Here's the rub: The GOP knows Obama is the nominee, but Democrats don't

[stevietheman]

Here's the scenario that I dread: The GOP has already figured out the obvious that Obama is the nominee and will be pounding him for weeks, while Hillary is simultaneously pounding him for as long as she stays in. The GOP is increasingly ignoring Hillary as a potential GE opponent, and the biggest damage will be to our actual candidate Obama in the Fall.

Hillary should really think about this. She is effectively doing McCain's GE work.

[Occam Bandage]

1. If Obama were to beat McCain, Hillary couldn't run in 2012.

[jlake]

3. Technically she could.

[Occam Bandage]

5. Technically she could defect to Somalia and run for President there.

Let's try to stick to reality.

[jlake]

11. Well, it's entirely within the realm of possibility if Obama is elected but turns out

to be a dismal failure.

[Occam Bandage]

12. Which I suppose is your last best hope of seeing a President Clinton.

Cross your fingers and pray for Carter.

[jlake]

15. No, I don't think that will happen.

I do think she'll have a chance to run in 2012 though.

[Occam Bandage]

16. And I think that she'll have to hope that no new political stars rise between now and 2016.

However, I think Gov. Warner and VP Kaine would be favored then (though it's way way way too far out to tell).

[jlake]

17. I think that 2016 is too far away - and I think that even if Obama loses this year,

Hillary won't run again.....but maybe she will.

[Occam Bandage]

18. I'd have to agree. I think this is the only shot that both she and Obama get,

though I also think that if Obama loses in Nov, she'll try unsuccessfully for a 2012 bid.

[writes3000]

2. She's probably sending McCain love letters at this point.

I personally can't believe she's friends with the man after he made a joke in a crowded room about "why Chelsea Clinton is so ugly".

With friends like that...

[babylonsister]

4. Yes. Clinton needs to bow out gracefully, but perhaps she thinks

he'll flub something. There's a week to go.

[cbayer]

6. And some Obama supporters are doing their work by trying to slay Clinton.

That's the scenario I dread.

Some people should think about that.

[Skip Intro]

7. Bottom line, Hillary should STFU because she's not praising Obama. How DARE she!?

Let the process continue, fuck a coronation.

[stevietheman]

8. Obama is too far out ahead to be stopped in most reasonable scenarios.

And it's always been Hillary's supporters who expected a coronation of her. Everyone knows it.

[Occam Bandage]

9. "Let the process continue, fuck a coronation."

I'm very glad to see you all change your minds on that. I do recall how one of the favorite Hillary-supporter lines before December was "You're only damaging the inevitable candidate, Obama can't win so why are you trying to torpedo our only chance to beat Romney/Giuliani."

[Skip Intro]

19. really, got a link to that?

I mean, if it was so prevalent and all...

And yeah, fuck a coronation - like the one bots here and bots in the media are trying to hold for the amazing Mr. O.

[amborin]

10. gop *hopes* obama is the candidate

[stevietheman]

13. Like Democrats hoped Reagan would be the GOP candidate in 1980. n/t

n/t

[grantcart]

14. HRC campaign for President has simply failed to develop a compelling

message on why she should be President. If you did not immediately buy into the inevitability argument there was never a compelling hook for anybody to join that was not already a fan. Her experience arguement was destroyed by her inability to make a clear statement about the IWR vote, admitting the mistake and moving on.

If she repeat she had not been so interested in packaging a product for consumption but rather fired her pollsters and consultants and just put herself out there she would have been the candidate. It happened for a moment in NH and the people responded. The great irony of this campaign season is, that Sen. McCain's prescription of just leaving all of the packagers behind and doing town meetings would have made her a rock star. Can you imagine the media she would have generated by travelling by herself and just talking to people.

So now she has been hanging on after one landslide after another. Please do not take any one instance and make a morality statement out of that. Sen. Clinton has been defeated. She has no hope of winning the nomination without some nuclear event. So now the Obama campaign and everyone else in the party are going to jump on every little mosquito burp to get this done by Mar 4th.

Sen. Clinton, President Clinton and all of the other paid consultants are guilty of campaign malpractice. Rather than settling out of court we have to wait for another jury. Just like any other civil action don't be surprised if the jury on Mar 4th brings in damages that will have a devestating effect on the Clintons. They could have settled some time ago for pennuies.

After Wisconsin this stopped being about Obama winning it is now simply about packing up the circus with as little damage as possible. The ball is in Clinton's court.

[CyberPieHole]

20. Obama will be a gift for the RW...

we can all sit back and watch him be devoured on a daily basis. It won't be pretty. And, of course, none of us will say "we told you so".

[angie_love]

21. Alerted

[Window]

28. Wishful thinking and/or Bullshit

[NastyRiffraff]

22. Yeah how DARE Hillary or anyone else run against St. Obama?

Geez, this is the closest primary I can remember, and I remember quite a few.

[rpannier]

23. Like it or not Obama does need a heated 'attack' as often as possible

He has yet to have been really challenged by anyone in his 'meteoric' rise.
His Senate race was a joke -- alan keyes for 'Christ-sakes.'

If he can't handle the heat now then he really will join the "Deer-in-the-headlights" campaigns of Dukakis, Gore and Kerry.
Campaigns that faltered because they did a poor job of defending their own records, while going on the attack.

For almost 5 years I lived in the Chicago-area. Obama comes out of Cook County.
For the most part, they're all crooks with massive amounts of skeletons in their closets, in the attacks, under the house, dumped in Wolf Lake.

He needs to prove he's up to it.
One serious slip can be critical to a relative unknown.
And to most of the public he is am unknown.

[CarbonDate]

24. You don't consider Hillary a serious challenge?

I do. I give her credit for helping Bill get elected President in 1992. Her only failing this time around was hubris.

[rpannier]

25. Hilary is a serious challenge

But for some people to suggest that she should call it quits or 'tone back on her attacks' is kind of idiotic (IMLHO).

He needs to prove he's up to the challenge. That he can respond in kind to every hit he takes.

Anyone who thinks her campaign attacks are 'below the belt' or 'unprecedented in the whole history of wherever' has not been paying attention to the republikkan smear machine.

I worked the Cranston re-election campaign in 86. I know how much damage a career politician can do to a relative unknown.

[readmoreoften]

26. Well, hey, they have a new friend now don't they? /nt

[cali]

27. If she loses TX or OH, it's over and she knows it.

She's not stupid or selfish enough to stay in.

[TexasObserver]

29. Her campaign is broke and running by not paying people. She'll be done next week.

Staffers not getting paid. Vendors not getting paid. Contributors tapped out or unwilling to pump more cash into a losing effort. If she and Bill are willing to spend $25 mil of her money, they can limp through another month, but I don't see how they last until Pennsylvania.

[Perry Logan]

30. Time for the Obama people to stop dissing Hillary and tell us why the hell we should vote for him.