How to end the Hillary Clinton/Barack Obama standoff

While some party leaders keep counseling caution, at least a few Democratic superdelegates are getting antsy about the prolonged nature of their party's presidential race and going public with their concerns -- as well as offering suggestions for untying the knot that seems to be growing more tangled.

One of those is Edward Espinoza, 35, of Long Beach, a member of the Democratic National Committee. He was blunt in a recent conversation with Times' reporter Peter Nicholas, saying that if the contest between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton lasts through the Democratic National Convention in late August, it would be “devastating’’ for the party.

Espinoza has settled on the date he thinks the battle needs to come to an end -- Memorial Day, May 26.

At that point, if none of the remaining primaries between now and then has established either Clinton or Obama as the obvious frontrunner (which seems unlikely) and neither has dropped out (even more unlikely), the superdelegates need to “put our weight behind someone’’ to determine the nominee, he said.

“There will come a time when we need to step in and bring some closure to it," said Espinoza, a political and public relations strategist who had backed Bill Richardson but now is uncommitted.

He added: “We don’t just have an opportunity to put an end to it; we have an obligation to put an end to it."

Espinoza's focus on Memorial Day ...

seems a bit arbitrary -- and won't be welcomed by Democrats living in Puerto Rico (which has a June 1 primary) and Montana and South Dakota (where the primary season wraps up on June 3).

But we suspect he is giving voice to a growing restiveness among superdelegates -- an attitude being promoted most obviously by Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen.

Bredesen, who like Espinoza is uncommitted, appeared on MSNBC today to push his call for a quasi-convention of superdelegates in June (after the Montana and South Dakota votes) to settle "a problem we didn't expect as a party" -- i.e., that the primaries would prove non-conclusive.

Given that this means the superdelegates will have to tip the balance anyway, Bredesen argues that it's better for for these party honchos to "get out of the backroom mode" and play out the endgame in a public setting -- sooner rather than later.

"Let's get this over with," he said this morning. "Let's not have a summer of recriminations."

-- Don Frederick

Comments

[Sally]

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[UTWO]

OBAMA'S RACISTS AND DIVISIVE PASTOR SCANDAL WILL BE A FIELD PLAY FOR THE REPUBLICANS TO RUN ON AND WIN THE GENERAL ELECTIONS. LET STOOGES LIKE CHRIS MATTHEWS AND KEITH OLBERMANN OF MSNBC, EUGENE ROBINSON OF THE WASHINGTON POST, MAUREEN DOWD OF THE NEW YORK TIMES, AND SENATORS LIKE KENNEDY'S, KERRY'S, DODD, AND JUDAS (RICHARDSON), PERSUADE OBAMA TO STEP DOWN BECAUSE HE HAS NO CREDIBILITY OR RESPECT AMONG US. LET ALL THE LIBERAL MEDIA KNOW THAT THERE BLACK COMMUNITY IS NOT THE SOLE VOTERS

[GK]

It's very premature to think about bringing an end to it. Those who claim wisdom and call the rest of the clan for closure are crypto-Obama supporters who want to end the game now where perceptions are at their favor. Obama is a very viable candidate but, at the same time, he could be flaky and in many occasions comes through as unconvincing. It is wrong to hide the ball and run the clock to win this. Regarding Richardson, he made his call, we heard him, now he can keep quiet and let the game continue. Thanks.

[George Chapman]

Give me a bunch of good old smokey cigars, a back room, and good old wheelin and dealin. That gave us Harry Truman and if done right will give us Al Gore (although my personal favorite is still Bill Richardson.) OC.

[m weifers]

Whereas a lot of people want Clinton for President, and a lot more want Obama, what's wrong with letting the people decide. Florida and Michigan aside, let the popular vote determine the race. Remember the simple phrase, "The majority rules."

[Gabrielle Lynn]

The superdelegates--and Democratic Party higher-ups--just can't wait to make up our minds for us, can they? Well, it's not like they haven't long ago decided who should win and done all they could to make that happen, for instance, by denying millions of registered Dems the right to vote.

Just remember: Those millions of disenfranchised Democrats still get a vote in November. But it may not be for the candidate these superdelegates choose.

[jodi]

It would be great if this would end but I fear the Super Deligates will cave to the racist card being played by Obama and the result of that will be that I and many other democrats will vote McCain. Democrats need to remove the racist Obama and his wife or they the dems lose in November.

As for Chris Matthews of msnbc.....when Obama loses and he will lose either to Hillary or to McCain.....Chris Mathews and others like him from cnn should be terminated. They are not delivering the news, they are making it up to suit the guy they appear to be in love with, Obama. I think all TV commentators that praise the racist Obama should also bring their kids to Wright's church...bet they would not do that. They really want McCain to win and they are throwing Obama at us in the hope that dems nominate him to lose against McCain and the their taaxes do not increase. If Hillary is nominated the TV commentators like Chris Matthews know that she will beat McCain.

[jwalker]

If the DNC doesn't seat MI and FL delegates the party is going to be toast in November!

