Clinton has had to rebuild her strategy for campaigning ever since Obama's fundraising matched what she raised, a shock to the Clinton campaign and many Americans alike. Quietly Obama has snuck up on Clinton, who was believed to be the front-runner and unsurmountable. Obama is not on the defense as is Clinton at this point. His grassroots campaign continues to grow and an additional 45,000 donors have contributed since the March 31 first quarter reporting.
What startled Clinton's team was not just Obama's totals or his success at drumming up contributions over the Internet, but also how much he is collecting from the big donors who have fueled Clinton enterprises for the past decade and a half. "It was a real wake-up call," says a Clinton strategist.
As her campaign chairman, Terry McAuliffe, discovered, Obama "works the phones like a dog. He probably did three to four times the number of events she did" in the first quarter. "No matter who I call," McAuliffe says, "he has already called them three or four times."
But her team says she is not yet ready to begin challenging Obama directly. That's because going on the attack could further boost her negatives and create an opening for Edwards, who has offered far more detailed plans than she has on issues like health care. "They are worried about both Obama and Edwards," says an outside adviser. "They think if Obama flames out, Edwards rises." And if that happens, Hillary's team will have to consider a course correction once again.
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