DNC Convention = War

The Michigan Democratic Party agreed yesterday to a plan to split its delegates to the August convention: The state wants to award 69 to Hillary Clinton and 59 to Barack Obama, who did not appear on the ballot in the primary, which was voided because it broke party rules. Michigan would also seat 29 superdelegates, reports the Detroit News . More »

Barack Obama's resounding win in North Carolina and fight to the finish in Indiana has left the Clinton campaign with one final strategy to win the nomination: move the goalposts and play for time. Team Hillary is now telling journalists that the winning candidate actually needs almost 200 more delegates than both sides had said earlier, reports the Los Angeles Times. More »

You can thank or blame one Democrat for the rise of superdelegates and demise of the party's winner-take-all primaries—but strategist Harold Ickes, who negotiated the primary system 20 years ago, is likely too busy to hear you. He's calling up superdelegates for Hillary Clinton, and using such a nasty tongue that Time couldn't print what it overheard. More »

Barack Obama is trying his darnedest to shed the elitist vibe, writes Maureen Dowd in the New York Times, ditching his dainty sips at a Pennsylvania brewery for big swigs of Bud at an Indiana VFW. But for a man of mixed race and a blue-collar upbringing, it’s proving a surprisingly hard image to shake. More »

Indiana is an especially hard state to suss out ahead of next week’s primary, because its recent fortunes lie somewhere between those of flush Connecticut and struggling Ohio. Racial factors aren’t significant, so the Democratic race likely turns on economics, with prosperous areas favoring Barack Obama and the less affluent helping Hillary Clinton, Politico reports in its analysis of the state's inclinations. More »

The Indianapolis Star endorsed Hillary Clinton today, saying that even though Barack Obama “offers an attractive vision for the way things could be,” the former first lady “offers a clear-eyed view of the way things are.” Four days ahead of Indiana' primary, the state's largest newspaper praised Obama but worried that his “inexperience in high office is a liability.” It was more impressed with Clinton’s “remarkable” depth of knowledge. More »

David Axelrod isn’t just a political hired gun. Instead, Barack Obama’s chief strategist backs his candidates with the same passion he reserves for his beloved Cubs and Bulls, the Washington Post reports in a lengthy profile. “He loves his candidates when he starts. He’s usually let down when he finishes,” said one friend. “Obama is the one different guy.” More »

In the red state of Indiana, the GOP could have a major say in the fortunes of Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama in Tuesday's primary, the Wall Street Journal reports. Republicans could account for up to 15% of voters in the Democratic race because of the state's open-primary system. As a result, both candidates are venturing into GOP stomping grounds to round up votes. More »

Given Barack Obama’s much-ballyhooed problems with white, working-class voters, it's instructive to remember that he clobbered Hillary Clinton in Wisconsin by 17 points in February, notes Mike Madden in Salon. If he can reconnect with those voters in Indiana—another state close to his Illinois home—he could wrap up the nomination. That is, of course, much easier said than done. More »

As Hillary Clinton piously chimes in on the Jeremiah Wright controversy, Barack Obama still won't turn the tables and demand a look through Clinton's unsavory associations. And he's not likely to, so Politico digs into the litany of untouched Clinton material. From patronage-happy, prison jumpsuit-wearing Web Hubbell to misfit brothers Hugh and Tony, there’s endless dirt unlikely to be dug up. More »

With three endorsements yesterday, Barack Obama has caught up to Hillary Clinton among Congress' superdelegates; in a race Clinton once dominated, the Democrats have each been endorsed by 97. In a positive sign for Obama, many of his recent converts have come from Republican-leaning constituencies—though swing-staters say they're no longer sure Obama would be a less divisive general-election candidate than Clinton. More »

Optimism is spreading through Hillary Clinton’s once-dispirited war room, Politico reports, as a series of wins accumulate in their candidate’s column: fundraising has rushed in since Pennsylvania, she's collected some well-timed endorsements, she’s bobbed up in the polls, and Barack Obama is once again afflicted by Jeremiah Wright. All of which makes Clinton’s advisers believe that her comeback-kid rhetoric might actually have legs. More »

Joe Andrew, a superdelegate and the Democratic Party chair during Bill Clinton's presidency, has switched his allegiance from Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama, reports the AP. Andrew had endorsed Hillary on the day she announced her candidacy, but in a lengthy letter to other superdelegates he says they must rally behind Obama to "heal the rift in our party." More »

Barack Obama increased his lead over Hillary Clinton in a national poll, but the newest Rev. Wright flap and his loss in Pennsylvania appears to have raised doubts about him in voters' minds, the New York Times reports. Democrats favor him over Clinton 46% to 38% in a Times /CBS poll, up from a 3-point lead last month, but fewer people expect him to be the nominee—51%, down from 69%. More »

Republican strategists are tuning out Hillary Clinton as they ramp up their attacks on Barack Obama, writes Jonathan Martin in Politico. The national party is increasingly focusing its ads and money on Obama, and John McCain's camp also puts a definite emphasis on him. A new daily email to reporters about McCain's schedule features an "Audacity Watch" but has yet to mention Clinton. More »

In her first interview with longtime critic Bill O’Reilly, Hillary Clinton called Jeremiah Wright's comments “offensive,” “outrageous,” “off base” and “far out," ABC News reports. She also got a dig in at Barack Obama by saying she's glad he "finally" clarified his views on Wright, the New York Times notes. Fox News offered a peek before the interview airs tonight on the O'Reilly Factor . More »

Most of the 80 unpledged Dem superdelegates in Congress have privately chosen a candidate, and one of Barack Obama’s key Senate surrogates claims most have swung his way, Politico reports. It’s “a matter of timing,” Missouri's Claire McCaskill said. “They would like someone else to act for them before they talk about it in the cold light of day.” More »

Hillary Clinton is strongly urging her supporters to back Barack Obama if he wins the Democratic nomination. Polls have demonstrated that many Clinton and Obama supporters have become so firmly entrenched that they'd prefer to vote for John McCain over a Democratic rival. That would be "the height of political foolishness," said Clinton, who vowed to continue to work hard for the Democratic cause regardless of who becomes the nominee. More »

Hillary Clinton will sit down for the first time with Bill O’Reilly tomorrow, the Los Angeles Times reports. After months of a virtual Democratic boycott of Fox News, and days after Barack Obama sat down with Chris Wallace, the former first lady will face the network’s most famous anchor in an interview to air tomorrow and Thursday on The O’Reilly Factor . More »

Six of 10 pundits Salon asked what Barack Obama should do about the Jeremiah Wright problem say the candidate must get rid of the reverend. Andrew Sullivan calls Wright’s latest remarks “bitter and racist” and “a provocation"; he must be "clearly and irrevocably disowned." Martin Kaplan calls Wright “part of the negative politics that our country needs to transcend.” More »