Last night’s Obama victories — and, let’s face it, keeping the margin to 2% in Indiana was in its own way a victory as big as his North Carolina blowout — have probably cinched the Democratic nomination, as Philip Klein reported from Raleigh in the wee hours. Michael Crowley of The New Republic and Ben Smith of the Politico both thought Hillary’s speech last night showed signals of a weary acceptance of her doom.
Despite Team Clinton’s increasingly dismal prospects, however, Hillary will hit the ground running today in West Virginia, with a noon event at Shepherd University in Shepherdstown, W.Va. This event had originally been slated as an event for daughter Chelsea. The former first lady’s appearance is a last-minute schedule update announced to the press in a 6:35 a.m. e-mail from Clinton HQ. She then hits Washington, D.C. for an afternoon fundraising event, then returns to Charleston, W.Va., for a rally tomorrow before jetting off to South Dakota and Oregon.
Whether Clinton’s “tenacity” is to be admired remains a point of dispute, but what I observed in March still holds true: She may lose, but she won’t quit. Is a loser more admirable than a quitter?