then, without a doubt, her campaign continues but what if she only beats Senator Obama by five or six percentage points or even nine?  Carrying on with the fight for the nomination after a single digit win may be  more important for Hillary and the Dems than if she rolls up blow out numbers.

I'm an HRC supporter and I understand the strategy:  win the big states, hope for more mistakes from Senator Obama, make the case to the super delegates that an Obama nomination could be another McGovern misfortune, Dukakis debacle, Carter crisis or even worse it could be another "what might of been": what if Ralph Nader hadn't been on the ticket in Florida in 2000, what if the Dems had made their case better in Ohio in 2004?  Still, unless Hil were to win the popular vote - which is not going to happen - having the supers hand her the nomination, no matter what their reasoning, would rip the party right down the middle along the lines now seen in the primaries.  Many of the  hundreds of thousands of voters brought into the process because of their strong support for Senator Obama would either not vote or would vote for Senator McCain.

The Obama side of that coin is that unless Senator Clinton trounces their candidate she should immediately fold her tent for the good of the party; then like the good woman they all know deep in her heart she is, Hillary should lend her tremendous talents to seeing that the good looking, silver tongued young guy with the slim resume is elected.  Obama-ville might even deign to offer her the second place on the ticket as her reward for self-sacrifice once Michelle Obama has vetted her.  Ardent Hillary supporter though I am, an Obama/Clinton ticket doesn't return me to the Democratic fold.  I see no reason for Senator Clinton to give up a position where she could be of true value to her country and her party in order to be part of an administration which would most likely both under value and under use her.  Also, since Hil is nearly 61, the vice presidency isn't a stepping stone to the presidency which means it benefits neither HRC nor the Democrats in developing a candidate for 2016 (although by that time we will have all grown our post partisan wings, won't we?); if some of us are balking at the thought of a 71 year old male war hero as President, there ain't no way a woman of nearly 69 would make the cut.

Besides, Senator Obama - even if backstopped by a Clinton VP - most likely goes down in the general; the slander elves of the Republican underbelly are already at work cobbling together the Jeremiah "goddamn America" Wright/Barack " 'clinging' Marxist" Obama/Michelle "I've never been proud of my country" Obama/Billy Boy "should have done more" Ayers clips.  Despite the fact that all of these sound bites in the ass - and whatever others are currently forming inside of someone's head - rolled directly out of the mouths of Obama-ville, Hillary will be blamed once the votes are counted.  After all, had she left the race when she was should have, these comments would have either not been uttered or not come to light.  The GOP can buy the balloons and rent the ballrooms unless Senator McCain takes on Warren Jeffs as his VP or falls asleep during a debate the Republicans have wrapped up another one - no, actually, the Dems wrapped it up for them and put a great big bow right on top. 

The damage to the party has already been done.  It has been done by Senator Obama and by Senator Clinton, by their surrogates and their supporters; it has been been done by a party leadership that would disenfranchise its voters to punish party bosses; it has been done by a primary system that leaves many states feeling like they had no part in selecting the nominee and by an arrogant system of super delegates that doesn't trust its base to choose an electable candidate (this lack of trust may be deserved but, hey, if you can't nominate a righteous loser what's the point of being a Democrat?). 

Senator Clinton's continued candidacy - whatever the margin of her victory in Pennsylvania - may force the Democratic Party to confront the party's structural incongruities, the conflicted consciences of the liberal elite and the "bitterness" of the blue collar voter far more effectively than all of the dialogues opened up by Senator Obama.  On the other hand, the Dems could just force Hillary out tomorrow and start planning how to lose in 2012.