[Wendell]

So-o-o. Its time for the Dems to disenfranchise 2 more states' & 1 territory's dem voters... PR, MT & So Dak. Now Howard Dean can say the Dems have a "46-state strategy.

Politcis is Politics! These 2 need to fight it out until the primaries are done; the FL & MI problem resolved (fairly which doesn't mean 50-50 as Obama defines fair.) He lost those FL & MI because he was too stupid (um, inexperienced) to keep his name on the ballot in MI and because they liked HRC better in FL. Roll all this together and she is ahead of him. If Obama steals this nomination by playing footsy with guys like Espinosa, he loses HRC's wing of the party in Denver (Nasty Fight there, I suspect) and loses in November (which would be good for the country.).

The convention needs to nominate Gore & Mitchell and keep the party together. Both wings will be unhappy and the party will back those 2 as the nominees. Right now, the party is going to lose 1/2 its strength, which ever way it goes. Obama has not won the nomination, either. A superdelegate convention will be great political theater. I'll tell you, ya gotta love the Dems. They pull defeat out of the jaws of victory ... and entertain as well!

[sunny florida]

So, Clinton or Obama? Hmmm....let's look at their resumes....relationships with "close advisors".....seems pretty clear: Hillary. Why not jump on a bandwagon of hype? The problem I have with Mr. Obama is his pattern of doing one thing and then distancing himself from those actions when the opposite is revealed at a later date. It speaks to his platform of "good judgement". How can it be good judgement to listen to divisive words when you are also running on a platform of "unity", and listen to that for 20 years, just as an aside. How can it be good judgement to have a close friend and political associate whom you used to buy a piece of property with, who was widely known it be under investigation for political fraud and corruption? We have a need and right to know Senator Obama from every angle and what he believes when he talks of equality and a "vision" for America. For voters (or media) to say that Clinton +/or Obama is at fault for the direction the Democratic campaign has headed, is ludicrous and short-sighted. America is a melting pot of races, genders, culture, etc. and we each have a personal interest in seeing "ourselves" in our President. With that connection comes passion and emotional investment. However, it also must be tempered with information about the candidates (good and bad, without negative "label" attached to said information) so that we can make informed choices, rather than only emotionally-driven ones. To Americans: try to take off the blinders of opinion polls, media spin, mud and excitement and remember what this race is really about: Hiring someone to do the toughest and, arguably, most important job on the planet. Being President of the US isn't about speeches, promises and what-if's - it is about who you believe will get up, everyday, and work their butt off for every hardworking American, because they have a track record of that already. That person is Senator Clinton. She has worked hard and diligently for all Americans, and spent years building strong relationships because she has a passionate vision of what America can be, not just because she's running for President. Vetted, intelligent, tested and hardworking. Senator Clinton is the right choice for me in '08

[Patrick Garrison]

The best and most equitable way to resolve this is for Hillary to stand down. This is the gracious way that adults behave when they see that the numbers are against them and they've no chance to affect the outcome otherwise. This action would accomplsih two important things:

1) Give the Democratic party a clear nominee so all the bickering, infighting and general angst will be resolved quickly. Instead of spending millions more in a futile bid to defeat, campaign funding will best be set to work for the general election in the Fall.

2) Hillary gains a huge amount of political capital. This would go a long way toward erasing the growing perception that she's in this campaign for her own self-interest, party and country be damned.

[Clea]

I have been a Clinton supporter from the beginning, but agree with Mr. Espinoza...the longer this continues, the more is erodes the credibility of the Democratic party. If his proposal means that Clinton has to step down, then I will sadly say "so be it."

[Rose]

June is way too far off. Hillary's goal is to either steal the nomination from the front runner, or damage him so badly that he loses in November and she takes another shot at this in 4 years. The totally disgusting aspect of this slash and burn politics is that she doesn't care what she does to the Democratic party, or you and me, in the process. The Superdelegates need to end this before the Democrats have no chance of winning in November. That has got to be way before June.

[Fishgoat]

UTWO:

Your provincial and misinformed comments would carry a lot more weight if you managed to use the English language appropriately.

Who is "us"? The non-black community? I'm as lily white as they come and strongly support Obama.

FG

[Mike in Sac]

About time!!! End the Circus and let's move on to addressing McBush's third term and what that means for our country!!!

The supers need to all get onboard and either start coming out now or agree to do what has been proposed.

[Hillary Should Resign]

This one's for UTWO: HILLARY SHOULD RESIGN, SHE IS A HACK AND A LIAR AND IS HATED BY OVER HALF OF THE AMERICAN PUBLIC. SHE CAN'T WIN BECAUSE SHE IS A LIAR AND A CHEAT AND IS A POOR DEMOCRAT!
There, how's that UTW? See how moronic your post is?

[Leroy]

After learning that Obama choose to listen to anti-White anti-American racist Pastor Wright for 20 plus years I will not vote for him, nor will my family or friends. If this is the best the democrats can do, I'll for republican in November. The liberal media (especially Chris Matthews) have attacked Hillary Clinton non-stop for over one year. It is their doing that now has an unqualified black racist as the democratic nomination. These fools could even turn gold into lead. Congratulations John McCain, the liberal media has given you a great chance at being president, even after 8 years of the worst president in American history.

