The Democratic Party faces a major dilemma in the 2008 election, one that needs to be resolved sooner rather than later.
That is, supporters of Hillary Clinton and supporters of Barack Obama have different emotional attachments to their candidates. The emotional attachment to Sen. Obama feels much deeper to me than it does for Sen. Clinton. People support Clinton, yes, but not with the same enthusiasm. Though some excitement arises from the possibility of our first woman president, it's tempered by the fact that she represents another family dynasty of insider politicos who seem hellbent on selling us down the river. Though it's fair to argue about the differences in "experience" between the two candidates, the fact remains that Clinton does not engender hope the way Obama does.
Until Obama's campaign caught fire and offered an alternative to the fait accompli of another Clinton in the White House, voter enthusiasm was summed up by this message from one of my friends: "Like you, if it comes down to voting for Hillary or McCain, I will hold my nose, wear rubber gloves and press the Clinton button, then leave the voting booth and stick my finger down my throat and heave the contents of my stomach into the nearest toilet."
How the Democratic Party resolves this dilemma will have a profound impact on the results in November—not just in the presidential, but in the Congressional races. Given the potential for an unprecedented number of voters going to the polls for the first time, the impact could trickle down to state and local races. Indeed, if Democratic voter turnouts in state caucuses and primaries are any indication—uniformly swamping Republican turnouts—then the possibility exists for this to be one of the major backlash elections in American history, a resounding indictment of Bush.
Exhibit A was Democrat Bill Foster's victory in Illinois' special election Saturday to fill former House Speaker Dennis Hastert's seat. A relative novice Democrat, helped by Sen. Obama's stumping for him, easily defeated a seasoned GOP hatchet man, for whom McCain stumped, in one of the most Republican districts in America. Get ready for a sea change in November, if…
Of course, the Democrats are adept at snatching defeat from the jaws of victory.
When and if Hillary Clinton finds a backroom way to pry the nomination loose from Barack Obama's hands, there will be hell to pay. This is a real and present dilemma. If Clinton supporters deny this, they are delusional or willfully dense. While either Obama or Clinton could beat John McCain in November, the backlash from a snake-in-the-grass Clintonian power grab would be enough to undo much of the energy and excitement Obama's run has brought to the Democratic party.
After eking out victories in the Texas, Ohio and Rhode Island primaries last week, the Clintonian "Comeback Kid" meme was pulled out of mothballs. Never mind that she gained all of nine delegates in the three wins (and even that nine is "soft") and that Obama then won the Wyoming caucus handily. Never mind that Obama still holds a virtually insurmountable lead in delegates. Displaying more gall than even her husband has, Hillary Clinton still insisted that she would gladly share the ticket with the senator from Illinois, the implication being that Obama would be her VP, her water carrier.
Perhaps it would have been out of character for Obama, but many would have welcomed his saying, "Sen. Clinton, I am not your White Houseboy." Indeed, millions of Americans in whose faces the White House doors have long been shut can taste the sweetness of an Obama victory. Anything less will leave a bitter aftertaste.
