Even defined in its worse, neither campaign has swifted boated one another. Swift boating isn't just a tactic you disapprove of, which could be anything from an ad or a sharp contrast line, swift boating is flatout lying in a dishonorable way to smear an an opponent and using your smear as your message.

Every time you call every jab at your candidate swift boating the word loses its meaning and republicans get away with what they did and still do.

You're like the boy who cries wolf.

Given that you haven't mentioned any name(s) in this diary, I had to go back and look at your diary history.  

So, Clinton is a swift-boater now?  Please.  Grow up, man.  

I seem to recall President Clinton's words intentionally twisted and never refuted by the Obama campaign.  President Clinton pointed out inconsistencies in Obama's rhetoric on Iraq over the years, calling the "accepted" story of Obama's position a "fairy tale". And what happened?  These words were deliberately twisted to make it appear that President Clinton was calling Obama's campaign a fairy tale.  And how was that used?  It was used to rally African-Americans both TO Obama's campaign and AGAINST Clinton's campaign.  

Here's an actual memo prepared and disseminated by the South Carolina Press Secretary for Obama.  I haven't edited any part of the memo, so it does contain the drug remarks made by Shaheen in New Hampshire.  I personally don't see how those comments were "dirty" given the fact that Obama's already admitted to drug use, but that's up to individuals' judgement.  What IS important in this are examples of how Obama's campaign tried to ratchet up racial animus against Clinton. As an additional example: Senator Clinton's benign remarks about how Martin Luther King, Jr.'s heroic cause for civil rights still required the political courage by a president with the bully pulpit to get passed into law.  This was turned into some kind of denigration of Dr. King.  Shameless.

So, before you go out intimating swift boating and other nonsense, you better be wary of your candidate's glass house.

Memo:

Subject: MUST READ: Key S.C. figure takes issue with Clintons

SHUCK AND JIVE

Clinton Supporter Andrew Cuomo, Referring To Obama, Said "You Can't Shuck
And Jive At A Press Conference. All Those Moves You Can Make With The Press
Don't Work When You're In Someone's Living Room." Clinton-supporting New
York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said the thing that's great about New
Hampshire is that you have to go out and meet people rather than "shuck and
jive" through press conferences there. Cuomo said of New Hampshire on an
Albany radio station: "It's not a TV-crazed race. Frankly, you can't buy
your way into it. You can't shuck and jive at a press conference. All those
moves you can make with the press don't work when you're in someone's living
room." [Newsday, 1/11/08]

MARTIN LUTHER KING / LYNDON JOHNSON COMPARISON

Clinton, Criticizing Obama For Promising "False Hope" Said That While MLK
Jr. Spoke On Behalf Of Civil Rights, President Lyndon Johnson Was The One
Who Got Legislation Passed: "It Took A President To Get It Done." Clinton
rejoined the running argument over hope and "false hope" in an interview in
Dover this afternoon, reminding Fox's Major Garrett that while Martin Luther
King Jr. spoke on behalf of civil rights, President Lyndon Johnson was the
one who got the legislation passed. Hillary was asked about Obama's
rejoinder that there's something vaguely un-American about dismissing hopes
as false, and that it doesn't jibe with the careers of figures like John F.
Kennedy and King. "Dr. King's dream began to be realized when President
Johnson passed the Civil Rights Act," Clinton said. "It took a president to
get it done." [Politico, 1/7/08; Video]

Clinton Introducer Said JFK Gave Hope, But Was Assassinated. Clinton
introducer: "If you look back, some people have been comparing one of the
other candidates to JFK and he was a wonderful leader, he gave us a lot of
hope but he was assassinated and Lyndon Baines Johnson actually did all his
work and got the republicans to pass all those measures." [HRC, Dover, NH,
1/7/08] AUDIO ATTACHED

NELSON MANDELA

Bill Clinton Implied Hillary Clinton Is Stronger Than Nelson Mandela. "I
have been blessed in my life to know some of the greatest figures of the
last hundred years. [...] I go to Nelson Mandela's birthday party every year
and we're still very close. [...] But if you said to me, 'You've got one last
job for your country but it's hazardous and you may not get out with life
and limb intact and you have to do it alone except I'll let you take one
other person, and I had to pick one person whom I knew who would never
blink, who would never turn back, who would make great decisions [...] I would
pick Hillary.'" [ABC News, 1/7/08; Audio]

DRUG USE

Clinton's NH Campaign Chair Raised The Youthful Drug Use Of Obama And Said
It Would "Open The Door To Further Queries On The Matter." Clinton's
Campaign Issued A Statement Distancing Themselves From Shaheen's Comments
And Shaheen Issued A Statement Saying That He "Deeply Regret[s] The
Comments." The Democratic presidential race took on a decidedly nasty and
personal turn, with the New Hampshire co-chair for Clinton, raising the
youthful drug use of Obama. Shaheen said Obama's having been so open -- as
opposed to then-Gov. George W. Bush, who refused to detail his past drug use
during his 2000 presidential campaign -- will "open the door to further
queries on the matter. It'll be, 'When was the last time? Did you ever give
drugs to anyone? Did you sell them to anyone?'" Shaheen said. "There are so
many openings for Republican dirty tricks. It's hard to overcome." By the
end of the day, Clinton campaign spokesman Phil Singer had issued a
statement asserting that "these comments were not authorized or condoned by
the campaign in any way." And Shaheen himself issued a statement: "I deeply
regret the comments I made today and they were not authorized by the
campaign in any way." [ABC News, 12/12/07]

