Negotiating a spousal contract for the Secretary of State

Politico has a copy of the detailed agreement negotiated between the Obama and Clinton people to spell out what Bill Clinton will and will not do as the husband of the Secretary of State.

If you think that this will stop the whole Bill and Hill show from coming to Foggy Bottom, you're more of an optimist than I am. Kirsten Powers shares this skepticism.

Recently, Newsweek reported on a call between Bill Clinton and Democratic strategist Donna Brazile, wherein Bill ranted for an hour about Obama. Oblivious to the irony, he exclaimed: "If Barack Obama is nominated, it will be the worst denigration of public service."

This wasn't just campaign strategy to draw distinctions with an opponent. It was a deep, visceral hostility toward the upstart who Bill believes blocked his family's rightful return to the White House. Clinton even reportedly tallied an 81-page list of grievances against the Obama campaign for attacks (real and perceived) against his lady.

So what will happen when the inevitable policy disagreement arises - say, on talking to Iran - between the Obama and Clinton camps? Before you can say, "leak," the Clinton's side of the story will be all over the press, making the president look weak.

Candidate John Kerry learned this lesson in 2004 after bringing on some Clinton aides to save his campaign. Within days, he was humiliated by a story in The New York Times about how he had called Bill Clinton - recuperating from surgery in the hospital - to get advice about how to run his campaign.

But the leaks will be small potatoes compared to the impromptu press conferences Bill will hold as he roves the world. He'll be constantly pressed for his opinion on world events - and self-control isn't exactly his strong suit.

If he couldn't behave when his own legacy hung in the balance or stay on message when Hillary's campaign for the White House was on the line, why think he'll be able to behave now?

That's assuming he even wants to control himself.

Everything the Clinton camp does will be with an eye toward a future run for Hillary. If this lines up with what's good for Obama, great. If not, they'll always protect their own flanks first.

Bill Clinton has never demonstrated that he can control himself. And with these new limitations on his activities with his Global Initiative and library, I imagine as soon as he starts feeling straitjacketed, he'll be sharing his musings with eager journalists. Barack Obama demonstrated that he can run a campaign with great discipline and control, two words never connected to Bill Clinton. Running the entire government is an entire different job and I expect he'll soon find that he can't control Bill Clinton any more than the Hillary campaign could do so. And now it will all be out there on the global stage.