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(CNN) -- Lost amidst the predictable clutter of the "will-he-or won't-she" questions about whether Jeb Bush or Hillary Clinton will actually run for the presidency is an unexpected development: a hint of authenticity.

Turns out that political purgatoryeven if temporarycan actually spark a genuine conversation with the public about what it takes to be president, and what goes into deciding whether you want to run.

Here's Hillary on herself: "The job is unforgiving in many ways, so I think you need people around you who will kid you, make fun of you. ... You can lose touch with what's real, what's authentic."

Gloria Borger

Here's Jeb on his decision: "Can I do it where the sacrifice to my family is tolerable?...It's a pretty ugly business right now. There's a level under which I would never subjugate my family because that's my organizing principle. That's my life."

So while Chris Christie won't answer questions about immigration and Ted Cruz is threatening to block presidential nominations and Rand Paul is blaming the tragic Eric Garner death on cigarette taxes, there's another more personal and revealing conversation going on about the presidency and how to get there, and we ought to pay some attention.

You can lose touch with what's real, what's authentic. Hillary Clinton

Not just because it's coming from Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton, although that is a part of it. After all, Hillary's outside support network is up and running, even if she isn't officially yet. And while Jeb has no campaign infrastructure or organization, his closest advisers are having enough meetings with enough operatives to send enough signals that it's a very live, real, even likely, possibility. Though Jeb's advisers tell me he hasn't made a decision, the process over the last six months sure looks like it leads to a presidential campaign.

So all the cheerleaders need is the final hand signal.

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Authentic words from Hillary Clinton?

Voters prefer Hillary Clinton over five potential 2016 Republican candidates for president, according to a Bloomberg Politics Poll released Monday. At the same time, the former secretary of state and first lady may be too liberal for general election voters.

Clinton was the most popular political figure mentioned in the poll out of seven potential 2016 candidates with a 52 percent net favorability rating. Vice President Joe Biden was second with 45 percent and 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney was third at 43 percent. No other possible 2016 contender surpassed 40 percent.

Clinton, who hasn't said she would run for president but is widely expected to mount a bid in 2016, may want U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, to be the GOPs nominee if she runs. The polled showed her having the largest margin against Cruz, 46 percent to 33 percent. She had an eight-point lead over U.S. Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, 45 percent to 37 percent. Clinton had six-point leads over three possible 2016 candidates: former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush; New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie; and Romney.The Bloomberg poll was conducted Dec. 3-5 and is based on interviews with 1,001 adults.

The respondents also said Clinton was the candidate that shared their values more than the Republicans. Clinton was also found to be a stronger leader, care more about people like you, and having a vision for the future.

Her image and reputation with voters has been defined, and in some ways redefined, by her service as secretary of state, where voters saw someone who was a strong leader in representing our country, Democratic pollster Geoff Garin told Bloomberg. If she runs, she comes to this election in much better shape than she did in the 2008."

Another survey, however, found Clinton may lean too far to the left for a general election, Republican pollster David Winston told the Washington Examiner. On a scale of 1 to 9, with 1 being liberal and 9 being conservative, Clinton scored a 3.6, which positions her just shy of President Barack Obama, who got a 3.37, and to the left of House Democrats. Independent voters involved in the poll put themselves at 5.56, or just right of center.

Looking at 2016, the ideological spectrum should [be] concerning for Democrats, especially the likely front-runner Hillary Clinton, Winston said. The good news for her is voters put her to the right of President Obama. The bad news for her is voters put her significantly to the left of where they put themselves ideologically.

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Hillary Clinton 2016 President Poll Shows Edge Over Mitt Romney, Ted Cruz, Chris Christie, Rand Paul And Jeb Bush

Former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, a potential 2016 presidential candidate, uses a teleprompter as she speaks to students at the University of California Los Angeles, UCLA campus on the subject of leadership Wednesday, March 5, 2014, in Los Angeles. AP

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has accepted another paid speech in March, raising speculation that any announcement about her candidacy won't come until after that.

