Now that it’s finally over, you have to wonder, will we see Hillary as the v.p nominee sending Clinton-haters everywhere into a frenzy against Obama too, or will Obama turn away from the millions of blue collar Clinton voters and go with another possibility? This post is by no means exhaustive, and I for one have been intellectually salivating since Sam Nunn’s name starting making the rounds. I have not been at all excited about the idea of Clinton as a v.p., until this morning when I thought about it in a different way.

Now that we’ve all had a good laugh at everyone’s favorite moron, it’s time to move on because this guy is meaningless. The episode, however, may be a harbinger (one of a few so far) of a shift in American political discourse – I know, I’m being idealistic, but let me have my moment.

This episode was a hyperbole. It was an exaggeration of something that has been brewing, and I had not taken notice of it until my wife pointed it out the night of the North Carolina and Indiana primaries. The gap between the rich and everyone else has not only widened, but the rich population is shrinking… the population of everyone else is growing, fast. The rich also happen to hold most of the power.

We’ve all heard the argument of how “the rich people control everything!!” In many senses, this is true. This control hinged on directives shouted to the masses. Political spin was tossed out like red meat to the hordes, who gleefully ate it up and spewed it back out.

Starting with John Edwards and his cheery populist campaign in 2004 and the fiery populist campaign he waged in 2008, something switched. The masses no longer wanted simple spin to dictate their political thought. They wanted articulate solutions to their problems, not quick fixes and a pat on the head… a la the Republican party platform and their minions of spinmeisters. It did not end with Edwards. Barack Obama, along with his soaring rhetoric, long held a theory that people are smart enough to understand policy nuance (its a central point of Audacity of Hope). In the midst of this primary, the votes started to confirm this.

It was an election that says volumes about what citizens want in more traditional parts of the country. Apparently tired of what they have had for years, voters turned out more of the same and voted for a new, fresh face.

“are they with us or against us?” - Sen. Hillary Clinton

The day has finally come: Pennsylvania primary day!

I’m an Obama supporter, but personally, I don’t give a rat’s ass what the outcome is as long as it goes as planned and we don’t have to hear about it any more. I couldn’t believe how much press the Pope’s visit got last week, but at least it meant I didn’t have to listen to HIllary’s campaign throw everything they’ve got at Obama. The closer we can get to the end of the primaries the better. Their are bigger fish to fry in a race with John McCain.

Hillary will likely win, but it will likely not make any difference. Obama will still win the war. Also notable is that even if Hillary loses, it will likely not make any difference, because she will have plenty of excuses why Obama won but she should have - i.e. he outspent her, she’s the underdog, blah blah blah - and she will still continue with her scorched earth campaign policy of not letting any Democrat win if she doesn’t win the election she apparently feels she’s entitled to.

It’s been over a month since the OH/TX/VT/RI primaries. Over a month… and we’re still roughly two weeks away from “the super-de-duper important” April 22nd primary in PA. UGGH. (Note: I feel like it’s been over a month since anything lively happened on this blog, save for Kerry keeping us afloat with stories about DC’s satanic leprechauns. Seriously, its a funny post. Go read it.)

So it’s been a month. We’ve lived through a month of economic turbulence. We’ve fully unearthed racial politics in the last month. And we may be (ahem, the media may be…) finally reaching the conclusion that the Democratic primary is just about over. “Over?” you say. “But Hill’s still got a chance!!!” Uhhh, not so much. That’s articulated well right here.

A couple days after last month’s big round of voting, I discussed three key points of focus. Let’s see if anything has changed…

Tuesday’s OH, TX, RI, and VT primary elections sent the media narrative into a tailspin of stories on Clinton’s electoral redemption, Obama’s inherent weaknesses, and how everything hangs on April 22nd’s primary in PA. Well a few days passed, giving everyone a chance to shake off the haze and perhaps intelligently analyze the implications of Tuesday and the “path going forward.” (This phrase is so incredibly overused, but I’m too dumb to think of anything else right now.)

