Barack Obama in 2008?

If email from Political Wire readers is a reliable indicator, it's safe to say that inside the Beltway chatter about Sen. Barack Obama's political future has increased dramatically in recent weeks. Many Democratic powerbrokers now hope the freshman senator will enter the 2008 presidential race as his many fans have hoped.

The Chicago Tribune: "Leading Senate Democrats and party activists have privately urged him to consider a campaign, or at the very least, to leave the door open for a possible last-minute entry." In fact, the AP notes that Sen. Dick Durbin (D-IL) is openly urging Obama to make a bid.

Newsweek's Joe Klein: "Close friends of Obama's say he really doesn't know yet what he's going to do in 2008. It would be nice if we statesmen of the media gave him the room to think it through -- but, of course, we won't. Washington is buzzing with the possibility of an Obama candidacy; he is about to be seriously pestered for a definitive answer."

Adding fuel to the speculation: The Audacity of Hope, Obama's second book is due out this fall. His first book, an autobiography, was a New York Times bestseller.