Peter S. Canellos writes in the Boston Globe:

John F. Kerry's decision to lead last week's unsuccessful filibuster of Samuel A. Alito Jr.'s Supreme Court nomination met with predictable ridicule from Republicans and some Democrats, but it could end up being his smartest political move in a long time.

Canellos goes on to handicap the 2008 Democratic field, focusing on one person in particular:

Hillary Rodham Clinton, however, has used her seat on the Senate Armed Services Committee to bone up on military issues. She is now regarded as a reliable supporter of military spending who has stayed loyal to the troops in Iraq. Still, she's Hillary Clinton, and the possibility of a political meltdown -- through scandal, bitter attacks, or refusal to accept a woman president -- would follow her candidacy like a pack of vultures.

Kerry, her fellow Northeastern senator, stands in her shadow, like a former star hoping for a chance to get back on center stage. His doggedness, combined with the fact that he has already been vetted by the national media, may make him a reliable second choice for those currently hoping for Clinton.

And on Alito, he outflanked her. On Jan. 26, The New York Times ran an editorial entitled ''Senators in Need of a Spine," excoriating Democrats for opting not to use all their procedural levers to block Alito. The Times's cry was answered not by New York's senators, but by those in Massachusetts.

Then, after Kerry and Kennedy began rounding up support, Clinton decided she would, after all, back the filibuster. It was a decision made with one eye on 2008. And, surprisingly, with one eye on John Kerry.

No question, Kerry got a freebie on Alito. He got to play ringleader for a day (even if it was from the slopes of the Swiss Alps) and to deliver the red meat to a very hungry base.  He also got to put up a post on Daily Kos.  Very exciting times for the Senator from Massachusetts.