RUTHFULLY YOURS

Mixed messages and hand-wringing over Hillary Clinton’s New Hampshire prospects are splitting her campaign, and may cause it to pull out of the state altogether.

According to a Tuesday report from Politico, some Clinton insiders and DC-based fundraisers are pushing the Democratic front-runner to abandon her New Hampshire campaign. Clinton now trails Vermont senator Bernie Sanders by 14 points in the Granite State, and the skeptics don’t see that changing before the state’s primary next February. By continuing to invest in costly campaign infrastructure, they say she risks throwing time and money into a “lost cause.”

The same goes for Iowa, where Clinton’s lead shrank precipitously over the summer. The critics argue that, like New Hampshire’s, Iowa’s overwhelmingly white electorate and parochial political style naturally favor Sanders. Clinton, they say, might be better served deploying her resources elsewhere.

“It’s about preserving the antique nomination process,” one Clinton insider said of the campaign’s focus on New Hampshire and Iowa. “I don’t know if I care so much. I’d like to win. But I don’t think it’s crucial, nor do I think it’s necessary, to win either of those two states.”

Winning at least one of the first two primary states has long been a top priority for most presidential campaigns, particularly due to the increased media exposure such wins bring. And paid Clinton staffers are pooh-poohing the idea that either New Hampshire or Iowa should be scrubbed from the campaign roadmap.

#share#“New Hampshire is doing its important work, which is having the candidates do all the critical work that needs to be done to earn the vote,” said Mike Vlacich, Clinton’s New Hampshire state director. “We set out from the very beginning understanding that we would have a challenge, and that we would have to work hard to meet that challenge.”

“I wish the squishy types in Washington would call us,” said Kathy Sullivan, a former New Hampshire Democratic party chairwoman supporting Clinton.

Sanders has a key geographic advantage over Clinton — his home state of Vermont sits just to the west of New Hampshire, and he’s stumped for Democratic lawmakers in cities and towns across the state. The Clinton campaign has mounted a full-court press in response — buying up millions in TV ads, hiring 50 in-state staffers, and sending Clinton herself to the state more times than to any other place besides Iowa.

So far, the push hasn’t worked. And while her campaign staff are trying to soothe rattled nerves, some in Clinton’s network of insiders remain anxious.

— Brendan Bordelon is a political reporter for National Review.