TIME poll on Hillary

A new poll from Time focuses on the electability of Hillary Clinton.

Most Americans agree that Hillary Clinton is intelligent (81%) and that she's politically moderate (67%). She's the Democratic nominee they'd support the most if she runs for President (leading the field with 46%, just ahead of Al Gore's 41%). And a majority (53%) agree that she makes a generally favorable impression. They don't agree on much else.

An interesting part of the poll found that Dems and Republicans viewed her on the opposite sides of the political spectrum.

Partisan divisions even color views of her partisanship. Democrats mostly think she's a moderate (67% ); Republicans think she a liberal (62% ). Hillary proponents have a small reed of hope to grasp in the 60% of independents that agree with Democrats that politically she's "somewhere in between" liberal and conservative.

The poll is really a mixed-bag for Hillary. The GOP numbers are meaningless; of course they'll call her a rabid liberal. But the numbers showing that Democrats feel she is moderate may not be a good sign. If the anti-war/Ned Lamont wave of emotion continues on the Dem side, she may be tossed aside as "Lieberman-lite" in favor of a more strongly anti-war voice - such as Al Gore (if he decides to run. Those big numbers for him in the poll are intriguing.).

An article accompanying the poll delves deep into the political prospects for Hillary.