The smart money is now backing the FLOTUS for POTUS Getty Images/ Chip SomodevillaDemocratic presidential candidate Hillary ClintonBoy, it’s a lucky thing those Republicans really held Hillary Clinton’s feet to the fire about “Benghazi” last week. Before the hearings, the bookmakers were giving Hillary a 44% chance of becoming the 45th president of the United States. Following Hillary’s 11-hour grilling on live TV, they’re putting her chance at … er …50%. That’s some work. At this stage, anyone wanting to place a bet on her winning the White House can get no odds better than even, according to bookmakers’ websites. Anything can happen in this life, and nothing is completely certain. But I’d still bet on her at those odds — or even considerably shorter. At this stage, Hillary is starting to look like what gamblers call a “racing certainty.” It’s only a few weeks since Republican Congressman Kevin McCarthy basicallyadmitted to Sean Hannity that the Benghazi committee’s goal was to drive down Hillary’s poll numbers. Oops. The main bookmakers are based in London, although they take bets from around the world. But according to America’s only onshore political-betting operation, the University of Iowa’s Iowa Electronic Market, the outlook for Republicans is even worse. As of the weekend, the betting was giving the Democrats a better-than-60% chance of winning the presidential election — with Hillary, it is assumed, the prohibitive favorite for the nomination. You couldn’t make it up. (This is not to say that the Benghazi hearings have been useless. For example, they’ve been terrific for the media. Apparently, the committee has so far spent about $5 million investigating Benghazi. Meanwhile, the media have raked in many times that from all the attention it’s created. Thanks, Congressman Gowdy!) But the main political result of the “Benghazi” hearings was apparently a boost to Hillary’s fund-raising campaign. She hardly needed the help. According to the Center for Responsive Politics, a Washington, D.C., nonprofit that tracks money in politics, even as of Sept. 30 Hillary’s campaign was already sitting on $33 million in cash. Super PACs supporting her had raised another $21 million. It doesn’t hurt that Joe Biden has ruled out joining the race. And it doesn’t hurt that the Crazy ticket is now polling around two-thirds among Republican caucus voters in the key kick-off state of Iowa. According to last week’s Quinnipiac Poll, 28% of likely GOP voters in the state currently say they will support far-right doctor Ben Carson, 20% are backing short-fingered vulgarian Donald Trump, 10% support far-right Texas Congressman Ted Cruz, and 6% support Rand Paul, the Tea Party senator from Kentucky. The media, as always, focused on the little details in the poll, like Carson taking the lead from Trump. The bigger story is that right now about 64% of Republican caucus voters in Iowa are planning to vote for candidates who have absolutely no credible chance in a general election. Meanwhile, the electable Republican candidates can barely muster 20% among them. Florida’s junior senator, Marco Rubio, is putting in the best showing, at around 10%. The bookmakers now have him as favorite for the nomination, at 2-to-1. But at this rate, he’s going to be hard-pressed to change the outcome. President Hillary Rodham Clinton? Bet on it. More from MarketWatch