[Leroy]

After learning that Obama choose to listen to anti-White anti-American racist Pastor Wright for 20 plus years I will not vote for him, nor will my family or friends. If this is the best the democrats can do, I'll for republican in November. The liberal media (especially Chris Matthews) have attacked Hillary Clinton non-stop for over one year. It is their doing that now has an unqualified black racist as the democratic nomination. These fools could even turn gold into lead. Congratulations John McCain, the liberal media has given you a great chance at being president, even after 8 years of the worst president in American history.

[JB]

UTWO: Ridiculous notion. Wright's divisiveness is a challenge, but mostly only for those who were only looking for a reason NOT to vote for Barack Obama. The rest of the intelligencia is able to separate one black man from another.

On the article: In what world is Barack Obama NOT the clear frontrunner. To suggest that there won't be a clear leader on May 6 is really only a way of saying that Hillary may or may not catch up by then. Let's not let talk of mathematical impossibilities sway our 'opinions' that the race is undecided, okay?

[Mandelay]

Hey Superdelegates, if you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen. This is politics, like we haven't seen it in a long time. A fight to the finish and then, if you're a Democrat, you start training for the championship and beat the tar out of John McCain. But please don't try to hasten the process and diminish the importance of the remaining primaries. DNC, you've already taken the vote away from two states in the union, please don't try doing it to the remaining states with contests. For goodness' sake, you're starting to look like the Republicans in 2000. Worse, with your premature mission for party unity, you're starting to look and sound like The Borg. Stop telling the rest of us to Assimilate or Die ... we have primaries to go and votes to cast before we sleep.

[Annette Keller]

Today, they say 19% of Obama's supporters wont' vote for Clinton while 28% of Clinton supporters won't vote for Obama. But what does that mean when Obama's supporters are left-wingers and blacks who are unlikely to vote for McCain if they despise Clinton, but Clinton supporters are centrists, and fairly likely to vote for McCain if they despise Obama?

These are key points that the Democratic pundits commenting on outcomes fail to mention.

Obama's blacks, who are really hateful toward Clinton, those comprising the 19% of those Obama supporters who wouldn't vote for Clinton, won't go out and vote Republican. This is also true for the left-wing ivory tower whites that comprise his white voter base. Thus, the 19% of Obama's base who won't vote for Clinton, if they follow through, would just provide the Republicans with about an 8% margin since Obama is down under McCain with about 43% in current the national polling. Thus the damage those 19% of Obamat's hardened Clinton-haters can do at most an 8% margin of damage, if they all follow through and sit out the election or vote for Nader.

However, centrist Clinton's 28% are far more likely to vote for centrist McCain instead of doing what Obama's 19% are likely to do if they follow through and sit out the election. That means the Dem party's 28% drop will be then added to McCain's column, thereby doubling the effect of Clinton defections. Let's say 1/2 of Clinton's 28% sit out the election as Obama's 19% fanatics say they would do, and 1/2 vote for McCain, and that Clinton's at about 46% below McCain in national matchup polling today. Clinton's supporters would shift the margin by (.28/2)*(.46)X2 = 13%. Plus there are the other 14% who sit out: (.28/2)*.46 = 6.5%. There would be a 13% + 6.5% projected shift in the Dem v. Republican votes, or 19%.

Thus if we assume all of Obama's left wing and black supporters would follow through with their threats to not vote for Clinton, it could impact the Fall election by a projected 8%. If only half of Clinton's centrist supporters follow through with their threats not to vote for Obama and sit out the election while the other half votes for McCain, then we see a 19.5% shift in McCain's favor.

That, my friends, is why you don't bully, abuse and harass the party centrists. And if they force Clinton out, they will force more than 28% away from Obama!

The Dems have zero chance of winning with any meaningful margin of Clinton's centrist supporters upset at Obama's campaign or the Democratic Party's treatment of her. On the other hand, there is a meaningful shot at a win if Obama's left-wing and black supporters sit out the general election!

[Richie]

Obama will be the nominee, that's obvious. If Hillary Clinton has such good judgment, she should see that Americans want Obama not her. She is a divisive figure of the past. Also, in response to utwo's post: you are a racist republican, and your party is going to lose. Your fearmongering tactics might work well amongst your inbred and uneducated friends at the local hick bar, but not with the majority of Americans.

[Mark Marsh]

Seeing how Hillary has a problem with reality (Bosnia and snipers) I doubt she would concede if the superdelagates were to vote for Obana immediately after the primaries. She would still try to spin it as a victory. Maybe she'll run as a third party candidate.

[FRGus723]

Funny that the two people calling for an end are still uncommitted.

[Josh]

Wow - UTWO is really angry. Reading that must be what a Rev. Wright sermon sounds like. Lighten up, Obama is going to win the nomination. Deal with it.