Hillary in, but can she win?

One of the worst kept secrets in contemporary presidential politics is out ??and Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is in. She says she?s ?in to win? the White House.

The question is: Can she win??The road to the White House is long and tortuous, with potholes aplenty along the way.

First, Sen. Clinton has to get her party?s nomination.?That means suffering the slings and arrows of public and media scrutiny through a series of caucuses, primaries and debates.?

Current polls show her getting anywhere from 37 to 41 percent of the potential vote from likely Democratic voters, far ahead of media darling Barack Obama.?That?s the good news for Hillary supporters.

The bad news is opinion polls are often poor predictors of political outcomes.? Sen. Clinton will have to earn the nomination by defeating an array of fellow senators and former senators, including Obama and John Edwards.? Her field of competition has just shrunk by one, with John Kerry?s announcement that he will not run again.

Her most formidable primary opponent could turn out to be New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson.?He, too, has thrown his big hat into the ring.?He is a bright, articulate, savvy politician, with considerable experience in national and international affairs.? A former member of Congress, he has also served as Ambassador to the United Nations, and as Secretary of Energy in the Clinton administration.?

Moreover, he has been governor of New Mexico long enough to learn the ropes of top-level executive management for a relatively large state that went for President Bush in 2004.?He is also Hispanic-American, but he soft-pedals that by saying that he is, first and foremost, an American, though proud to be Hispanic.

Finally, he has achieved a well-deserved reputation as a negotiator, in both foreign and domestic issues.?So far, he is way behind, but he has the potential to move up fast in a crowded field.

Ultimately, though, Hillary Clinton may prove to be her own worst enemy.?She is controversial with a capital C.?She always has been and always will be.?From her days as First Lady of Arkansas and First Lady of the nation, to her service as a U.S. Senator, Clinton has been a lightning rod for controversy.?Along the way, she has acquired a lot of political baggage that could weigh heavily on her in the primaries.

Second, even if Sen. Clinton wins the Democratic nomination, she will still face the Herculean challenge of winning the presidential general elections in 2008.? History is not on her side. Of 43 presidents from 1789 to 2004, only two have made it directly from the U.S. Senate: Republican Warren G. Harding in 1921 and Democrat John F. Kennedy in 1961.?Worse for her, no woman has ever done so.?

Still, there?s a first time for everything.? Recent polls show that a majority of Americans appear to be ready for a female president.?The real question is: Are we ready for Hillary Rodham Clinton?

Thomas B. Vaughn is an instructor at Motlow College and co-host of the radio show ?Viewpoints,? which airs on WCPI 91.3 FM.