There’s the lowering expectations game, and there’s kidding yourself.

A Clinton campaign memo suggesting that there is “a problem” with Barack Obama if he cannot win sweep the March 4 primaries falls under the latter.

The Clinton campaign tried to argue Friday that Obama must win Ohio and Texas (plus Vermont and Rhode Island) - even as top Clinton aides have been arguing for weeks that the former first lady needs wins in both Ohio and Texas.

Obama has won all 11 contests since Super Tuesday.

The effort to lower the bar is likely triggered by polls showing Texas - a state in which Hillary held commanding leads earlier this year - could be slipping away. Clinton retains a single-digit lead in Ohio.

Here are today’s dubious quotes on the subject:

• “If [Barack Obama] cannot win all of these states with all this effort, there’s a problem,” - Clinton strategist Mark Penn
  “If Sen. Obama is essentially the de facto nominee, he ought to win all these contests. He has all the advantages. He’s got great press. He’s got a huge spending disparity. He’s telling people that he’s the nominee. He acting like he’s the nominee.” - Howard Wolfson, Clinton communications director

First of all, those advantages are called wins. They actually count for something. Secondly, when did he tell people he’s the nominee? Must’ve missed that.

We’re not necessarily suggesting Hillary Clinton drop out of the race March 4, even if she doesn’t do well. If she can compete for the nomination in the only race that really matters - the delegate count - then she’s earned the right to have at it.

Count us among the few, but we feel a prolonged Democratic race actually helps the party’s chances in November. We have two exceptional, history-making candidates, and this will play out in due course. That’s all there is to it.

But the Clinton staff is laying it on a little thick with this latest spin job. Ed Rendell, James Carville, and even Bill Clinton have acknowledged that victories in both of Tuesday’s huge races are necessary to revive Team Hillary.

She may get just it, too. It speaks to her strength and organization (and, who would have guessed it, positive press) that Hillary Clinton can drop 11 straight races and still be leading or right in the thick of it in Ohio and Texas.

Our (more realistic) expectations are that it’s too close to call, and that we’ll have to wait and see before we assess the race going forward.