Hillary Clinton’s media surrogates continue to advance the notion that opposition to her candidacy is significantly motivated by popular opposition to the election of a woman. Since sexism remains endemic in the United States, the charge would seem to have a certain plausibility.

Nevertheless, they can’t seem to make this one stick. First we had variations on the unqualified claim that Clinton’s critics are mostly men “attracted to the opportunity to fight against a female president,” but that was easily debunked.

Then we had the admission that this “gendered animus” doesn’t come from “the majority of Hillary Clinton’s critics.” The charge was redirected to “a small group of writers” and their “impassioned followers.” This too has been easily addressed every time the charge gets leveled at anyone specific, which is why the charge itself has taken yet another step back: now it’s half-baked conjecture about a plague of “unconscious sexism” holding Clinton back.