Steve Benen concedes Paul Krugman's point but then does not absorb it. Indeed he makes it. Steve writes:

I don’t doubt for a moment that many Clinton supporters “feel that she has received unfair, even grotesque treatment.” In fact, I think those supporters are largely right and have every reason to be offended by some of what we’ve heard during the campaign. . . . The problem, I think, is that it’s a little too easy to misidentify the source of the problem, and I think Krugman may have been a little too quick to mention “Obama and his supporters.” There’s a difference, and it’s important.

Have some Obama supporters been quick to denigrate Clinton? Absolutely. But I’m not sure it makes sense for Clinton supporters to help John McCain — either directly (by voting for him) or indirectly (by staying home) — because some Obama fans were intemperate towards their favored candidate. Obama and Clinton have had a few dust-ups between them, but nothing outrageous or even unusual in the midst of a competitive process.

Krugman did not say it made sense. He said it could, even would, happen. He said voters are emotional. Steve Benen seems to believe all things in politics are nice rational choices by voters. They are not. Obama supporters would not treat Hillary Clinton as Satan and embrace the likes of Andrew Sullivan while vilifying Paul Krugman if that were the case. But they do. Heck look at Steve himself fall into complete nonsense in the very same post:

Jane Hamsher at Firedoglake today asks whether John McCain will make a pitch for Hillary's female supporters if Obama is the nominee.

I spoke with a well-known pollster recently who said that if women think the country would be safer with McCain over Obama by 10 points on election day, she predicts that McCain will win. While it's absurd to think that McCain would be better than Obama on women's issues, these kinds of decisions are -- as Krugman says -- highly emotional. A pitch to "security moms," combined with an appeal about "elitists in the Democratic party" looking down their noses on working class women just might work.

I hope McCain fails in his bid for women voters, should Obama be the nominee. It's the last thing Hillary would want. And, Democrats who switch sides out of spite or revenge will get far more than they bargained for, including anti-choice Supreme Court Justices and right-wing ideologue federal judges.

Any Democrat is better than what John McCain is offering. Given McCain's age, his selection of a VP candidate will be very telling. I suspect it will be someone that can bring him evangelical and ultra-conservative votes. That makes his candidacy twice as dangerous.

Yet, Jane's post is correct that Obama's nomination poses big electability challenges for Democrats in November.

The answer, to me, is simple: The nomination is still a two way race. Superdelegates can still pick the more electable Democrat among not only women voters but older, rural and blue collar voters as well. That candidate is Hillary Clinton. [More...]

Fidel Castro has written an op-ed in Cuba's state-run newspapers today criticizing Barack Obama for saying he planned to uphold the embargo against Cuba while easing restrictions on Cuban residents in the U.S. from visiting and sending money to their relatives on the island.

"Obama's speech can be translated as a formula for hunger for the country," Castro wrote, referring to Obama's remarks last week to the influential Cuban American National Foundation in Miami.....Castro said Obama's proposals for letting well-off Cuban Americans help poorer relatives on the island amounted to "propaganda for consumerism and a way of life that is unsustainable."

He complained that Obama's description of Cuba as "undemocratic" and "lacking in respect for liberty and human rights" was the same argument previous U.S. administrations "have used to justify their crimes against our homeland."

Castro didn't mention Obama's offer to meet with him or other Cuban leaders. McCain and Hillary would both continue the embargo. Hillary said this week she wouldn't meet with Cuban leaders until they've begun to enact some Democratic reforms. [More...]

Here is Hillary Clinton's plan for Puerto Rico. Hillary, Bill and Chelsea have been actively campaigning there all weekend. Today, they attended a Memorial Day celebration in Capitolis. She also is hosting conversations with Puerto Rico families in Bayamon and Guayama. Later she will attend a union rally for civil servants in Ponce and another event in San Juan.

Hillary has accepted an invitation from Univision for a debate with Obama on issues of import to Puerto Rican voters. [More...]

