she changes her mind. In other words: Run, Hillary, run!

Next, increasing the buzz and injecting a little calculated confusion, we hear that the Clintons have hand-picked Gen. Wesley Clark as their candidate in order to dilute the Category Five candidacy of Dr. Howard Dean and to maintain control of the party.

Clark and Hillary are the stars of the Democratic party, we also hear from - who else? -undeclared presidential candidate-for-life, Bill Clinton.

Who is , make no mistake, running for president if only through his wife and as a matter of habit.

Suddenly, I feel sorry for Hillary Clinton. No matter what she does, no matter how smart, capable or accomplished she might be - and despite all she may have sacrificed, repressed and subjugated for her own political future - 'It' will always be about Bill.

Since leaving office, and especially in recent months, Bill Clinton has been like Elvis, popping up everywhere, drawing huge crowds and raking in millions. He is near-messianic in his drawing power, attracting thousands to auditoriums and stadia, being received and treated like a rock star.

At a recent 5,000-strong Democrat party picnic in Iowa, Clinton overshadowed the real candidates and was greeted with signs: "We miss you Bill," and "Welcome Back Bill."

This month he's been all over California stumping for Gray Davis and against the election recall. He talked to a sold-out crowd of 2,000 at the Monterey Conference Center, discussing presidential leadership and answering questions about how he would handle world affairs - if only he were president today.

At the First African Methodist Episcopal Church in South-Central Los Angeles, he urged 1,000 congregants to vote against the recall. He's not worried about Davis, he told them. He's worried about them. The people. His people, who couldn't restrain their enthusiasm for America's first "black" president.

"You need to calm down. You'll have me thinking I'm president again if you don't calm down," said Clinton in a classic instance of unironic projection. Continued...