This is truly one of the more compelling "electability" arguments that no one seems to be talking about.  Regardless of how you feel about Clinton as a candidate, do you really want to have the nominee discover the value of grassroots organizing in the midst of the campaign season, months behind everyone else?

When this this is all overand done, consultants will spend a lot of time analyzing how Clinton and Romney both lost it when they should have had it in the bag.

A well done, fair-minded diary, psericks. Clinton made a huge strategic mistake ignoring caucus states. I pray it is not fatal.

Good analysis -- as a question to Clinton supporters in states that have already voted, is the campaign keeping you involved in the upcoming races? This past weekend, just in my one congressional district, Obama had 6 phonebanks running calling into Maryland. The Clinton org just seems to be sitting around and licking its wounds. Don't know if that's just a local phenomenon, or if it's being played out in a lot of places.

I think this puts the lie to the claim that Clinton would be the stronger nominee come November.  

As Clinton's national finance chair himself said:

we didn't put any resources in those small states.

Doesn't exactly generate confidence in how she would run a general election campaign.  

Well done Psericks!

Another thing that irks me is the $4 million spent on political consultants and the $500,000 spent on parking, by the Clinton campaign. These are expenditures that I do not think were wise; money they could have applied to more grassroots organizing. Clearly they did not have a 50 State Strategy. The Electorate has changed over the last 4 years. The caucuses do matter; a 50 + 1 strategy no longer works....

Michigan and Florida

And four more:

Ohio, Texas, Rhode Island and Wisconsin

Prediction: Obama may feel compelled to leave the race because he has no broad coalition of support in traditional Democratic states.

There's really not a whole lot more to say than that: yup.

I'm hoping that some of Hillary's supporters and the fence-sitters are going to come over to Obama once they realize just how poorly her campaign has been run.  The Obama people have been two steps ahead since the beginning.

Given who Hillary hired to run her effort, I would hate to see who she would pick to fill out her Cabinet if she ever got into the White House.

Another side of this story that I don't really see mentioned in the press is that Obama's 50-state strategy will prove to be a boon to both the party and regional candidates. He has activated the long-dormant political machinery and grassroots democrats of tens of states that never see that sort of enthusiasm and energy. If he gets the nomination, I feel that he can actually fight McCain in some surprise places and help Democrats running for offices in those states in a big way.

On the other side of the stick, the Clintons not only have ignored most of these states, they have openly voiced contempt of them and attempted to refer to them as insignificant. This is horrible poison. The Democrats may not be able to beat McCain this cycle in, say, Nebraska, but what about electing a Democratic congressman or congresswoman there?

I give Credit to Obama and his team for running a great campaign.

The Clinton campaign seems lumbering and old fashioned in comparison to the nimble Obama operation.  They don't have much time to turn it around.

Things will get interesting if they do manage to adjust.

This is one of the reasons why I don't believe she would be a good nominee.  As this diary clearly showed, she was never willing to invest in a 50-state strategy, Obama is.  In the GE does anyone believe she would contest some of the larger red states, like Texas, Georgia, Alabama, North Carolina, Arizona, or Indiana?  We wouldn't have much, if any shot at these states now, but if she set up the groundwork, in a few cycles we would.  We won two seats in Florida (three if you count fl-13) because the focus on Florida helped set up an infrastructure.  Granted it didn't help win much else, but it did help.  We came close in so many house races in Ohio, due in part to the infrastructure the Kerry campaign helped create.  if Obama is the nominee, runs a truly national campaign, and sets up a dem infrastructure in every state we could see states start switching in a few cycles, and house seats switching as early as next cycle (though that might be a bit optimistic, maybe even HOPEful?)  

Kerry ceded numerous states in 2004, and went towards the Ohio-Florida strategy.  We couldn't do better in 2004, we can in 2008.  If Hillary isn't willing to establish a 50-satte strategy, she shouldn't be the nominee.

Obama is a validation of the 50 state strategy, thus he is the stronger nominee. Competing everywhere is a winning strategy, and good for governance. The last thing we need is another 50%+1 presidency.

Good analysis -- as a question to Clinton supporters in states that have already voted, is the campaign keeping you involved in the upcoming races? This past weekend, just in my one congressional district, Obama had 6 phonebanks running calling into Maryland. The Clinton org just seems to be sitting around and licking its wounds. Don't know if that's just a local phenomenon, or if it's being played out in a lot of places.

MANY people in the media, the blogs, the pundints, etc were talking about how she was so far ahead in the polls, she had enough money to run her primary campaign and start off very well in the GE.

If Obama had been in the same situation, I think he also might have sat back a bit to long before jumping up and saying ... "Oh Shit"!

This is a vindication of Dean's 50-state strategy, in my mind, and the opposition to this within the DLC and Hillary's inner circle may have informed her strategy.  Perhaps it is a case of conceptual, or ideological, considerations trumping common sense.