Clinton will deliver the closing keynote address at the American Camp Association, a group of 3,000 summer camp and out-of-school-time professionals, on March 19 at the group's conference in Atlantic City. Her fee hasn't been disclosed, but the association's website is for the first time in its history selling VIP tickets to her speech.

Ticket holders "will occupy the first few rows and the rest of the seats will remain free and open to the attendees," and the site admits that the ticket sales will be used "to help subsidize the amazing closing keynote."

Eighty tickets in rows two through four are selling for $500 each, and the first 20 people to buy will get a free copy of Clinton's most recent book, "Hard Choices." Another 200 tickets are available at $100 each for seating in rows five through 12 of the room.

Clinton has said she'll make a decision on a presidential bid in early 2015, although it is unlikely she would continue to give paid speeches once she announced her campaign. Rudy Giuliani, the former New York City mayor who ran for president in 2008, said he would stop accepting invitations for paid speeches once he ran for president, though he continued to do some speaking engagements after announcing his candidacy. Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee also delivered paid speeches during the 2008 campaign, saying at the time, "unlike people who are independently wealthy, if I don't work, I don't eat."

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Another paid speech raises questions about Hillary Clinton campaign

Hillary Clinton discussed "the pain and frustration that many Americans are feeling about the criminal justice system" during her keynote speech at the Massachusetts Conference for Women on Dec. 4, 2014. (Massachusetts Conference for Women)

MoveOn.org is lining up for Elizabeth Warren the latest sign of her strength among progressives by kicking off a $1 million effort to draft her for president in 2016, according to an article in theNew York Times:

MoveOn.orgs executive director, Ilya Sheyman, said the group planned to open offices and hire staff in Iowa and New Hampshire, the states that kick off the presidential nominating process, and ultimately to air television ads in those states. The group will begin its push with a website, Run Warren Run, allowing supporters to sign a petition urging Ms. Warren to pursue a White House bid and featuring a video about her.

We want to demonstrate to Senator Warren that theres a groundswell of grass-roots energy nationally and in key states and to demonstrate theres a path for her, Mr. Sheyman said. He added that the effort was not being made in coordination with Ms. Warren and that the group advised her staff about it only last weekend.

And with every Warren story, the question becomes just how worried Hillary Clinton should actually be. And it's this question that reminded me of a sentence in my colleague Anne Gearan's articleabout all the potential "not-Hillarys" who might run in 2016:

Bill Clinton admires Warrens stemwinder speaking style, and Hillary Clinton echoed parts of Warrens sticking-up-for-the-little guy economic message during midterm speeches this year.

It's this speaking style that has powered Warren to her position, leading my colleague, David Farenthold, to call her the master of the stump speech. She can bring a huge crowd to its feet in a way that almost no politician can at this point. And she is also a pitbull at congressional hearings, the very kind of appearances which will likely go into whatever video that MoveOn.org will make about her.

As for Clinton, what would be on her highlight reel of speeches?Her attempted echo of Warren's brand of populism in Massachusetts fell flat. Take a look at Clinton addressing the recent incidents involving white police officers and black men which have particularly inflamed progressives (at the 2:00 mark):

"I know that a lot of hearts are breaking and we are asking ourselves, aren't these our sons? Aren't these our brothers?" she said, adding that "each of us has to grapple with some hard truths about race and justice in America" when it comes to disproportionate treatment in sentencing.

Here is a review from the Boston Globe of that portion of the speech, in whichClinton talked about the country needing to "find balance" again:

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Hillary Clinton has made millions on speeches. But shes still not a great speaker.

Sen. Ted Cruz Relentlessly Mocks Hillary Clinton #39;s Country Music Campaign Song.
Hugh Hewitt Interview w/ Ted Cruz.

By: Hugh Hewitt Show

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Sen. Ted Cruz Relentlessly Mocks Hillary Clinton's Country Music Campaign Song. - Video