Much as I find it hard to believe that Hillary Clinton is no longer invincible nor inevitable, that seems to be happening.

I realize that Bill Clinton said he would work in the background, but I find it tough to believe they don't have a few more tricks up their sleeve. The Clintons' predicament is that while they are past masters at the game of political hardball, hardball tactics make them look especially bad when they're used against Obama:

Part of the reason Clinton is under such pressure now is because there is a growing disdain for exactly the kind of tactics Halperin recommends. To the Clintons this is just business as usual: it's how the rough and tumble game of politics is played. But they've been shocked, and put on the defensive, because Democrats are increasingly troubled by the way the game looks when it's played inside their own party against a candidate like Obama.

Hillary and Obama are even in the polls (Gallup shows Hillary as slightly ahead), so I'm not going to count her out.

I'm expecting some sort of major dirty trick, if not a trump card.

These people are not good losers.

Hell, they've already unleashed the Krugabeast, who is doing his damnedest Nixonize Obama.

Krugman wouldn't be doing that unless Hillary Rodham Nixon wanted another Nixon to kick around.

We've already seen three bouts of tears, but what I want to know is, who gets to play Checkers?

Well, at least no one accused Nixon of pimping his dog!

(Politics was so much cleaner in those days....)

UPDATE (02/13/08): Rick Moran says that Hillary is in hot water, and he suspects that "beginning this week, the calls will start coming for Hillary Clinton to drop out of the race in the name of party unity."

During Watergate, senior GOP leaders like Barry Goldwater called on Nixon to resign to preserve national unity, and save the country from the ordeal of impeachment. That he did resign shows that he considered some things bigger than himself.

Whether Hillary cares more for herself than party unity remains to be seen.