Just last week, Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-NY) was publicly flirting with the idea of a run for the presidency.

The former first lady longs to return to the White House with husband Bill as consort. Only last week she told television viewers America would be led by a woman one day. “Stay tuned,” she said.

The Sunday Times quotes some Democratic insiders, including members of the Clinton team saying that she may forgo a White House bid and decide instead to become a member of the Senate leadership. This after Steve Clemons wrote much the same thing just a month ago.

Friends of Hillary Clinton have been whispering the unthinkable. Despite her status as the runaway frontrunner for the 2008 Democratic nomination for president, some of her closest advisers say she might opt out of the White House race and seek to lead her party in the Senate.

…

“I would not be surprised if she were to decide that the best contribution she can make to her country is to forget about being president and become a consensus-maker in the Senate,” said a leading Democratic party insider. “She believes there is no trust between the two political sides and that we can’t function as a democracy without it.”

Only Sen. Clinton knows what Sen. Clinton will decide to do. In November, she’ll have a big decision to make: Play it safe or go for the gold? Either way, she’s going to be re-elected to the U.S. Senate this fall and she will be well positioned, both financially and in terms of her rock-star status, to make a solid run for the Democratic nomination in ‘08. Stay tuned.