Mark Penn, In Trying To Defend His Campaign Over Bill Shaheen's Obama Drug
Use Comments, Used The Word "Cocaine," Drawing A Rebuke From Edwards Adviser
Joe Trippi. Mark Penn, defending the Clinton campaign in light of Bill
Shaheen's comments about Obama's drug use, repeatedly referenced Obama's
cocaine use. Edwards adviser Joe Trippi accused Penn of dropping the word
"cocaine" deliberately. Mark Penn said "Well, I think we have made clear
that the -- the issue related to cocaine use is not something that the
campaign was in any way raising. And I think that has been made clear. I
think this kindergarten thing was a joke after Senator." Joe Trippie
responded and said "I think he just did it again. He just did it again. ...
This guy's been filibustering on this. He just said cocaine again."
[Politico, 12/13/07; Video]

FAIRY TALE

Donna Brazile Lashed Into Bill Clinton For Comparing Obama To A "Fairy Tale"
And Said "It's An Insult... As An African-American" And That His Tone And
Words Are "Very Depressing." Donna Brazile lit into Bill Clinton over his
insulting comments of Obama, where he called him a "fairy tale" and said "I
could understand his frustration at this moment. But, look, he shouldn't
take out all his pain on Barack Obama. It's time that they regroup. Figure
out what Hillary needs to do to get her campaign back on track. It sounds
like sour grapes coming from the former commander in chief. Someone that
many Democrats hold in high esteem. For him to go after Obama, using a fairy
tale, calling him as he did last week. It's an insult. And I will tell you,
as an African-American, I find his tone and his words to be very depressing.
... I think his tone, I think calling Barack Obama a kid, he is a United
States senator." [Politico, 1/8/08]

Amaya Smith
South Carolina Press Secretary
Obama for America

Group Psychology.

Politicians ahve played to that literally for millenia.

If Obama doesn't come back in the same vein, he could be pushed out by the super delegates in Denver. He has to now get down in that mud and roll around,just like Hillary. He has to go kitchen sink on her.

Most voters in TX and OH thought Clinton waged more unfair negative attacks than Obama.  But they just didn't care.

People in some states punish negativity.  Wisconsin was one of those.  But in a lot of places, it doesn't matter.

As an Obama supporter, I think that his campaign needs to learn from this.  People will believe the Muslim smears unless you tell them otherwise. He has to fight Clinton back more effectively.

And Obama has to refrain from "vetting" Clinton more vigorously.  Obama is facing the sorts of attacks Republicans would wage, but Clinton has not.  You know that they will not hold back on all the scandals involving fundraising, etc. that are associated with Hillary and Bill Clinton.  He hasn't wanted to do so because it went against his view of the sort of candidate and campaign he preferred.  But more needs to get out there. Of course the Clintons will complain and charge gender bias.  But this should not stop him.

I have heard this before, most recently (I think)  by John McCain:

If you lay down with dogs, you're going to get some fleas.

When Obama stood by and let the Clinton's be portrayed as racists by his campaign supporters, most notably Jesse Jackson Jr (I wonder if he's as big a disappointment to his father as W is?), did he really think that wasn't playing dirty? That there would be no push-back? As my kids like to say "don't dish it out if you can't take it".

"Clinton will face lots of slime she is not facing now. She is not getting tested the way Obama is."

Hillary has faced getting slimed for 20 years, she will not only weather it from the Republicans, she will hit back so fast, long and hard they won't know what hit them.

It was artful watching how her campaign kept up a steady daily drumbeat of challenges to Obama in the last 5 days, so they never gave him a chance to really pushback and put any issue to rest, before the next awful item was shoved to the top of the news cycle. It was like a ballet in it's seamless timing. I think that Maggie is really making a tremendous difference in the campaign. Even BO outspending her 2 to 3:1 couldn't undo the effectiveness of her campaign.

For so long now it has seemed that the candidate is so much better than the campaign. I think the campaign may be getting up to speed.

Oh, and about your diary above, I think this primary contest has been very, very civil and restrained, it's really a very gentle contest compared to what the GE will bring. Watch out for the oncoming rush of 527s, they will hit like Katrina.

Today,the math favors Obama even more than it did yesterday.

Why?

The margin of victory required for Clinton to catch up increased dramatically. Without blowouts in delegate pickups last night, the math gets worse.

Obama will still lead by about 150 pledged delegates after last night. There are 611 pledged delegates up for grabs between now and the end of the Puerto Rico Caucus.

To catch up in pledged delegates, Clinton must win 380 of the remaining delegates. That's 62% of ALL remaining delegates. Electorally, that means 30 point blowouts in all remaining contests.

The math won last night.