Clinton On Road To State Dept.

In March, Obama's team put out a memo challenging Clinton's foreign policy credentials. Gregory Craig, who worked in President Clinton's State Department, wrote that as first lady she "did not do any heavy lifting with foreign governments, whether they were friendly or not. She never managed a foreign policy crisis, and there is no evidence to suggest that she participated in the decision-making that occurred in connection with any such crisis."

Obama recently named Craig to the post of White House counsel.

Obama and Clinton also have represented different factions in the party. He was favored by better-educated, wealthier voters; she was the hero of many women and blue-collar workers.

For Clinton and Obama to have gotten to this point testifies to their political maturity, Boxer said.

"If this were to happen, it's a wonderful signal about our president-elect and also shows that Hillary is willing to forgive and forget too," the California senator said. "There's no question the campaign was tough. It was very tough. It says a lot about Barack Obama that he's willing to put it aside."

One obstacle to the appointment was Bill Clinton's finances. The former president has made a fortune delivering speeches around the world, while taking in hundreds of millions of dollars from anonymous donors for his private foundation and library. Some of the money has come from foreign sources, including a $10-million gift from the Saudi royal family.

During the campaign, Obama released a memo stating that the secrecy surrounding the donors showed that Sen. Clinton, despite her years in public life, had not yet been fully vetted and had a "history of misleading voters."

To clear a path for his wife's appointment, Bill Clinton agreed to several concessions: He gave the Obama team the names of more than 200,000 donors to his foundation and library; he agreed to clear any future paid speeches with the White House and State Department; and he said he would distance himself from his foundation.

An Obama aide said Friday that the "financial disclosure issues have been worked out." And an aide to Bill Clinton aide: "If she does not do it, it won't be because of my boss."

Some Democrats doubt that the alliance can work, or that it will avoid controversy. Obama is famously averse to drama; the Clintons have proved to be drama magnets. The pairing could prove awkward, in part because Bill Clinton is a prominent world figure in his own right.