What type of First Spouse would Bill Clinton be?

Eugene Robinson, no conservative, is exactly right when he writes of his doubts about what kind of First Spouse Bill Clinton would be.

After his eight years as president, and nearly seven as a millionaire statesman/philanthropist/philosopher, is Bill Clinton capable of following any script? He's used to saying whatever he wants to say, whenever he wants to say it. And he's a talented improviser, always overflowing with ideas -- some of them brilliant, some half-baked -- that he can't wait to share with his listeners.

Does anyone think that William Jefferson Clinton would confine himself to the bland, inoffensive pronouncements we've come to expect from presidential spouses? I'd give him two weeks of ribbon-cuttings and ceremonial visits before he felt compelled -- and perhaps entitled -- to jump into policy. Clearly, the smart thing would be to give him a portfolio of his own rather than let him play hopscotch.

But how would anyone keep him on the reservation? How would anyone tone down his charisma? And what would happen if a new Clinton administration gutted one of the accomplishments of the old Clinton administration? One potential case in point is the North American Free Trade Agreement, which Hillary says has to be modified. If she were to keep that campaign promise, would Bill just smile sweetly on his way to the next East Room reception?

What people think of Bill Clinton and his presidency is grist for other columns. For now, I'm asking a simpler question: Since the Constitution provides for one president, not two, could he find a way to live in a White House that wasn't all about him?

It's so clear that Bill Clinton would soon become the major side show story about a Hillary Clinton presidency. Do we really want to be waking up every day to find out what Bill had said to embarrass his wife and her White House.