Let’s make one thing clear right now: I’m a fan of Hillary Rodham Clinton. I didn’t get angry when she stood by her man during the embarrassing, but trivial, Monicagate.

I think her foray into finding a health care plan that offers universal coverage was admirable, if a little too ambitious. And I cringed when famed journalist Sy Hersh referred to her as “Lady MacBeth” during his speech here at Iowa State and at a pre-speech dinner.

I don’t have the kind of passionate hatred that many have for Clinton and her husband. However, I don’t agree that she is well-suited to be a New York senator, and her carpetbagging run for the seat is as embarrassing as her mugging for the cameras while wearing a Yankees baseball cap.

Clinton officially declared her long-presumed candidacy shortly before Thanksgiving. Instead of the fanfare for which she was probably hoping, she sparked controversy among the New York Jewish community by not denouncing Mrs. Arafat’s anti-Israel comments quickly enough.

It’s understandable that if Hillary wants to be in the Senate, she wants the New York seat. New York’s a pretty powerful state, and it doesn’t have the pesky residency laws set up that states with which Clinton is better acquainted, such as Illinois and Arkansas, do.

But why – as those who were once upon a time close to the Clintons, such as George Stephanopolous, have publicly wondered – would Hillary want to work in an institution that’s had her husband’s administration under attack almost since he was inaugurated?

Hillary’s an accomplished speaker; why doesn’t she just travel on the lecture circuit and make big bucks? Does she really want to answer to Trent Lott and Tom DeLay for the next six years, anyway?

But maybe it’s the call of civic duty, which is not surprising; Clinton’s been a champion of many women’s and children’s issues for most of her life.

It’s not that Hillary isn’t qualified enough to be a senator. She obviously is: She’s been an effective activist.

She’s a Yale-educated woman. She’s been one of the most active first ladies in American history, much to some right-wingers’ chagrin.

And it’s not that the alternative is better.

The undeclared but very likely Republican candidate, New York Mayor Rudolph Guiliani, who’s done for race relations what Anita Bryant did for the gay community. Sure, Times Square is cleaned up, but at what cost?

New York’s a world apart from the rest of the United States, which is probably why those who don’t live there are still allowed to run for public office. And it’s not as though Clinton’s rare: Bobby Kennedy became a senator from New York even though he was from Massachusetts.

But at least he was from the East Coast. All Hillary seems to be doing, in her “listening campaign” and her now-official candidacy, is proving that she doesn’t have any clear-cut reason why she feels she should be a senator. From New York, no less.

It all started out kind of like a surreal scenario: Hillary was experiencing the highest public-opinion ratings that she’d ever had, while her husband was fighting to keep his job and what little shred of dignity he had left.

What a strong-willed woman, the public said. She’s so tough and intelligent — why doesn’t she run for public office? Why not the Senate? Heck, why not go all the way — why not run for Senate in New York?

Hillary got her cover on Time magazine asking “Senator Clinton?” She got her picture (actually, countless pictures) taken wearing a Yankees cap.

But then suddenly Hillary was house shopping in New York. She was wearing those Yankee caps and traveling around, doing her talking-to-the-man-on-the-street campaigns. She was supposedly getting to know New Yorkers and their woes.

The sad thing about Hillary is she sold out to some extent. Instead of actively pursuing her own political career, she choose to be a part of her husband’s political life. Why she did this, few know.

Maybe Hillary realized she’s as brainy as her husband, if not more so, but Bill was the Great Empathizer – the one who could connect with people easily, a better campaigner.

She might have guessed that Bill was the quickest route to power, which makes her seem pretty manipulative.

Or maybe Hillary was really in love with him and believed in his ideas and in what they could accomplish together. For whatever reason, her political career largely took a back seat — until now.

It might seem hypocritical to say that Hillary is so qualified for this position but doesn’t deserve it simply because she hasn’t lived in New York, but setting up residency really quickly and trying to integrate into the Big Apple culture doesn’t make one a New Yorker. If you’re not a New Yorker, how can you represent the people effectively?

So leave New York to the real New Yorkers. In fact, why doesn’t Hillary make a run for something that’s more appropriate for her — like the White House?

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Kate Kompas is a sophomore in journalism and mass communication from LeClaire. She is head news editor of the Daily.