Hillary: ‘Psst ... VP OK’

By Jennifer J. Foster

If I thought the cable news networks were going berserk this morning with news that Hillary Clinton might be conceding the Democratic nomination to Barack Obama (they were, but she isn’t), boy, they’re really beside themselves now.

Clinton has apparently signaled with the ritual handshake and sent a coded message through double-secret channels to fellow tribal members (A/K/A New York lawmakers) that she’s open to the idea of being Obama’s vice president.

Rep. Charles Rangel, a senior member of the New York Democratic delegation, also told CNN, “I have reason to believe she is open to the [vice president] slot.“

The talking heads are abuzz about the “backchannels” this information went through, the “delicate nature” of the talks and the “importance” of keeping it “informal.“

Why?

It reminds me of these lines from The American President.

If you’re up for being considered as a running mate for a candidate for president of the United States, why not publicly say so?

It’s almost as if Clinton thinks that saying it out loud before a large group of people—or a camera, or any sort of audio recording device—will somehow shatter the majesty and aura of the idea that she’s running for president, too.

Aaron Sorkin might portray it this way:

(Scene: About two dozen people are gathered in the secret underground

war room

bunker

tastefully finished basement beneath Hillary Clinton’s New York home. They are enjoying light hors d’oeuvres and gently spiked punch while engaging in jovial repartee about the price of tea in China.)

Hillary Clinton spies Charlie Rangel in a corner of the room. Brushing past him, she breezes into the hallway and turns back toward his position.

Clinton: Psst ... Charlie! C’mere a minute!

Charlie Rangel: Huh? Oh, hi, Hillary. What’s going on?

Clinton: Shhh, shhh ... c’mere!

(Pulls Charlie Rangel into an empty room, shuts the door and nervously scans for bugs.)

Clinton (whispers): Let Barack know that ... well, you know.

Charlie Rangel: What?

Clinton: You know, that thing everyone’s talking about ...

Charlie Rangel: What thing? ... Oh, no; he left that church.

Clinton: No, not THAT thing ... Tell Barack ... (looks around nervously) ... Iway ... ouldway ... ebay ... OKWAY ... ithway ... icevay ... esidentpray. Got it? Tell Barack.

Charlie Rangel: Oh, OK. (opens door and heads back down the hall)

Clinton, calling after him: ... And also tell CNN.

SBOE polls?

By Jennifer J. Foster

Hey folks, I’ve asked around a bit about whether there were any polls done in either of the two State Board of Education races. From what I can gather, no one seems to know of any that have been done. I got to thinking about it, and it would really be unusual for two races to run into the half-millions—each—without any polling being done to see what kind of impact all that money is making.
And that’s even before we consider that the Alabama Education Association, which has done most of the funding of the challengers’ campaigns, has the Capitol Survey Research Center—and guess what the CSRC’s purpose is?

That’s right—to poll, poll, and poll again!

So, like Danny from Doc’s, I would bet dollars to doughnuts that there were polls done. We just haven’t heard about them.

I wonder what that means?

Is it good news for the

Democrats

challengers? Or for the incumbents?

And what about you all? Has anyone out there received any phone calls where they’ve been surveyed on this race at all? Let us know!

And have you voted today??? Tell us what you saw or heard in the way of traffic at your voting place.

Hillary faces reality—no, wait!

By Jennifer J. Foster

Today’s primaries in Montana and South Dakota mark the end of the primary season, which began on Jan. 3 with the Iowa caucuses.

Yes, that was five months ago.

Pressure’s been mounting on Hillary Clinton to drop out of the race in the face of Barack Obama’s consistent—if recently slower—progression toward winning the number of delegates needed to secure the nomination. Senior adviser Harold Ickes’ temper tantrum Saturday did nothing to tamp down rumors that Clinton may take the nomination fight to the convention in August, but conventional wisdom is that most of the 200 or so remaining undeclared superdelegates—many of whom serve in Congress—were, in deference to Clinton, waiting to make their preferences known until the primary season wrapped up. (Obama needs 40 delegates to secure the nomination.) Once they declare, Clinton would be left with little in the way of an argument to continue fighting.

So when the Associated Press broke a story this morning that Clinton intends to concede tonight in a speech from New York City that Obama has the delegates to win, the cable news networks went berserk.

“AP: Officials say Hillary Clinton will acknowledge tonight that Barack Obama has the delegates for the Democratic presidential nomination,“ CNN.com trumpeted in a banner graphic.

From FoxNews.com:

Hillary Clinton is at least prepared at the end of Tuesday evening’s last two Democratic primary contests to cede that Barack Obama has enough delegates to stake claim to the nomination.

According to The Associated Press, citing two unnamed sources, Clinton will likely stop short of formally suspending or ending her quest for the White House ...

The AP says she will pledge to continue to speak out on issues like health care, although the sources told the AP they acknowledge the campaign is basically over.

But just as it was looking like the Clinton campaign was teetering on the edge of falling out of the clouds and returning to reality, campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe swooped down to rescue his colleagues and pull them back from the precipice into the Clinton Cave of Enduring Fantasy.

McAuliffe said Clinton is “absolutely not” planning to concede tonight.

“(Associated Press reports) are 100 percent reporting incorrectly,“ McAuliffe said. Asked what he would say if he was charged with writing the headline for the story this morning, McAuliffe said, “The race goes on.“

“You’ve got two important states to vote today, and tomorrow we’ve gotta work the superdelegates,“ he said. “We think we can convince enough suerdelegates to support Hillary Clinton.“

So CNN.com rewrote the banner graphic:

“Hillary Clinton not prepared to admit Barack Obama has beaten her in race for Democratic nomination, her campaign chairman told CNN.“

From the story:

Obama “doesn’t have the numbers today, and until someone has the numbers the race goes on,“ McAuliffe told CNN.

These are the times that try speechwriters’ souls.