Notwithstanding the recent change in tone, things are still not looking up for the Hillary for President campaign.
Over at Newsweek, Jonathan Alter makes the case that she should drop out now:
Hillary has only one shot—for Obama to trip up so badly that he disqualifies himself. Nothing in the last 14 months suggests he will. He has made plenty of small mistakes, but we’re past the point where a “likable enough” comment will turn the tide. When Obama bragged in the Austin debate about how “good” his speeches were, the boast barely registered. He has brought up his game so sharply that even a head cold and losing the health-care portion of the debate on points did nothing to derail him. Hillary’s Hail Mary pass—that Obama is a plagiarist—was incomplete.
And Alter notes that even the old strategy of relying on the superdelegates doesn’t look like it’s going to work:
Some will be needed in Denver to put Obama over the top, just as Walter Mondale had to round up a couple dozen in 1984. But these party leaders won’t determine the result. At the Austin, Texas, debate last week, Hillary agreed that the process would “sort itself out” so that the will of the people would not be reversed by superdelegates. Obama has a commanding 159 lead in pledged delegates and a lead of 925,000 in the popular vote (excluding Michigan and Florida, where neither campaigned). Closing that gap would require Hillary to win all the remaining contests by crushing margins. Any takers on her chances of doing so in, say, Mississippi and North Carolina, where African-Americans play a big role?
Not good at all would be my guess.
Also today, Robert Novak makes this point:
Clinton’s rationale for remaining a candidate is the Texas-Ohio parlay, and pre-Wisconsin polls gave her a comfortable lead in both states. But Texas has become a dead heat, and her margin in Ohio is down to single digits. Following the Wisconsin returns, Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, Clinton’s leading endorser in the state, is reported to have privately expressed concern as to whether he can hold the state for her.
As I noted late last week, two polls — Rasmussen and ABC/Washington Post — show Texas virtually tied while Clinton holds on to a slim lead in Ohio. It simply doesn’t look like Clinton will get the big wins out of either state that she would need to turn the tide.
Previous Posts
Hillary Clinton Death Watch
Hillary Clinton Death Watch, Afternoon Update
Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update
Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update
February 26th, 2008 at 12:42 pm
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update [...]
February 27th, 2008 at 8:54 am
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Tuesday Update [...]
February 28th, 2008 at 11:14 am
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Tuesday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Wednesday Update [...]
February 29th, 2008 at 12:23 pm
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Tuesday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Wednesday Update Hillary [...]
March 1st, 2008 at 7:36 am
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Tuesday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Wednesday Update Hillary [...]
March 2nd, 2008 at 8:08 am
[...] Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Saturday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Sunday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Monday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Tuesday Update Hillary Clinton Death Watch Wednesday Update Hillary [...]