Good evening everyone!

I am going to lay out the case for Chuck Hagel as our Vice Presidential nominee.  I want to be clear about something, though.  I am not endorsing Chuck Hagel for this position.  I am warmer to him than most here but I do not think he would be the best choice.  I am writing this diary because no one hereabouts is willing or able to understand why Senator Hagel would be a compelling choice from a certain point of view.  I don't want to get attacked for writing this.  Instead, remember that I'm trying to foster some useful dialog and maybe broaden some perspectives.  You don't have to agree with the premise of this diary to be better for having read it.

Interested?  Read on...

Barack Obama gave what I consider to be an overwhelmingly important and gracious speech this evening. He spent a lot of time sincerely praising Hillary Clinton for her personal strength and the strength of her campaign, as well as the groundbreaking nature of her candidacy.

He did this on the night when he might well have expected to have the stage to himself, and didn't. And he did this on a night where he might have expected Hillary Clinton to similarly (and not tepidly) praise him. This showed a tremendous amount of restraint and respect.

He then proceeded to deliver a remarkable framing of the choice between himself and McCain, turning notions of patriotism and fear-mongering on their heads. And he did so in a manner that electrified not only the crowd on hand but a nationwide audience. He announced himself forcefully and eloquently, and talked about a lot of things that supporters of Hillary Clinton are likely to care about.

So, my question dear Clinton supporters (or at least the ones still holding out against Obama)....did this speech do anything to move you to him personally or politically. I hope it did but I am curious to hear some responses.

If you don't like John McCain, and want to be part of an easy effort to beat him then join me below the fold.

redacted

It's all over the blogosphere, the cable TV shows, the newspapers, it's tonight's top talking point from Obama surrogates.

It's Obama's rationale:  Defeats in West Virginia (and Kentucky next week) are because those white folks got a problem voting for a black man.

But sorry, that's wrong.  Not only is it wrong, it's hugely offensive to fair-minded white people.  That's right, most "hillbillies" and southern folk do not discriminate. Imagine how all those white people who voted for Hillary Clinton today feel having their votes explained away due to racism.  It's not going to help in November if Obama is the nominee, that much is for sure.

I just saw a FOX News exit poll statistic that 77% of the people in West Virginia said race was NOT a factor in their vote.  I absolutely believe them.  I believe that a different African American candidate could be much more successful than Obama among some of the white segments where he's struggled.  I have been trying to shout this point from the rooftops:  It is not Obama's skin color that gives voters pause.  It is a collection of other issues, mixed together.  It's Rev. Wright damning America, plus "bitter small-towners clinging," plus friendships with guys like Rezko and Ayres, plus Michelle's patriotism gaffe, plus the flag pin problem -- all of that combined with the experience gap, the weak name recognition -- all together, there's the answer.

It's not race, so please stop.  If Obama becomes the nominee, I'd suggest that a more effective way to win votes in November is to deal head-on with the liabilities listed in that last paragraph.  Playing the race card may have had some limited use in the primary season, but it will be the kiss of death for Democrats as a general-election strategy.

Obama lost West Virginia today by whopping double digits.  Convenient as it may be to blame it on racism, that's a costly error.

UPDATE: In the comments to this diary, twinmom makes a great point:

I'd take it a step further (2.00 / 4)

I don't even think this victory has anything to do with Obama. It isn't a rejection of him... these people LOVE HILLARY! These people believe with all their hearts and minds that Hillary should be our next President. She connects with them, she speaks to them, she gets their enthusiastic support and votes.

Personally, I've never lived in a state that went for Obama. I've lived in RI, NY, MA, NH, CA, NM, PA. Racism doesn't explain why those votes went for Hillary. I don't know a single person that I'd ever in a million years call racist. I know literally hundreds of loyal Clinton supporters and their motivation is exactly like my own: Pro-pro-pro-pro-HILLARY! Not everything is about Obama. :)

Cross posted at texasdarlin

TexasDarlin, all rights reserved
Not affiliated with the Hillary Clinton campaign

Todd Beeton is dead on. (I wish I could comment here, I would have left him a comment, but for some reason my ability to comment on posts has disappeared).

His post "The will of the people" reflects precisely that. Clinton is a candidate that , to many Americans, reflects a strong drive to accomplish key initiatives that they are truly interested in - if, falling short of speaking for them as their diplomat, and commander in chief.

But why? Well first, because the polls reflect a strong and non diminishing trend to have Clinton on the ticket as the VP. Second, it just makes good sense - Hillary knows how the white house works. The office of the Vice President has grown in relevance under the unitary executive initiatives of the past years - and many would even say that this office rivals that of the presidency, post-Bush Republican / Dick Cheney.

The idea that an extremely well qualified, popular presidential candidate that has shown strong polling against the GOP matchups  smacks of pure victory.

Of course, Obama could always nominate Joe Lieberman.
But then we'd probably have to invoke the 22nd amendment.

What do you think? Did Todd finally get it right? Is Hillary
the cat's meow for VP? If not. Then who?

Barack Obama is currently planning his "victory" celebration even before achieving the 2025 votes that will determine the nominee. He is intent on declaring "victory" even before MI and FL are heard before the credentials committee on May 31. This is the height of arrogance which makes him appear out-of-touch and dismissive of others.

He has lost the votes of Democrats in this primary. He is polling worse than his opponent in the GE against the Republican candidate. He has trouble with "Hillary Democrats" in PA, OH, PA which happens to be crucial swing states. He has discounted the voters of FL and MI and, as a result, is counting on his 48 states strategy.

If the criterion for winning the GE was based on winning more states in the GE than his opponents, the Republicans would win every GE. He garnered most votes in caucus states where few people voted. In other words, the fewer folks voted, the more delegates he won. Fewer votes is different than high voter turnout.

Today obama netted 4 supers and clinton 0. Clinton got Shuler but a super from VA switched to Obama after he locked up the nomination last night making a a net of 4-0. The floodgates have opened for the official nominee of the democratic party as declared on NBC, ABC, and CBS this morning.

Congrats to Nominee Barack Obama




"Stephanopoulos said despite the race going on “this nomination fight is over,” Obama’s lead “can’t be overcome”"
"Schieffer said the race is “basically” over"
"Russert repeated his Obama-is-the-nominee line"