The woman in her early fifties has a famous political name. Despite her complete lack of qualifications for the office, she has decided she wants to be the United States Senator from New York. Though she's a graduate of an Ivy League law school, her practical experience is limited.

Her biggest asset is her last name, and the fact that she's lived in the White House for several years of her life. A very close relative--the closest, in fact-has served as President of the United States.

She's decided that she needs to introduce herself to the people of New York.

Though she can barely pronounce the names of the communities in upstate New York she visits, she stumbles through a series of awkward press conferences, accompanied by the obligatory local Democratic pol.

She has an important member of the New York State Democratic political hierarchy in her corner, so despite her awkward start, she continues.

She has name recognition, star power, and money.

The fix is in, and she is apparently on her way to the United States Senate.

Caroline Kennedy, you ask ?

Try Hillary Clinton in 2000. Her mentor was the late Senator Patrick Moynihan. Unlike Caroline Kennedy, who actually is a resident of the state of New York, Hillary Clinton had never resided in New York. Born in Illinois, she attended college in Massachussets and went to law school in Connecticut before working in D.C., then Arkansas, then D.C. again. She established her New York residency in the last year of her husband's administration, commuting from the White House to a recently purchased house in suburban Chappaqua.

Unlike Hillary Clinton, Columbia Law School graduate Caroline Kennedy, apparently does not have an original thought in her mind. Since she is reflexively liberal, this is probably a good thing. Hillary had displayed an original thought prior to her decision to accept her appointment (oops, sorry, I meant to say election) as Senator from New York, but it was the extraordinarily bad original thought of government run health care.

Ms. Kennedy, who seems to be a nice enough person, would be a remarkably lackluster, if reliably liberal, Democratic Senator from New York. And New York Governor David Patterson would be totally within his rights to appoint her. While she would undoubtedly be a less articulate defender of liberal causes than her predecessor, Hillary Clinton, it would be hard to argue that she is any less deserving of the office in 2008 than Hillary Clinton was in 2000. Personally, I think former Yankee catcher Yogi Berra would do a better job than either of them.