Obama and Clinton will debate twice over the next six days. They'll face off tomorrow night in Austin, the Texas capital, and next Tuesday in Cleveland, Ohio.
Those encounters could offer Clinton her last, best chance to knock Obama off stride as their battle heads into what could be a decisive day of primaries March 4 in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island and Vermont.
Wisconsin's primary electorate - overwhelmingly white, with a large segment of rural and working-class voters - seemed well-suited to Clinton's candidacy.
Her campaign initially seemed uncertain about whether to compete aggressively, delaying her personal appearances there until late last week. But she boosted her advertising buy in the final days of the race.
Obama made more campaign stops and outspent Clinton in the state.
His recent successes appear to be momentum-driven, a growing problem for Clinton.
Landslide victories last week in the Potomac Primaries appeared to have influenced voters in other states. In Texas, a state where Clinton had led by double-digit margins, a CNN poll released this week showed the contest a statistical dead heat.
More than 30 states have voted since the Iowa caucuses Jan. 3, seven weeks ago.
Now, for the first time since the unprecedented crush of early primaries and caucuses, it will be two weeks until the next set of contests.
Clinton's top strategist, Mark Penn, said in a conference call that Ohio is "a state we can win."
He stopped short of calling Ohio a must win for Clinton, though many Democrats have said that if she loses there, her candidacy could be in dire trouble.
Clinton victories in Ohio and Texas "would be very powerful in terms of superdelegates," said Penn, referring to the 796 elected officials and party activists who could hold the balance of power in the nomination fight.
paul.west@baltsun.com
