“Having an opponent or two in the primary doesn’t hurt her, it helps her”

“She needs someone to challenge her,” said one Democratic strategist with close ties to the former Secretary of State’s inner circle. “You don’t want any kind of perception that you are the inevitable candidate. And without that, it will bleed into the general [election] and that’s just not helpful. It’s good for her to face some friendly fire.”

“Having an opponent or two in the primary doesn’t hurt her, it helps her,” added one former senior aide to Clinton’s 2008 presidential campaign. “It reminds people that she’s going to have to work at this.

“She wears inevitability very badly,” the former aide continued.

While the names of some potential Democratic challengers have been floating around for months— Vice President Biden, Maryland Governor Martin O’Malley, Former Montana Gov. Brian Schweitzer, and even Massachusetts senator Elizabeth Warren — they don’t have the heft of support built around Clinton.