Hillary's pals still talk of her being V-P candidate

New York, July 31 : New York Senator Hillary Clinton, who got time to speak on the second day of the Democratic convention is another big sign that proves she won't be Barack Obama's vice presidential candidate, yet some of her supporters argue that she should get one last look.

"Hillary Clinton would be far and away the strongest person he could pick," said Michael Kempner, a former member of Clinton's finance committee who is now on Obama's money team.

"Her appeal, her experience, both in international affairs and her appeal to key demographic audiences, would be a perfect balance to the strengths Senator Obama already has with portions of the population," Kempner said, citing women in particular.

Earlier this week, Terry McAuliffe, who headed Clinton's presidential campaign, said the Democrats would control the White House "for 16 years" if Obama picked her.

But Lee Miringoff, director of the Marist College Institute for Public Opinion, said selecting Clinton has advantages and disadvantages - and her cons appear to be outweighing her pros in Obama's eyes, thye Daily News reported.

"If Barack Obama thought that putting Hillary Clinton on the ticket was tantamount to starting to rehearse the oath of office, I suspect the thought that she's not likely to be on the ticket would not be as popular as it is," Miringoff said.

Clinton agreed to speak on day two of the Democratic convention, August 26, to commemorate the 88th anniversary of women's right to vote, the Daily News reported.

A top Obama aide told party leaders in a conference call last night that Clinton has accepted the offer to be the featured prime-time Tuesday night speaker, a high-profile slot that some of Clinton's own people had floated in recent days.

Obama aide Jennifer Koch added that his vice presidential nominee - whoever it is - will likely speak on Monday and Wednesday evening as part of the traditional build up to Obama accepting the nomination on Thursday night.

Some of those on last night's conference call concluded Clinton was not under serious consideration for vice president, and would instead be filling a more limited - albeit historically charged - role at the Denver convention.

ANI