I Want John King's Map and I Want it Now

Top of the ninth, Obama slams a home run to make it 12 in a row. Hillary comes up in the bottom of the inning, 2 men on, and hits a little piffer...just to to the fence, but it was enough to bring in the two on the bags as she rounded the bases. Extra innings!

"Uh, Lorraine?" you say. "He still has more delegates than she does. She hardly tied it up. And they still don't have numbers from the Texas caucuses".

"I know", says me. "I'm horrible at sports analogies. But baseball, politics and apple pie, baby, that's the American trifecta right there".
"Uh, that's another sports analogy. Now you're mixing metaphors. Are you sure you were an English major?" says you.

"I said there was pie!" says me

"Oh!" says you, grinning,"Excellent!"

John King's map is the coolest thing in the world. It's like a giant iPhone programmed just for politics. I want to play with it so bad I can't stand it. CNN should have some kind of contest where the winner gets to come for one election night and mess around with the map. And I should win that contest so I can say things like, "Now, having said that, Wolf, let's look at what happens if Obama does well in Pennsylvania" and then I get to touch the state and it expands and turns all dark blue and everything. Man, that would just be the coolest EVER.

OK, so all I have is an Excel spreadsheet and the way I see it, Obama has to win all the remaining contests by 80% or better before he racks up enough delegates to clinch the nomination. And even I know that isn't going to happen.

Nope, this one is going all the way to the convention, unless one of them has a serious misstep before then. And considering that Hillary has been deemed down for the count 3 times already...."Thef y gur agur", says you. "Please, stop talking with your mouthful," says me...we're talking about a misstep that will necessarily have to be of gargantuan proportion.

So what does that mean, sports fans?

It means that for the first time in a long time, every state has a legitimate say in the outcome of the primary season. Every vote, from Guam to Pennsylvania to Oregon to Wyoming is going to matter to the candidates. That is what democracy looks like.

It means we aren't going to get any relief from the talk of superdelegates and the fear of a brokered convention. Now, if by "brokered" we mean delegates on the floor, arguing the thing out and swapping votes, like at a caucus, I say 'bring it on'. If, by "brokered" we mean superdelegates with cigars in a back room with Howard Dean, that would suck. (Love me some Dean, don't get me wrong. But I really hope that a guy who was the first to understand the power of the grassroots in the age of the internets doesn't forget that this is about the will of the people, not "what's best for the party" as determined by a bunch of suits. I should probably write him a letter).

There are only two people right now who should be concerned about what's best for the party. And their names are Hillary and Barack. Whatever they do, however they proceed from here on out should be done in such a way that we don't have to call in a Hazmet crew before we can unify around the candidate.

Mike Huckabee conceded last night. It was gracious. He quoted too much Scripture (which made me thankful that he conceded because while I am quite the fan of the Bible, I do not generally enjoy it being quoted at me by politicians). He noted that the contest with McCain had been respectful and civil, far more so than the contest between the Democrats. He's right about that and both camps, Clinton's particularly, need to make a note of it.

Oh, sure, I know that there is going to be credence now that "going negative" is what helped her win last night. Gawd, I hope that's not true. If the only way she thinks she can beat this guy is by being aggressive and negative, that says way more than I like about the kind of person she is. Last night The Spouse described the Clintons as "terriers". And he didn't mean that in a cute, fuzzy way. He went on to suggest that it is that "sink in your teeth and shake it till it's dead" thing is part of what so many on the other side find objectionable about the Clintons. He could be right about that.

The pressure will be on Obama to fight back, to return negative for negative or worse yet, to go on the offensive and dig up crap. Lord, spare us. The GOP will just be sitting on the sidelines taking notes for the general. We cannot give them fuel to the fire.

Hillary, Hillary, Hillary PLEASE play nice. Tell us what you want to do, by all means, but please do not drag Obama through the mud to do it. Because, whether you like it or not, this guy is the future of our party. If he doesn't win he'll be back in 4 or 8 years to run again. Please, for the love of apple pie, puleeeeeeeze keep the big picture in mind. I'm beggin' here, Hills.

Hello? Is this thing on?

Dammit.

Anymorass, the pundits were saying last night what an advantage McCain has now, with months to "introduce himself" to the public and "solidify his message". Whatever. A) America knows who John McCain is and 2) I still maintain that a contest that includes every state in the Union is not a bad thing for the Democrats. There's a whole lotta party building going on right now and we're going to need that machine in the general. Let's remember that this contest isn't just about getting a Democrat in the White House. It's also about increasing the Democratic majority so that no matter who wins, we can actually get something done. (This is very important if we want things like universal health care to become a reality. It's critical if McCain wins...particularly if we are going to get out of Iraq in my lifetime).

Meanwhile, McCain is going to go have lunch with Bush and then have a make-out session with him in the Rose Garden. Getting George W Bush's endorsement. Wow. That's kinda like Lynn Spears nominating you for Mother of the Year.

Last night The Child was watching McCain's acceptance speech and she noted that he seemed nice. "Yep," I said, "and if that nice man is elected, your sweet ass will be going over to Iraq in 4 years". She blanched. I do think it is important to note that those of us with kids and grandkids (plus nieces, nephews and family friends) of a certain age best be very wary of a man who insists that staying in Iraq for 100 years is a good idea, unless you're really willing to serve up your baby for that particular cause. Because I'm telling you right now, we don't have the military to sustain even a few more years over there, let alone 100. The draft will have to be reinstated. And this time girls will go, too.

Still fine with McCain? That's what I thought.

On another note, why is it the President swears to uphold the Constitution on the religious book of his/her choice? Shouldn't the President swear to uphold the Constitution on the Constitution?

Also, apparently Hills hinted this morning that she's open to sharing the ticket with Barack. The more I think about it, that's exactly what should happen. They are both strong candidates with a ton to offer. Give the top spot to the person with the most delegates and let the other one ride shotgun. Win/win.

And finally, two towns in Vermont last night voted to order the police to arrest Bush and/or Cheney if they ever come to town. The crime? Not upholding the Constitution. Now there's a city ordinance I'd get behind.

Theme Song for the Day:


Queen "I Want It All"

The pie will be ready this afternoon. Bring a fork.