MS. PRESIDENT & THE GIRL SCOUTS. Also at the Corn Boil in Clinton, Iowa, I met some Girl Scouts -- Haley, Hunter, Cameron, and Chrissy -- who were set to be given a merit award by Sen. Hillary Clinton for the "Fit and Fabulous" program they'd run for girls at the local YMCA. More interesting than this little act of off-stage politicking -- Clinton gave them their "Silver Award" before taking the field to speak, and I'm sure the whole troop's parents will be talking about it for days -- were the badges some of the older scouts were wearing.

We sure didn't have those back when I was a Girl Scout. As it turns out, the Ms. President Patch was launched in 2002, in collaboration with The White House Project, according to the Girl Scouts of the U.S.A.:

The White House Project Ms. President Patch For All Ages

Do you want to see a woman in the White House one day?

The White House Project, an organization that is changing the way people think about women in leadership roles, worked with Girl Scouts of the USA to develop the Ms. President Patch. Take time to celebrate those women who have paved the way in social and political reform, as well as to learn about those who are on the frontlines of government today....Girls at each age-level may participate in any number of activities they choose in order to earn the patch.

I wonder to what extent the five-year-old patch now acts as a kind of ongoing reminder to everyone who deals with scouts who wear it of Clinton's campaign. Certainly there's no risk of some other woman becoming Ms. -- or Madame -- President next year.

--Garance Franke-Ruta