Why won't Hillary quit

- Editor's note: Tanya Amador Daigle is reporting for Florida Weekly on the national primaries until the presidential candidates are chosen this summer. She has a unique perspective on the primaries and the process for choosing a candidate, having traveled the country reporting on primaries and caucuses for the Purple States project. To learn more about Purple States go to www.purplestates.tv.

Sen. Hillary Clinton won the very important state of Indiana last week while her opponent, Sen. Barack Obama, prevailed in the also vital state of North Carolina. For those of you who have been following the entertaining Democratic boxing match, this should come as no surprise. After all, the "experts" told us so. With their polls and their seasoned news-anchors they seem to know what will happen before the candidates themselves know.

There is less than a month to the June 3 drop-dead date, or D-Day, as I like to call it. (The real D-Day is June 6.) This is the day that the last remaining states will hold their polls and count their votes. Hillary has been gaining momentum but Obama still has the numbers on his side. The question remains: Will Hillary Clinton quit? Some of her peers most certainly have begun to put pressure on her to do so.

This was the topic of conversation at a dinner party in Chicago with some of my friends on Saturday night. We were a motley crew. Some of us are supporting Obama or Clinton and one is reluctantly for McCain. Obviously there was a lot of good-humored yelling but the wine softened the barbs and we all had fun.

With the electoral math stacked against her, members of the Democratic party are clearly not unified. This is a nuclear situation for the Dems while they are in preparations for the general election. Former Sen. George McGovern, who recently defected to Obama's camp, knows this. McGovern, a presidential hopeful himself in 1972, supported Clinton until recently jumping ship. The 85-year-old told Fox News, "I don't see how Senator Clinton could prevail." and "I think it's important for Democrats to be united."

Most Democratic higher ups believe that the party will not be united until a nominee is secured. In fact, many believe that it is time for Hillary to step down so that the party can begin to "heal" itself. As I explained to my Hillary-loving friend, as it gets closer to D-Day the pressure for her to do so will become more aggressive and she will not have a choice. So why is she stubbornly refusing to do so as of yet?

As my dear friend rebutted over dessert, Hillary Clinton always has good reasons for what she does. Never is she without an ulterior motive, or two, when making her strategic moves. Hillary is a smart woman who got to where she is today by determination. She has more than one reason for continuing on even though she knows the cards are stacked against her. Hillary knows that for many reasons she has to remain in the spotlight as a strong political figure if she wants to continue to be a major player in Washington. Many ideas have been tossed around as to what her tactics are and her motivation behind them.

One of those reasons is the next Presidential election in 2012. Hillary knows that if Sen. Obama or Sen. John McCain are elected they may very well only be a one term President. If Obama's inexperience is as lacking as Clinton claims it is and he is a lousy President, the Presidency will once again be ripe for the picking. Democrats will be given a second chance to pick the "right" candidate. If McCain gives us another four years of the last eight years or if he passes away, (let's face it, he's old) Americans might be eager to give Hillary a try.

It has also been suggested of late that Clinton is deliberately baring her teeth so that Obama may be forced to soften her with an offer she can't refuse: The Vice Presidency. Not a bad theory except I don't see Hillary playing patty cake with her nemesis, Barack Obama, particularly as second in command. Some have also eluded to the notion that she may be bribed to step aside if offered a Supreme Court appointment or the wiping out of her substantial campaign debt.

I've given both of these schemes some thought and find them to have some merit. In fact, I think she is probably playing all of those angles. However, until the process plays out no one knows what she's truly thinking, except maybe Bill. Perhaps Hillary simply has so much resolve that she is convinced that it's not over until the fat lady sings. A lot of things can happen between now and the Democratic National Convention in August. Maybe she is hoping some new monster will rear it's ugly head against Obama and eat up his campaign. If that happens Clinton would still want to be on the radar screen, wouldn't she?