ask for help

[chen]

this is an article from Economist, the title is "the comeback kids" and I'm really confused at the subheading "the American presidency is Hillary Clinton's to lose, but that doesn't make her a shoo-in just yet", well, that first part seems to me that it suggests Hillary is going to lose, while the next part says the totally different thing, and the "but" here makes me even more confused, , it's like:(I'm ill-prepared,) I'm going to fail my examination, but that doesn't mean I can get an A. what on earth does this sentence mean?? help me... the whole passage can be seen at:American politics | The comeback kids | Economist.com

[Amigos4]

this is an article from Economist, the title is "the comeback kids" and I'm really confused at the subheading "the American presidency is Hillary Clinton's to lose, but that doesn't make her a shoo-in just yet", well, that first part seems to me that it suggests Hillary is going to lose, while the next part says the totally different thing, and the "but" here makes me even more confused, , it's like:(I'm ill-prepared,) I'm going to fail my examination, but that doesn't mean I can get an A. what on earth does this sentence mean?? help me... the whole passage can be seen at:American politics | The comeback kids | Economist.com

Hi, Chen!

'the American presidency is Hillary Clinton's to lose'..., This means that Hillary is perceived by many people to be the probable winner of the presidential election. Her campaign is healthy and continues to gain support as she moves into the first round of primary elections in several states. With so much support, it would take a major blunder on her part, (or some major victories by her opponents), to 'lose' the support which she now enjoys. Therefore, 'the American presidency is Hillary Clinton's to lose'.

'but that doesn't make her a shoo-in just yet'... this sentence means there are no guarantees that Hilary will definitely win the election. A lot of things can happen between now and the presidential election in November 2008.

Cheers,
Amigos4