In February, Newsweek’s Eleanor Clift examined a scenario that seemed absurd, and maybe still is. But gridlock and tension between Democratic Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton persists, and the longer that’s the case …

Consider the fact that above all else, Democrats want to win in 2008, and the more these two tear each other apart, the more difficult it may be to triumph over John McCain. Or so the theory, held by many, would have it.

The new rallying cry: Al Gore on the second ballot.

The last time a political convention went to a second ballot was 1952, but this year anything is impossible. The superdelegates, who will ultimately play into the decision, are not bound to any candidate and can do what they want.

Moreover, delegates won in primaries go to the convention with a pledge of support for one candidate, but one of the biggest myths of the process is that delegates are bound to follow that pledge beyond the first ballot.

Therefore, if the first ballot is conducted and neither candidate has the 2,025 needed to secure the nomination, another name could be introduced.

All it would take is asingle  delegate perhaps from Tennessee, or any other state, for that matter, to raise an official point of order, and with the backing of five other state delegations, the name of Al Gore could be put into play.

Gore would surely be tempted - with the convention ending August 28, that’s just two months on the trail. By the time Election Day arrives, the honeymoon phase of the new Al Gore 2008 campaign may not even have worn off.

Of course, this also presumes Barack Obama would be his running mate (the odds of Gore taking Hillary Clinton as his V.P. are even slimmer than … anything else in this post ever happening), and that gets pretty dicey.

A Gore-Obama ticket would be formidable, yes - strong on national security and experience, while still embodying change - but many Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton voters (and the candidates themselves) would be hurt.

The last thing the Democrats want would be to face a Barack Obama / Chuck Hagel / Michael Bloomberg independent ticket. That would be political theater for the ages, but probably sweep McCain into the White House.