The Clintons go their separate ways together

Interviews with some 50 people and a review of their respective activities show that since leaving the White House, the Clintons have built largely separate lives 8212; partly because of the demands of their distinct career paths and partly as a result of political calculations.

The effect has been to raise Senator Clinton8217;s profile on the public radar while somewhat toning down Mr Clinton8217;s; he has told friends that his No 1 priority is not to cause her any trouble. They appear in the public spotlight methodically and carefully: The goal is to position Mrs Clinton to run for president not as a partner or a proxy, but as her own person.

Since the start of 2005, the Clintons have been together about 14 days a month on average, according to aides who reviewed the couple8217;s schedules. Sometimes it is a full day of relaxing at home in Chappaqua; sometimes it is meeting up late at night. At their busiest, they saw each other on a single day, Valentine8217;s Day, in February 20058212;a month when each was travelling a great deal. Last August, they saw each other at some point on 24 out of 31 days. Out of the last 73 weekends, they spent 51 together.

Aides say the two want as much private time together as possible; last fall, for instance, Mr Clinton left Manhattan for home to squeeze in a few hours with Mrs Clinton before turning around for a flight out of Newark. Mr Clinton has told his staff that he would rather not be in Washington when his wife is not there, aides said.

Rarely, however, do the Clintons appear in public when they are together. That is largely driven by their careers, but it is also partly by choice. Mr Clinton has become involved in a legion of causes that have taken him out of the country, like as AIDS in Africa and third-world poverty. He sometimes takes part in her strategy sessions, but the sensitivity about his political role is so great that her advisers differed on his influence and frequency of participation8212;though all agreed that at home, his sway is felt.

Yet in choosing to keep their public lives separate, people around the Clintons say, there is a political calculus at work, beyond the natural evolution in a marriage that has had plenty of stresses and betrayals. Mrs Clinton may be the only Democrat in America who cannot look at Bill Clinton as an unalloyed political asset. He is a complicated figure for his wife, who has grown from a controversial first lady, while intertwined with him, into a popular senator by standing on her own two feet.

Democrats preparing for 2008 describe the political challenge this way: Mrs Clinton could prosper as a presidential candidate, yet the return of 8220;the Clintons8221; could revive memories including the oft-derided two-for-the-price-of-one appeal of his 1992 presidential campaign, Mrs Clinton8217;s role in the universal health care debacle, and the soap opera of infidelity.

Donna Brazile, a Democratic political strategist, said it was impossible to deal the former president out of any bid by his wife, especially given Mr Clinton8217;s high profile. 8220;At the same time, voters aren8217;t interested in the Clintons as a couple as much as they8217;re interested in what Mrs Clinton is doing or saying,8221; she said.

Some friends say they do not notice any tension now, though they are not sure when, or how, it lifted. 8220;Who knows how any couple conquer the issues in their marriage, but they did it,8221; said Chris Korge, a Democratic fund-raiser close to both Clintons. PATRICK HEALY