Rumors are sweeping the internets that Hillary Clinton may be shutting her circus down tomorrow. As with all things Clinton, I suspect ulterior motives.

You’ve probably heard the other rumors on the internet that a devastating videotape of Michelle Obama saying some exceptionally incendiary things is about to become public. Given that the disgraced terror expert and almost always mistaken Larry Johnson is the guy most energetically peddling these rumors, one would be well advised to take them with a grain of salt. Anyway, another persistent rumor is that Neil Cavuto will air the tape on his show this afternoon.

So what exactly is Hillary up to? Why would she be paving the way for a gracious exit when rumors, however dubious, suggest the Obama campaign might be about to suffer a grievous blow? One possible explanation: If the Obama campaign does self-destruct, Hillary can use her 24 hours of graciousness as a signal that she cared more about the party than her own ambitions all along, and thus is the perfect person to reunite the party. Besides, she did get 70% of the vote in Puerto Rico!

There’s nothing Hillary can do to win the nomination. Assuming she still wants it and hasn’t given up (chortle), her smartest move is to best position herself in case the Obama campaign explodes. I would wager that’s what her Graciousnes Offensive is all about.