I have a lot of respect for Condi (AKA Dr. Rice except to the New York Times) but she has never held elective office. That would be a big strike against her should she choose to run for the presidency. For much of the past couple years, I was hoping that Dick Cheney would resign so she could be on the ticket as VP. Not that I have anything against Cheney but I thought she'd bring a lot to the ticket.

As for Hillary, she has won an election to the Senate once. She would need to win reelection in 2006 (not a given if someone like Rudi chooses to run against her). Failure to win would pretty well wipe out any chances of her winning higher office. From what I've read, she has done a pretty good job in the Senate, but if election history means anything, that alone may not be enough. The last senator to win the presidency was JFK in 1960. He was also the last non-southern Democrat to win the office. It seems that most Americans are more comfortable electing former governors who have executive office experience. Not that these things mean she can't win (see: Redskins home game rule), but it suggests that a senator from New York might have a hard time gaining red state support.