Top Clinton fundraisers concede race is 'all but lost'
Internally, some advisers concede Clinton has lost; A superdelegate in Clinton-won district seems poised to back Obama
"To all intents and purposes the race for the Democratic nomination is over," popular pollster John Zogby writes in a column for the BBC. "My understanding is that probably today, but certainly within 48 hours, about 30 super-delegates will endorse Mr Obama. That should give him further momentum."
The New York Times Thursday said that top Clinton fundraisers had internally declared Clinton's bid "all but over."
As adamant as Mrs. Clinton appeared on Wednesday, several advisers said that how long she would stay in the race was an open question. Some top Clinton fund-raisers said that the campaign was all but over and suggested that she was simply buying time on Wednesday to determine if she could raise enough money and still win over superdelegates, the elected officials and party leaders who could essentially hand Mr. Obama the nomination.
Highlighting the financial woes of Mrs. Clinton’s expensive battle against Mr. Obama, campaign officials disclosed that the $6 million in loans she made to her campaign had come in three installments since April 11, with the last two since May 1. Mrs. Clinton and her husband made a separate $5 million loan to the campaign after the Feb. 5 contests.
Mrs. Clinton is willing to put even more money into her campaign, said Terry McAuliffe, her campaign chairman. “Senator Clinton has anted up and is fighting on,” Mr. McAuliffe said. Other advisers said in interviews that her campaign was nearly out of cash, raising questions about what kind of campaign she can continue to run. The campaign said, however, that it was running advertisements in West Virginia and in Oregon, which has its primary on May 20.
Clinton advisers said they were concerned that the candidate’s online fund-raising, which boomed after her victory in the Ohio primary in March and in Pennsylvania in April, had slowed by comparison on Tuesday night and Wednesday, and that her donor base was either tightening somewhat or playing wait-and-see, despite her public appeal for money on Tuesday night. Clinton aides did not send out the near-hourly e-mail blasts bragging about online donations that came after previous successes. The Washington Post adds that even a superdelegate in a district that went for Clinton seems likely to back Obama, and that Clinton supporters are urging her to consider exiting the race.
Several undecided Democrats indicated that their Obama endorsements were just a matter of time. Rep. Jason Altmire (Pa.), whose district went overwhelmingly for Clinton, said he would nonetheless back Obama if he maintains leads in the major indicators: pledged delegates, states won and popular votes.
But, he said, he will wait to see how the coming contests unfold. "The mountain that I'm giving her to climb is very steep. It's an almost impossible task," he said. One superdelegate who remains unwaveringly committed to Clinton said it is now "very, very difficult" to envision a scenario under which she could defeat Obama.
"There are a number of reasons for her not to drop out immediately, not the least of which is a lot of people want her to stay in, and how she handles herself from here on out, if she's not the winner, could help pave the way forward for the party," the superdelegate said, speaking on the condition of anonymity to talk freely about the race.
Another Clinton supporter said privately that the candidate has but one option: "Withdraw gracefully and help unify the party to beat McCain." Asked how quickly she would quit the race, the veteran of past presidential campaigns said he would recommend "as soon as this weekend."
More at....
http://www.zogby.com/Soundbites/ReadClips.dbm?ID=17600
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