The Hillary Endgame

Hillary Clinton will almost certainly not be the Democratic nominee for president, and the end of her campaign is a relief for Marie Cocco in the Washington Post —but not for political reasons. The end of the Democratic primary, she writes, will also put to rest the sexist rhetoric of Clinton's opponents and the media, who have called her a "she-devil," "whore," and worse. More »

For Bill and Hillary Clinton, 2008 is smacking of 1998, as the struggle to stay in the presidential race looks remarkably like the battle to survive impeachment, argues Michael Crowley in the New Republic . The former first couple is under siege again, and again is willing to “ride out any crisis”—wrapping themselves in the mantle of populism and indicting the press. More »

Harry Reid brushed aside yesterday suggestions Hillary Clinton, fresh from a primary defeat to Barack Obama, might ascend to the top Senate job. “Keep in mind,” he told the Huffington Post, “a senator coming back who’s run for president is not a very unique one. Sen. John Kerry ran, he’s back. Chris Dodd ran, he’s back. Joe Biden ran, he’s back.” More »

Barack Obama won the support of five more delegates today, putting him within 145 total of clinching the nomination, by Huffington Post’s count. Obama's new backers include New Orleans' mayor, a former Democratic National Committee chair and the chairperson of DC’s Democrats. Obama also gained the support of an elected Hillary Clinton delegate from Maryland, a markedly rare switch of a pledged nominator. More »

The long-tern effect of John Edwards’ early exit is that Barack Obama will wrap up the nomination by early June, a grateful Steve Kornacki writes in the New York Observer . A  slower withdrawal would have spelled trouble for the Democrats, who are having enough trouble making up their minds. "Imagine the comparative mess Democrats might be in if Edwards had opted to stick around," says Kornacki, who dissects the numbers. More »

With Hillary Clinton’s chances of beating her rival all but shot, Ben Smith, on Politico, runs down the graceful and non-graceful ways to exit: Never say die: If Clinton can stomach shrinking coffers and departing supporters, she can bide time until the convention, ensuring that lightning hasn’t struck Barack Obama before she concedes. More »

“Since McCain and Obama appear to have the nominations locked up,” it's time to start eyeing the veepstakes, Chris Cillizza writes in The Fix blog. Here are his top three for each presumptive nominee, GOP first: Tim Pawlenty: The Minnesota governor is a longtime McCain backer, and widely admired. John Thune: A handsome conservative who also beat then-senator Tom Daschle 4 years ago. Rob Portman: From Ohio, a crack economist, and not well-known—which could actually be a good thing. More »

Nobody knows what Hillary Clinton will do if she's not the Democratic nominee, but Politico's John F. Harris and Jonathan Martin list five reasons she shouldn't be Barack Obama’s VP: Clinton’s rep as a Washington insider will undercut Obama’s cool factor. Who says Clinton would take the job anyway? Her pride and contempt for Obama’s readiness may make a post as Senate Majority Leader seem more attractive. More »

Barack Obama would be wise to put Hillary Clinton on his ticket, write John F. Martin and Jonathan Harris in Politico. Here's why: Obama has no choice. He needs Clinton’s Catholic and blue-collar supporters, and he’ll be pressured to include her for the party’s sake. He may dislike Clinton, but that’s irrelevant. Picking her will show he really can overcome divisions and be a true uniter. More »

An informal Mideast policy adviser to the Barack Obama campaign has severed ties after critics made an issue of  meetings the adviser had with Hamas, the Times of London reports. The Obama campaign stressed that Robert Malley never had a formal role with them; Malley made it clear that his meetings with Hamas were part of his job with a conflict prevention group and had no connection to Obama. More »

Ted Kennedy vetoed a spot for Hillary Clinton on the Barack Obama ticket, saying their fellow senator needs a running mate “in tune with his appeal for the nobler aspirations of the American people.” He laughed off suggestions of a dream ticket, Politico reports, saying, “I don’t think it’s possible”—and following up, “If we had real leadership … in the No. 2 spot … it’d be enormously helpful.” More »

Hillary Clinton’s tactics have been especially divisive in the last few days, and Katharine Q. Seelye writes in the Times that maybe she’s “veering into dangerous territory” to force her rival to bargain. Some suggestions on what she wants from him: More »

Barack Obama today moved ahead of Hillary Clinton among superdelegates for the first time. Obama picked up nine more by midday—one a defector from Clinton's camp, the Los Angeles Times reports. Both ABC and the New York Times put him ahead—the latter's count is 266-263—meaning he now leads in pledged delegates, states won, popular votes, money raised, and superdelegates. More »

Hillary Clinton wasn’t asking anyone to stand up and be counted as she met with superdelegates on Capitol Hill yesterday. Instead of trying to lock in public endorsements—with political risks for the supers involved—Clinton was just trying to get a private headcount, Politico reports. "We have to know where our numbers are,” said one Clinton staffer, “and there’s no other way.” More »

Hillary Clinton's loss of momentum is taking a tangible toll on her ability to raise—and spend—money, leaving her campaign even more strapped for cash at a time she needs to pull out all the stops, the New York Times reports. Advisers say that Clinton is prepared to shell out more of her own, adding to the $11 million she's already provided. More »

Now that Hillary Clinton has lost, Peggy Noonan writes in the Wall Street Journal , she’s busy tearing her party apart. Democrats "should be dancing in the streets" after the brutal campaign, but instead they’re holed up at DC bars, regarding the former first family with “depressed horror.” Hillary is sharpening every divisive tool in the shed, hiding behind her gender and insisting that white voters have chosen her. More »

When a woman makes it to the White House, it will be thanks largely to Hillary Clinton's demonstration of late that she could move beyond annoying stereotypes of the strong female, writes Susan Faludi in the New York Times. Instead of being a goody-goody rules-pusher—"the purse-lipped killjoy who passes strait-laced judgment on feral boy fun"—Clinton has joined in the brawl, showing she can "hit hard, not complain, bounce back and endeavor to prevail in the end." More »

Hillary Clinton today rejected the latest plan for seating Michigan’s rogue delegates, Talking Points Memo reports. A campaign rep wrote of the scheme settled on by state Dems that would award Clinton 69 delegates to Obama’s 59: “This proposal does not honor the 600,000 votes that were cast. Those votes must be counted.” January's extra-legal vote netted her 73 conventioneers to 55 for “uncommitted.” More »

Much has been made of Barack Obama’s “Jewish problem,” but while it’s hurt him in the primaries—he’s done 10 points worse among Jewish voters—it will have little or no meaning in November, SV Date writes in the New Republic . The demographic is most politically meaningful in Florida, and 80% of Jews there dependably vote Democratic. More »

Hillary Clinton urged her supporters to stick by her today, telling a West Virginia audience that calls for her to step down are simply "deja vu all over again," the AP reports. Clinton also told USA Today that only she can deliver the broad base of voters, including whites, necessary to beat John McCain. Her campaign chief, meanwhile, suggested Clinton would not keep the fight going until the convention in August, notes the New York Times . More »