8:50 a.m. — When all of the ballots were finally counted -- a process that lasted through the night until well after the sun was up -- Sen. Barack Obama had the most votes from Guam Democrats in the party’s caucus held yesterday.
Superdelegate Brian Colon Backs Obama’s Movement for ChangeThe endorsement brings the total number of superdelegates to endorse Barack Obama to 255. Senator Obama is 277 delegates away from securing the Democratic nomination.
State Party Chair Brian Colón said, “Barack Obama has proven to inspire a movement that has brought a record number of people into the process. He’s proven to be a candidate who can compete and will fight hard to expand the Democratic Party’s reach and put Western states in play in the general election. His message of change is resonating across all ages, races and economic backgrounds in New Mexico.
“As I talk to Democrats all over New Mexico they are increasingly concerned with the negative tone that the campaign has taken. I believe that Senator Obama has presented a positive message of change while continuing to focus on our real opponent; a John McCain presidency and another four year term of failed Bush policies.
“Barack Obama has run a different kind of campaign – one that goes beyond the things that divide us and is driven by a commitment to real change that starts at the grassroots level. Here in New Mexico, where we had a very close election on February 5th, the excitement I saw throughout the state is good for our Party and good for our State. While there are two very talented candidates in this race, I am proud to make this announcement today because I want to see Barack Obama’s positive movement for change continue to transform the Democratic Party and this country.”
Endorsements like his are particularly meaningful, because local party leaders see the nominee in part as the top of a ballot in which they'll be fighting races at state and local levels.
UPDATE: Avi reminds me that Colon took some heat from local Clinton supporters for appointing an add-on who hasn't committed to support Clinton.
By Ben Smith 01:33 PM
Obama picked up three superdelegates today to Clinton’s one. Obama got the backing of New Mexico Democratic Party Chairman Brian Colon and two add-on superdelegates named today: former Maryland Gov. Parris Glendening and former South Carolina Education Superintendent Inez Tenenbaum.
Joe Andrew's voice of conscience and reason is the only right and sane way out this nomination mess in the Democratic Party - please take time to watch both of them.
Chicago, IL – Today, Former Democratic National Committee Chair and Massachusetts supderdelegate Paul G. Kirk, Jr. endorsed Barack Obama. The endorsement brings the total number of superdelegates to endorse Barack Obama to 253. Senator Obama is 279 delegates away from securing the Democratic nomination.
His statement is below:
“It is with a great sense of pride and confidence in his leadership that I am delighted to publicly endorse Senator Barack Obama and pledge my support to him as former National Democratic Chairman and as a superdelegate. Senator Obama is the one candidate who has and will continue to expand the electorate beyond the traditional Democratic party base and bring young and new and Independent voters to the Democratic banner in November, an essential ingredient to a Democratic victory.
“Throughout his life and public career, has fought the tough fights to advance the quality of life of the working families of Illinois, not with election year gimmicks like the gas tax holiday espoused by others, but by hard headed, common sense solutions, and that’s what he will do as President of the United States.
“America never turns back. America always marches forward to seize the future. 8 of 10 Americans believe their country is on the wrong track. Senator Obama is the one candidate who, in the best tradition of American history, will not take us back but will lead us to a new future.
“Senator Obama is the one candidate best able to quickly restore America’s respect and reputation globally. Senator Obama is the one candidate best able to set the tone at the top for the unity and reconciliation needed in this country, to bring us together, to define our common goals and to provide the inspiration to move us forward.
“After the attention paid to the poisonous and polarizing diatribe of recent days, Senator Obama’s clear and compelling message which appeals to our best instincts as Americans is more important than ever. For all these reasons, I heartily endorse Senator Obama and hope my colleagues will do the same.”
AFL-CIO Official, John Patrick, Endorses Obama
"Today we're seeing another example of Washington politics at its worst. Senator Clinton is running TV ads and launching repeated attacks on Barack Obama for not supporting the gas tax holiday she's supporting, but today her own aides told the Washington Post that they know that this is a questionable plan and that they are using it to make it appear they're against big oil. The Clinton gas tax gimmick does little to reduce our dependence on foreign oil and will actually increase oil prices. It is the kind of pandering that insults people's intelligence. With energy prices skyrocketing, we're looking for real solutions—not political posturing to get elected."
By NEDRA PICKLER – 2 hours ago WASHINGTON (AP) — A leader of the Democratic Party under Bill Clinton has switched his allegiance to Barack Obama and is encouraging fellow Democrats to "heal the rift in our party" and unite behind the Illinois senator.
Joe Andrew, who was Democratic National Committee chairman from 1999-2001, planned a news conference Thursday in his hometown of Indianapolis to urge other Hoosiers to support Obama in Tuesday's primary, perhaps the most important contest left in the White House race. He also has written a lengthy letter explaining his decision that he plans to send to other superdelegates.
"I am convinced that the primary process has devolved to the point that it's now bad for the Democratic Party," Andrew said in a telephone interview with The Associated Press.
Bill Clinton appointed Andrew chairman of the DNC near the end of his presidency, and Andrew endorsed the former first lady last year on the day she declared her candidacy for the White House.
Andrew said in his letter that he is switching his support because "a vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote to continue this process, and a vote to continue this process is a vote that assists (Republican) John McCain."
