Clinton Weighing Her Options

By Anne E. Kornblut
RAPID CITY, S.D. -- One option for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton is that she drop out of the race on Tuesday night, when she returns to New York for a scheduled "victory party."

But according to senior advisers, that is not the only (or even necessarily likely) scenario under consideration.

Clinton is also weighing the merits of something short of dropping out -- more akin to suspending a full-blown campaign, acknowledging that Obama has crossed the delegate threshold (if, in fact, he has) and waiting to see what happens in the weeks until the convention.

She could also, on the far end of the spectrum, stay fully in the race.

But the "middle option" -- a sort of threading-the-needle, which would give her the comfort of not completely quitting -- is arguably the most intriguing.

Clinton is, advisers said, looking at historical precedent and her recent victories (including Puerto Rico) to try to figure out what to do. Several people used the term "range of options" to describe what Clinton is mulling.

And on her campaign plane Sunday night, Clinton said this: "There are a number of options available as we move forward, but I think I've got a very strong case. I think I have a stronger case than a lot of people.... We're going forward. It's not over until the votes are cast."

In other words: Stay tuned.