It’s surprising to say, given that he wasn’t even in the U.S. Senate until 2005, but Barack Obama has run a vastly superior campaign than a supposed battle-tested veteran, Hillary Clinton, so far.

Even her own top advisers disagree on what the former First Lady’s message is, or should be. A story in today’s Los Angeles Times reveals a conflict within the ranks of the Hillary Clinton camp regarding her approach.

The basic gist: Some favor emphasizing experience and political clout, while others think Hillary should show more warmth and empathy.

Mark Penn, chief strategist and pollster, liked Clinton’s emphasis on her “strength and experience,” her readiness to lead. He defended the idea of her running as a quasi-incumbent, one best suited for the presidency.

On the flip side, Harold Ickes and other Clinton advisors said that message was not working. A more promising angle, they argued, would be to focus on the historic prospect of electing the first woman president.

Penn won. Clinton lost.

Ten straight primary and caucus defeats later, some insiders look back and wish the argument produced the opposite outcome. Hillary is perceived neither as better prepared, nor more electable, than her counterpart.

Still, the Clinton campaign seems to be doubling its bet on the very same, ineffective message that caused so much division in the first place.

Even after Obama’s resounding 17-point Wisconsin victory, Clinton said in a speech that she alone is best prepared to be commander in chief!

Why can’t they figure this out? The list of theories isn’t short, but last Sunday’s Boston Globe contained an interesting feature on gender and racial biases, contrasting each as they pertain to Clinton and Obama.

It’s a gross oversimplification to reduce this race to a white woman versus a black man, but Hillary Clinton’s advisers may be struggling with what message to emphasize in large part because of gender stereotypes.

Whatever the reason, the Obamas are outsmarting the Clintons, and time is running out for that trend to be reversed.