Jeanne Pirro, the ersatz challenger of Hillary Clinton, is now officially the erstwhile challenger of Hillary Clinton. She will not challenge the junior senator from New York next year. She has decided to run for Attorney General of New York instead.

The Pirro “campaign” was not much of anything at all. It was rocky from the start - she actually lost a page of her announcement speech and stood silent for half a minute. After George Pataki endorsed her, many Republicans in the state must have been scratching their heads, doing their best impersonation of Michael Bluth…“Her?”

So Pirro is gone and nobody who stands a chance is in sight. I have been skeptical of Hillary's presidential potential for a very long time. She must, however, be credited as an adept freshman senator who has cleared the way for an easy victory next year. The fact that Hillary will face a second- or even third-rate challenger is no coincidence, and a testament not just to her political acumen but also to the uphill battle Republicans face in New York.

In other words, it is important not to make too much of this. Clinton is, after all, a good ideological fit with the Empire State. Many politicians could do what she has done. It is not so much that she has demonstrated that she is an above-average politician and more that she has demonstrated she is not a below-average politician. I still see very little evidence on Hillary's part of any political excellence that does not boil down to the ring on her left hand's ring finger. What, for instance, is the difference between Hillary's presumptive victory next year and Barbara Boxer's landslide win last year? A Democrat is doing very well in a Democratic state. Surprised?

Analysts who say that Hillary's reelection will be a boost to her 2008 ambitions are incorrect. Easy victory next year is a necessary condition for her 2008 bid - but it is nowhere near a sufficient condition. It is like having your supporters follow you around New Hampshire with campaign signs. It does not help you get any votes, but if you did not have those people around you, it would cause you to lose votes, as people would wonder, “Well, if he is such a good candidate, where are his supporters?” Hillary's chances would be severely diminished by anything less than 55% next year - but anything over 55% will not enhance them very much.