Do not stand at my grave and weep.
I am not there, I do not sleep.

I am a thousand winds that blow.
I am the diamond glints on snow.

I am the sunlight on ripened grain.
I am the Gentle autumn rain.

When you awaken in the mornings hush,
I am the swift uplifting rush
of quiet birds in circled flight,
I am the soft stars that shine at night.

Do not stand at my grave and cry,
I am not there, I did not die.

- Mary Frye*

A peace offering. Ras polling on Kentucky in the GE:

Obama 32
McCain 57

Clinton 51
McCain 42

For the record, I do not believe a Dem can win in Kentucky this year but the poll results say what they say.

BTW, Mason Dixon says Montana is not in play. McCain leads both Obama and Clinton handily.

By Big Tent Democrat

Comments closed

At the risk of offending, I note Paul Krugman's column on the division in the Democratic Party, the risk it is causing to winning the Presidency and what can be done about it:

Why does all this matter? Not for the nomination: Mr. Obama will be the Democratic nominee. But he has a problem: many grass-roots Clinton supporters feel that she has received unfair, even grotesque treatment. And the lingering bitterness from the primary campaign could cost Mr. Obama the White House.

To the extent that the general election is about the issues, Mr. Obama should have no trouble winning over former Clinton supporters, especially the white working-class voters he lost in the primaries. His health care plan is seriously deficient, but he will nonetheless be running on a far more worker-friendly platform than his opponent. . . . [MORE]

I'm watching the repeat of Recount. TalkLeft was just a website and not a blog in 2000, but I tracked the events daily and when it was over, made a compendium page. It's accessible here and if you're fuzzy on the chronology of events, it may provide some information. The links to the AP articles are no longer valid, but most of those to other news sources still work.

As for Indiana Jones, don't ask. Aside from the fire alarms going off in the 15 theater movie plex, requiring evacuation of all of them about 20 minutes after the movie started, and then having to watch all the previews and first 20 minutes again, it just wasn't very good or memorable. I did enjoy Karen Allen, but the plot strained credulity and there was too much of the 1950's in it for my taste.

If anyone's still up and online and has something to say, here's the spot.

Comments now closed

Here's a thread to discuss the important HBO film Recount, to be broadcast starting now. It's relevance to the current Democratic primary is obvious. Let's limit the discussion to Recount if we can.

I am signing off now. Have a nice night. J is at the movies.

Recount airs tonight on HBO at 9 PM ET. Check your local listing for your time zone. It should be watched by everyone.

This is an Open Thread. Have a good afternoon and evening.

Update (TL): I'm off to see the new Indiana Jones movie (because I like Karen Allen) so this will be the last open thread for a few hours. And yes, I'm tivo-ing Recount.

Please keep it civil and don't respond to site violators. (Comment rules are here and new commenters are limited to 10 in a 24 hour period.) It's easier for me to identify and delete them when I see them called out. If you respond to them, chances are your response goes down the rabbit hole too.

I am sorry to continue to harp on the need for a Unity Ticket, but I feel it is important. I just looked at the latest McCain-Obama head to heads (forget the electoral college math problems for a moment) and here they are:

Rasmussen: Obama 44, McCain 46

Gallup: Obama 45, McCain 47

Newsweek: Obama 46, McCain 46

Forget for a moment that Clinton is beating McCain in these same polls, excuse me, is no one but me worried about needing a unified Democratic Party in November? I pray there are grownups in the Obama camp that will give him a reality check on this.

By Big Tent Democrat, speaking for me only

Comments closed. I am gone for the rest of the weekend. I might be back Tuesday or Wednesday if something about FL/MI happens. I will not be writing on anything else for the time being.

Don't forget to watch Recount tonight or tomorrow night.

I'm done for the afternoon, enjoy the holiday, get outside, but for those who can't or don't want to, here's an open thread.

Comments now closed, there is a new open thread up.