Terry McAuliffe in Cincinnati

The profile was vaguely familiar, but I was distracted by the great tie, which was so orange Stevie Wonder could see it. Then the barista told "Terry" his coffee was ready.

"Terry" was Democratic Party strategist Terry McAuliffe, whom I just ran into at the corner Starbucks on W. 4th Street.

McAuliffe, the superstar political fundraiser, fresh off a stint as chairman of the Democratic National Committee, is now running Sen. Hillary Clinton's 2008 run for the presidency.

Clinton is leading all Democrats in the polls today, but there's a long campaign season ahead.

He had noon appointment at Joseph-Beth Books promoting his best-selling book, "What a Party! My Life Among Democrats: Presidents, Candidates, Donors, Activists, Alligators, and Other Wild Animals." It was his 26th tour stop. Last night he was in Lexington; he's on his way to Dayton today.

"We've just got to run our campaign," McAuliffe told me when I asked how Clinton can keep distance between her and fellow Democrat candidate Barack Obama, who came to Cincinnati this week for a fundraiser.

At Starbucks, McAuliffe sipped coffee, checked his PDA, tried to eat a sandwich and be cordial to a nosey editor at the same time. He managed well.

In addition to selling books, he also apparently found time to do what he does best: make contact with the well-heeled and well-connected.

Before heading to Dayton, McAuliffe was between meetings with Cincinnati attorney Stan Chesley, who has raised money for Republicans and Democrats alike, and Carl Lindner, chairman of Great American Insurance Group, a leading supporter of the GOP.