Reply #17: 9 states between now and March 4--596 delegates (pledged & unpledged). [View All]

[milkyway]

Yet the Clintons focus on Ohio and Texas, total of 389 delegates. The Clintons, like Rudy, are desperately trying to convince the media the big showdown for the nomination is March 4.

Obama has a good chance of gaining a 50-100 pledged delegate advantage before March 4, and even if he loses Ohio and Texas, they should be fairly close, not nearly enough to overcome the advantage in pledged delegates he will have built up.

I think the Clintons are trying to make March 4 into a final showdown to get the media to declare the winner the presumptive nominee, hoping this creates pressure on Obama to step down for the good of the party.

http://politics.nytimes.com/election-guide/2008/primaries/democraticprimaries/index.html