That Obama, who has clearly mobilised and deployed the enthusiasm of significant numbers of activists, has used a similar approach to the 50-state strategy in his campaign demonstrates an awareness of contemporary political realities, and opportunities, and promises well for his general election prospects.  Not to mention down-ticket races across the country.  The example of Donna Edwards is worth noting.  And it is clear that this has been a consistent part of the Obama campaign game-plan from the beginning.

He is reshaping Democratic strategy, and enhancing our electoral prospects, by example before he is even in a leadership role in the party.  Fancy that.

Isn't it about 30 states too late to decide to run a 50 state campaign?

Obama owes Edwards for "making it happen" for Obama.

I really doubt it's too late. No doubt, following another round of wins, we'll hear "its over" again in a week; but the Clinton's have drawn the line with Ohio & Texas, and if they win it there, you'll hear it trumpeted around as quite the huge reversal that it would be.

But the point of the diary is well taken. My hat goes off to Hildebrand Tewes for their state strategy system.

While I'm not a big fan of the long drawn-out elections we have for the presidency, in this case it's really done something important - highlight the way in which our top two candidates deal with a shifting electoral landscape.

Hillary has shown rigidity, and has stuck with an outdated understanding of the situation after it was clear to others that things had changed. This mirrors what we saw with her position on Iraq, where she took a very long time to come around to the notion that it was going disastrously badly, and she's still not able to get her head around the fact that the whole idea of invading was utterly wrong.

By now it's probably too late for the Clinton campaign to reinvent itself as a people-powered entity. Survival of the fittest.

50 State Strategy.

Clinton campaign was old style politics.  Focusing only on few states and high priced consultants.

From now on,  I hope--all candidates and Dems -- do grassroot strategy.

I also hope that the grassroot campaign of Obama will continue to be in place and that he bequeth it to the DNC and Dem Party for future nurturing and GOTV.

I found the recent Atlantic article about Clinton's campaign and the Solis-Doyle firing pretty disturbing.  The secrecy, the concentration of power among the fiercely loyal few, if that is an indication of her White House strategy I think we've had enough of that in the last 7 years to last a lifetime.

Tell me the Hill-Billy campaign didn't just assume they'd take at least NH and SC and it'd be all over. They didn't even try in most caucus states because they were arrogant and assumed they'd get the nomination by Feb. 5th and wanted to save money for the general. Except the spent money like it was Bill's ladies and there'd always be more...

>I want to see my first WOMAN President

Are you saying that all other things being equal you'd choose a woman over a man? And if so, how much worse would the female candidate have to change your vote?

Certainly the Clinton campaign made some missteps but their troubles look larger in part due to the Obama campaign's successes.  Obama has run a strong campaign based on his strengths with little or no friction among his senior staff.

Of course the nomination is not yet out of Sen. Clinton's reach.  She is resourceful and smart and who knows?

And the race won't be decided until June/July. Hillary isn't going anywhere, get used to it. She is going to win OH, TX and PA. She might win RI and will pick up delegates everywhere else as well. They say Clinton cannot win because she doesn't have the delegates well guess what neither does Saint Barack

Hillary's current strategy is freeze the superdelegate count where it currently is. And demonstrate in OHIO and TEXAS that she's still the BIG STATE winner and in a "virtual tie." She doesn't expect to win the pledged delegate race at the end even with MI and FL (they will just keep it a "tie"). Then she will put the screws to the superdelegates to put her over.

But for now, she doesn't want the rats leaving the ship.

As at least one other commenter has noted, the "strategy" behind Hillary Clinton's candidacy devolves from Mark Penn.  Like the current administration and its enablers, bigwig Beltway consultants don't think the masses do (think, that is).  'Nuff said.

Well, Claire Mcaskill, could run after being VP for 8 years.

Clinton loses to McCain simpel as that. Despite what conservatives may be saying they hate Hillary. She gets the nomination and they will support McCain. MCCain also gets independents who want nothing to do with Hillary. If Obama gets the nod, he wins....why? Simple, he gets independents, crossover republicans, whites , blacks, women.....they guy is transforming politics as Reagan did in 1980........if Dems want the White House, they go for Obama. And if its close come convention time, they better realize that hitching the wagon to Hillary is a losing proposition

To me, Clinton's strategy in this campaign is the final proof I needed that she isn't the best choice. After 2 general elections where Democrats blundered in what should have been a sure thing and a husband who won his own nomination and election, you haven't learned how to run a campaign? And you expect me to believe that you can run the country?

To me, you show yourself as really unintelligent if you run a campaign geared towards winner-take-all when the system isn't. It makes me think she would make really horrible blunders with national policy. How you run your campaign is a direct reflection of how you will be as a leader. The media often wonders who will be the best leader when the campaign itself speaks volumes.

Recent reports have shown that her campaign wasn't even ready to run after Super Tuesday because she was so sure she would settle it that day. Are you kidding me?! Is she going to only campaign in 4 states for the November election too?

I can't believe anyone would call her the experience candidate now that Obama is demonstrating that he can beat a more senior senator and former first lady at the campaign game.

Seriously, do you want her running in the general election when this is how she runs for the nomination?