Senator Clinton took her Solutions for the American Economy road show to Mishawaka High School near South Bend, IN, appearing with actor Sean Astin — and like his underdog-turned-hero character in the football movie Rudy (set at nearby Notre Dame), HRC cast herself as the hard working, hard fighting underdog in the race.

“I want the people of Indiana to know, I want every Hoosier to know I’m going to fight for you, for your future, for your jobs,” she said. “You know, there are some people who are saying, you know, we really ought to end this primary, we just ought to shut it down.” The crowd took exception to that idea.

“There was a poll the other day that said 22% of Democrats wanted me to drop out, and 22% wanted Senator Obama to drop out. and 62% said let people vote until we finally know what the outcome is,” she said. “One thing you know about me, when I tell you I’ll fight for you, I’ll get up every day and that’s exactly what I will do.”

While she argues that the voters want the race to continue, the chorus of those calling for her exit is growing. Vermont Senator Patrick Leahy, an Obama supporter, said today Senator Clinton should bow out of the nomination fight. But Hillary says today’s naysayers are the same people who said she couldn’t win an election in New York — where she was reelected last year by overwhelming margins.

“What you have to decide are these just words? Or am I somebody you can count on to deliver?” she asked. “That is what I’ve done in New York, where when I started running, everybody said — the same people who say it about to me today — I could never win. I’d never get Independents or Republicans to vote for me. Well, I just got reelected with 67% of the vote from across the state of New York. and why? Because I believe actions speak louder than words.”

But in the end, with her odds still long, she’s forced to hope that the voters come through for her in states like Indiana. “President Bush will leave next January, and what all of you are trying to decide is who comes next,” she said. As the crowd shouted “you!” Hillary said “I hope so. But that’s going to be up to all of you and millions of Americans.”

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