But having made his political mark, many aides believe he is already looking toward fresh battlegrounds.
Now he and his aides believe they have finally rounded a critical corner.
In the end, the aides believe that Beijing will abstain from any vote.
First, he and his senior aides believe they may be facing something akin to a permanent limited war against the Palestinians.
Within the campaign, aides believe the significance of the more centralized system is that decisions can be made swiftly.
Then, as now, his aides believed he had to win here to win the Democratic presidential nomination.
The aides can't believe his name has been added to the list.
And he plans to do so in a way that his aides believe cannot be overridden, the senior aide said.
An official acknowledged that the President's aides believe that "we haven't got a prayer on either of them."
The confrontational scene was repeatedly played on television at the time, and aides to both candidates believe that it hurt him, particularly among women.