There are three things to focus on now that I can consciously separate myself from the peppering of “the Clinton machine can’ be stopped!” propaganda. 1) Obama for all intents and purposes won Texas; 2) MI and FL are trying like hell to seat their delegations (and it looks like they might be able to work something out); and 3) Obama’s decided to get his hands dirty.

The first two of these changes in narrative help Obama, and it remains to be seen how the 3rd will play out.

My future in punditry grows brighter by the day! “Why?” You ask. Well, I’ve seriously blown a major election prediction. Huzzah! Move over Rachel Maddow and John King, and make room for another empty-headed windbag! (*note: I actually like both Maddow and King. They don’t hold a candle to the vast wasteland of brainlessness at Fox News.)

Now that I’ve gotten my mea culpa out of the way, let’s move on to why last night does not signal the demise of Obama ‘08.

Do we have to keep talking about this? I don’t mean Hillary winning big last night, or Obama losing, but the Democratic race. I mean, seriously, is this still going on? Do we have to keep talking about this? I’m ready to hear something else in the morning when I wake up besides Clinton Obama Obama Clinton Obama Obama Obama Clintion Clinton Obama.

Of course, while I’m getting woolly… uh, weary* over it, I wonder if maybe it’s not good for the Democrats in the long run. McCain is just a side show right now. No one cares about him, it’s all Democrat all the time on the national scene. Blame it whatever conspiracy theroy you want, but it’s true.

From a different angle, I watched Obama’s speech in San Antonio last night, and I wonder, or worry, if this was the pin-prick moment and all the air is about to come out of his balloon. One of the most appropriate bumper stickers I saw between the 2004 Iowa caucus and the November election said, “Dated Dean. Married Kerry.” I wonder if in four months we will see some similar stickers that fill in the names of this year’s rock star and establishment candidates, respectively. I sure hope not.

*Name that movie reference.

The day of reckoning is upon us! (Oy vey, a little over the top Huffington Post?) Today’s primaries (and prima-caucus) have been spun as the pivoting point of this election. The shift to the general or the launch of a Hillary comeback. Polls out today have me a bit nervous about yesterday’s prediction, but the majority of them are within the margin of error so this baby could fly any which way.

Let’s get primed for the March 4th battle! I’ve got a bunch of links below the fold to guide you to whatever knowledge you seek…

Tomorrow represents the end of the first stage of the 2008 election. This glorious election that has the potential to shift our country’s sputtering course – and has sapped our collective brains for over a year already – will finally move to Phase Two: General. Some time late tomorrow evening Barack Obama will emerge with a victory in Texas – having sewn up Vermont earlier – and will go to bed no longer as the presumptive front runner but the presumptive nominee.

Evidence of inevitability is everywhere. The attacks from HRC-supporting talking heads are becoming more pointed (and exaggerated). The ACTUAL opposition has begun targeting him, and most noticeably, the Clinton campaign has become desperate.

And I think we may finally be nearing the end of this interminably interesting primary. One week from tomorrow, the folks in Texas, Ohio, Rhode Island, and Vermont will go to the polls potentially putting the nail in the coffin of once-favored Senator Hillary Clinton.

Now there are a few outcomes that could keep Mrs. Clinton alive, but I’m sticking with my original prediction. Obama will have this puppy sealed after March 4th. Even if Hillary sticks around, it will only be prolonging the inevitable.

Ralph Nader has again begun his campaign for president of the United States, and in doing so he has revealed his growing and unparalleled laziness in the world of United States activism. While it would be fair, in my mind, to compare his impact on American society in the 20th Century with the likes of Martin Luther King, Jr. and Cesar Chavez his increasing laziness has has not only led to a regression in the world of corporate responsibility, it also shows he is no longer willing to actually fight the fight for social justice.

I try not to hero worship, especially with politicians. I see no reason. With all of the build-up and hype surrounding any campaign, I tend to get either disgusted with or caught up in the hype. If I get caught up, I try to take a step back and ground myself. Politicians are only men and women, just like you and me. They are not gods, nor are they superhuman. So, while I have tentatively been supportive of Barack Obama’s campaign since my man John Edwards dropped out, I have held off from throwing my support behind him entirely, mainly because of the hype but also because of my belief that Hillary Clinton could do an excellent job as president.