Riling Up the HIllary Voters

If Barack Obama had wanted to unity the Democratic Party, one way to have done it would have been to, at least, vet Hillary Clinton for the Vice President slot.

It's a small thing. Conduct some interviews. Do a little research that she would know about. Then politely tell her that you've chosen a different candidate. Most of us have been in that position (my favorite dogwhistle line was "you aren't quite what we're looking for.").

But the ineptitude of the Obama campaign, so blinded by their own awesomeness, caused them to stomp, yet again, on the second largest block of Democrat voters this year. Do they really assume Hillary voters will line up for Obama?

John McCain has a new ad that hits this nail on the head:



One of the most effective things the McCain campaign has been able to do this year is use Democrats' own words about Barack Obama against him. It's a terrific strategy and difficult to counter, no matter how many times the nutroots scream about how many houses John McCain has.

No doubt, a certain number of Hillary Clinton supporters will hold their noses and vote for Barack Obama because they would rather a Democrat win than a Republican. But I think there are probably a lot of Hillary supporters who wouldn't mind sticking it to the Obama camp by voting for John McCain. Plus, McCain isn't a terrible candidate for Hillary voters, since Clinton and McCain have worked together in the Senate (more of that bipartisanship on display).

My guess is that the Obama campaign will come to regret their decision. Oddly, the same people that have spent years defending the Clintons are now arguing that Hillary just needs to get over herself. So much for loyalty, I suppose.