So I wake up this morning and some news sites are saying…
Hillary Rodham Clinton will concede Tuesday night that Barack Obama has the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, campaign officials said, effectively ending her bid to be the nation's first female president.
And they tell about her laying off the staff as of June 15 and making other moves that concede it's over. But others are saying…
Senator Clinton will tonight acknowledge that Barack Obama has the necessary delegates to secure the Democratic presidential nomination but will not end her campaign. She will instead announce her intention to remain in the race in order to press Obama on certain key issues, including but not limited to health care.
And over at the CNN website, we have…
Hillary Clinton is "absolutely not" prepared to admit Barack Obama has beaten her in the race for the Democratic presidential nomination, her campaign chairman told CNN today. Terry McAuliffe rejected as incorrect media reports that Clinton would concede Obama has the delegates to win.
One of the ways Hillary Clinton disappointed a lot of us has been through this "it's all about me" attitude. We can absolutely understand that she thinks she'd be the stronger candidate against John McCain and also a better president than Obama. Even if we don't agree, those are not irrational viewpoints, and the former is supported by some polling. Everyone who runs for high office and has even a teensy shot at winning (and even some who don't) thinks they can win and would do the best job.
I think she's doing her public image an awful lot of damage with this "I don't care if he does have enough delegates…I'm in it to win it" attitude. It's starting to remind me of Ross Perot, back when he wasn't close to winning one state in a single poll, including those conducted by his own campaign, telling Larry King he would get 100% of the electoral votes. The difference is that Perot seemed dismissive of any reality, whereas Clinton seems to have some scenario in mind where this will all work out well for her. I'm fascinated to know what it is.