It’s one thing for her to be perceived as the battle-tested fighter who can fight off the Republicans. It is another thing altogether if she is perceived to be trying to destroy the candidate of the party’s future.

Kristol changes his tune, as well:

This steely determination, the unnerving refusal to acknowledge the possibility of defeat or failure, the unwillingness to show vulnerability, is in a way impressive. But it hasn’t been characteristic of most successful modern presidential candidates, who have tended toward the empathetic and (at least seemingly) the regular guy.

Meanwhile, Obama makes gains in the South.