WHEN YOU VIEW IT AS A LAST OPTION YOU'VE BIFFED ALREADY:

Clinton aides split on how to take on Obama (Adam Nagourney, February 21, 2008, NY Times)

Some — led by Mark Penn, her chief strategist — have been pushing Clinton to draw sharper and deeper contrasts with Obama, arguing that she has no other option, campaign officials said.

Others, particularly Mandy Grunwald, her media adviser, have pushed for a less aggressive approach, arguing that attacks would not help Clinton's campaign in an environment in which she is increasingly appearing to struggle, aides said.

This latest division within the campaign reflects intense frustration among Clinton's advisers as they look for ways to turn around their campaign against Obama, an opponent whose appeal and skills as a candidate caught them by surprise. So far, her own positive message has been outshone by his, and every line of attack on him has fallen short, fizzled or backfired.

In a speech in New York on Wednesday, Clinton said, in sometimes stark language, that Obama did not have the credentials to lead the world during a dangerous time. Yet rather than taking the scorched-earth approach that had been urged by some of her associates, much of what she said echoed the criticisms she has aimed at him throughout the campaign.

Her television advertising, a key barometer for testing the tenor of a campaign, includes no overt attacks on Obama at the moment, though aides said they were still debating whether to raise the volume.

You can understand why they'd be so skittish about attacking the black guy when they're party is dependent on getting 90% of the black vote at the national level, but it's pretty hard to beat an opponent if you give him a free ride. In its own way such a concession is racist. Imagine if she was up against any other first term senator with no accomplishment to his name?

Posted by Orrin Judd at February 21, 2008 7:28 AM