Clinton has one last chance to stop Obama

By Steve Holland - Analysis

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton's loss to rival Barack Obama in Wisconsin and Hawaii on Tuesday leaves her one last chance to stop her surging opponent, in the next contests in Texas and Ohio.

Clinton has now lost 10 voting contests in a row and her one-time front-running campaign is scrambling to raise doubts about first-term Illinois Sen. Obama's level of experience and his tendency to rely more on stylish oratory than substance.

"It's about picking a president who relies not just on words, but on work, hard work, to get America back to work -- someone who's not just in the speeches business, but will get America back in the solutions business," Clinton said in Ohio.

The New York senator and former first lady is fighting for her political life and in danger of being knocked out of the race by Obama unless she can pull off major victories on March 4 in Texas and Ohio.

Analysts said Clinton needs to do well in the last two debates of the Democratic campaign, on Thursday in the Texas capital of Austin and next week in Ohio, to slow Obama's momentum toward the Democratic nomination for November's election.

Nathaniel Persily, a political expert and professor at Columbia University of Law, said Clinton not only has to win both states, but win them big enough to take a majority of the nominating delegates, given Obama's overall lead in delegates.

Polls show tight races in both states.

"If she loses those states, then she's lost," Persily said, adding that it is still possible she can pull it off.