Will Hillary Know When To Say When?

Peggy Noonan, Ronald Reagan's speech writer, notes that Barack Obama is the real thing, and she asks when (and whether) Hillary will have the good sense to save face and her party by stepping down with her own grace and dignity intact. "Can she recognize the line between burly combat and destructive, never-say-die warfare?" Good question!

"We know [Hillary] is smart. Is she wise? If it comes to it, down the road, can she give a nice speech, thank her supporters, wish Barack Obama well, and vow to campaign for him?

"It either gets very ugly now, or we will see unanticipated--and I suspect professionally saving--grace.

"I ruminate in this way because something is happening. Mrs. Clinton is losing this thing. It's not one big primary, it's a rolling loss, a daily one, an inch-by-inch deflation. The trends and indices are not in her favor. She is having trouble raising big money, she's funding her campaign with her own wealth, her moral standing within her own party and among her own followers has been dragged down, and the legacy of Clintonism tarnished by what Bill Clinton did in South Carolina. Unfavorable primaries lie ahead. She doesn't have the excitement, the great whoosh of feeling that accompanies a winning campaign. The guy from Chicago who was unknown a year ago continues to gain purchase, to move forward.

"For a soft little innocent, he's played a tough and knowing inside/outside game."

.