Clinton country: She’s not dead yet

As the odds against Hillary Clinton grow seemingly insurmountable, there is no limit of pundits and politicians lining up to write her epitaph.

Unfortunately for all of them, Hillary’s still breathing, and she still has some options left.

The most likely is what Sean Hannity has dubbed “the nuclear option,” in which she will force a Democratic Party rules committee to decide whether to seat delegates from Michigan and Florida. Both states’ delegates had been refused seats at the upcoming convention because they had broken party rules and held their primaries too early.

Clinton won both states and wants the delegates, 366 altogether, counted. Barack Obama, who lost Florida and pulled his name off the ballot in Michigan, doesn’t want to give Clinton the chance to cut into his delegate lead.

Clinton may have an advantage with this strategy, as she has several allies, including former members of her husband’s administration, on the committee.

Merely seating the delegates from the two states won’t likely be enough for her to win the nomination. But it will bring her close enough to Obama’s totals to give her a shot at persuading the superdelegates, highly placed party officials who can completely overturn the vote tally if they wish, that she would stand a better chance in the general election against John McCain.

Obama has been unable to make much if any headway with Clinton’s constituency, and he is downright unpopular with many Americans because of his association with the racist anti-American Jeremiah Wright and the unrepentant terrorist William Ayers.

A possible contributing factor may be that Clinton’s raw determination to take Obama to the mat, in contrast with his perceived self-righteousness, will win her new fans. Many members of the mainstream media, who are in for Obama, see her as delusional, but in middle America, many voters are starting to admire her pluck.

Given the Democratic Party’s history and its members’ general feelings of entitlement, it shouldn’t be a surprise if the August convention devolves ultimately into a courtroom battle, possibly even rioting.

Whatever the final result, it seems Clinton, who has promised to spend more of her own money if needed to keep up with Obama, has crossed her Rubicon and won’t rest until she walks into the general election either with her shield or on it.