Could Hillary quit after New Hampshire?

The Drudge Report, one of the most influential blogs in US politics, is running a story claiming that Hillary Clinton is considering pulling out of the Democratic race if, as expected, she takes another beating from Barack Obama in New Hampshire.

Faced with the prospect of a second double-digit defeat at the hands of the ascendant young senator from Illinois, along with plummeting poll ratings and a fast-diminishing war chest, the former first lady and one-time presumptive nominee might act to forestall further damage to "the Clinton brand," one top campaign insider is quoted as saying.

Her inner circle is apparently split on the wisdom of such a move, with top advisers such as James Carville advising her to stick it out until at least February 5, when a tranche of delegate-rich states vote in what has come to be known as Super Tuesday.

Mrs Clinton herself is denying the rumours, insisting she is in for the long haul, as reported in my story on Times Online today. So where did the report come from?

Dan Riehl at Riehl World View argued it was a deliberate plant from the Clinton campaign:

"One cannot be re-born until you die. What better way to do it than to plant the story of your demise, eventually pinning it on the underhanded dealings of a presumably noble competitor’s campaign? Nothing like sucking the wind out of your competitions headline grabbing success with a staged funeral that doesn’t take place. I don’t buy it at all."

John Little at Blogs of War, however, pointed the finger of blame firmly at Mr Drudge himself, who he claimed was "having a little fun at Hillary’s expense".

"I think this story is going to hurt her," he wrote. "It’s going to be a huge topic for the blogosphere and pundits and that is going to make her appear increasingly vulnerable. That could set the stage for a dramatic comeback but I suspect that it it will only accelerate the unraveling process."

But no matter the veracity of the story, it is a question certain to dog Mrs Clinton should she suffer further humiliation in New Hampshire. Highlighting the importance of a one-two Iowa and New Hampshire punch, the political journal Congressional Quarterly noted that "in competitive races over the past three and a half decades, every candidate who won both ... went on to win this party’s nomination."