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While the race for the Republican nomination for president appears to be beginning in earnest, prompted in no small part by early maneuvering by Jeb Bush and the increasing likelihood that Mitt Romney is indeed going to throw his hat in the ring for a third run at the White House, things have been fairly quiet on the Democratic side of the aisle. At most, the past several months have seen some talk of potential candidacies on the part of people such as former Virginia Sen. Jim Webb, former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, and former Maryland Gov. Martin OMalley, as well as some speculation that Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders may enter the race. The Ready for Warren people continue to do their thing notwithstanding the fact that Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren has said shes not running for president. Vice-President Biden, meanwhile, has apparently not taken any real steps to put together a campaign organization. To a large degree, of course, the lack of action on the Democratic side of the race is due to the fact that everyone seems to be waiting to see what Hillary Clinton will do. At this point, the major shock to the Democratic field would be Clinton announcing that she isnt running, since it would leave the party without a real front runner heading into 2016. The question, though, is when Clinton actually intends to enter the race, and a new Mike Allen piece atPoliticosuggests thatshe may delay entering the race until much later in the year than originally planned:

Hillary Clinton, expecting no major challenge for the Democratic nomination, is strongly considering delaying the formal launch of her presidential campaign until July, three months later than originally planned, top Democrats tell POLITICO.

The delay from the original April target will give her more time to develop her message, policy and organization, without the chaos and spotlight of a public campaign.

A Democrat familiar with Clintons thinking said: She doesnt feel under any pressure, and they see no primary challenge on the horizon. If you have the luxury of time, you take it.

Advisers said the biggest reason for the delay is simple: She feels no rush.

She doesnt want to feel pressured by the press to do something before shes ready, one adviser said. Shes better off as a non-candidate. Why not wait?

A huge advantage to waiting is that Clinton postpones the time when she goes before the public as a politician rather than as a former secretary of state. Polling by both Democrats and Republicans shows that one of her biggest vulnerabilities is looking political.

So the Clinton camp has enjoyed watching her recede from the headlines in recent weeks as Jeb Bush and Mitt Romney have amped up their potential candidacies.

One option being considered would be to announce an exploratory committee earlier perhaps in April, at the beginning of a new fundraising quarter, in the timeframe when insiders originally expected her to launch her campaign.

Then the actual kickoff would be in July, near the start of the next quarter. By launching at the beginning of a quarter, supporters have the maximum amount of time to generate a blockbuster total for their first report.

Excerpt from:
Hillary Clinton: the case for waiting until summer to enter presidential race