"While I was hopeful that a long, contested primary season would invigorate our party, the polls show that the tone and temperature of the race is now hurting us," Andrew wrote. "John McCain, without doing much of anything, is now competitive against both of our remaining candidates. We are doing his work for him and distracting Americans from the issues that really affect all of our lives."
Andrew said the Obama campaign never asked him to switch his support, but he decided to do so after watching Obama's handling of two issues in recent days. He said Obama took the principled stand in opposing a summer gas tax holiday that both Clinton and McCain supported, even though it would have been easier politically to back it. And he said he was impressed with Obama's handling of the controversy surrounding his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright.
Wright's outspoken criticisms of the United States have threatened Obama's candidacy. Obama initially refused to denounce his former pastor, but he did so this week after Wright suggested that Obama secretly agrees with him.
"He has shown such mettle under fire," Andrew said in the interview. "The Jeremiah Wright controversy just reconfirmed for me, just as the gas tax controversy confirmed for me, that he is the right candidate for our party."
Andrew's decision puts Obama closer to closing Clinton's superdelegate lead. Clinton had a big advantage among superdelegates, many of whom like Andrews have ties to the Clintons and backed her candidacy early on. But most of the superdelegates taking sides recently have gone for Obama, who has won more state contests.
Obama now trails her by just 19 superdelegates, 244-263. This week, he picked up eight superdelegates while she netted three.
Superdelegates are nearly 800 elected leaders and Democratic Party officials who aren't bound by the outcome of state contests and can cast their ballot for any candidate at the national convention. They are especially valuable in this race since neither Clinton nor Obama can win enough pledged delegates to secure the nomination through state-by-state elections.
Obama now leads in the delegate count overall 1732.5 to 1597.5 for Clinton. A candidate needs 2,025 delegates to win the nomination. About 230 superdelegates remain undecided, and about 60 more will be selected at state party conventions and meetings throughout the spring.
Other party leaders are encouraging superdelegates to pick a side by late June to prevent the fight from going to the national convention in August. Andrews wrote in his letter that he is calling for "fellow superdelegates across the nation to heal the rift in our party and unite behind Barack Obama."
Indianapolis, IN — Indiana Congressman Baron Hill endorsed Barack Obama for President today, citing his strength of character and ability to change the tone of Washington: "Some have advised me to be cautious, to wait and see which way the electoral winds may blow. I confess that I have listened to those voices and been tempted by their reasoning. But, the stakes are just too high. We cannot continue to pursue the same politics of personal destruction we have engaged in for a generation, some never-ending “groundhog day” endlessly playing out the cultural wars of forty years ago.
If we are going to develop real solutions for Hoosier families, for America’s families, we have to move past the partisan gridlock. I believe both Senator Clinton and Senator Obama want to do that and I believe both are formidable candidates. But, I also believe that only one of them truly can.
I am proud of Senator Obama’s call for change in Washington – change I have been advocating since I first sought public office. I am truly hopeful that his campaign and election will help unify our nation and ultimately change our politics. I am pleased that Senator Obama clearly and unequivocally denounced Reverend Wright’s remarks. Hoosiers don’t feel that way about our country, I don’t feel that way about our country and Senator Obama made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t feel that way either.
His comments regarding statements made by Reverend Wright showed me another aspect of Senator Obama’s leadership – a strength of character and commitment to our nation that transcends the personal. One of the tests of a true leader is his ability and willingness to come to a new conclusion based on new events. Senator Obama did just that yesterday.
I have had the opportunity to meet and talk with both Senators Clinton and Obama. Choosing between two worthy candidates was very difficult, but in the end, after much discussion with people in Southern Indiana, as well as mentors of mine such as Lee Hamilton, I have decided to support Senator Obama.
I believe Senator Obama has the capability to change the tone and tenor of politics in Washington. I believe that he can and will work with both parties and elevate the level of public discourse. Hoosiers are independent people who want to see civility and common-sense solutions implemented in Washington. Like us, Senator Obama strives to put the good of the country before the good of a particular political party. “
As someone who has always worked in a bipartisan manner to achieve results, I know that we need a president who can bring people together and build consensus to move this country in a new and exciting direction. And that person is Senator Barack Obama.”
Said Obama: "I am grateful to have the support of Congressman Baron Hill. He has been a tireless advocate for southern Indiana, working to improve our children's education, strengthen our military, and create jobs and achieve energy independence. I look forward to working with him to fix our economy, lift up hardworking families, and make America more secure -- and to shooting hoops every once in a while."
Congressman Baron Hill, a member of the Blue Dog Coalition, represents Indiana's 9th district and is a member of the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame.
Hill is Senator Obama’s 246th Superdelegate endorsement. Senator Obama is now 286 delegates away from winning the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination.
WASHINGTON, D.C. - Today Congresswoman Lois Capps (CA-23), Co-Chair of the Congressional Caucus for Women's Issues and Chair of the Democratic Women's Working Group, released the following statement regarding her endorsement of Senator Barack Obama for President:"Today, I am announcing my endorsement of Barack Obama for President.
"This wasn't an easy decision for me. Democrats were blessed this year with many talented and capable candidates, and I believe both Sen. Clinton and Sen. Obama would make fine presidents. But Sen. Obama's proven judgment, his hopeful vision for America, and his unmatched ability to motivate millions of Americans eager for change made the choice for me.
"I have enormous respect for Sen. Clinton. She is smart, dedicated and a champion of those often underserved and forgotten. She has a remarkable record of achievement that inspires us all. And her election would fulfill a life long dream for so many of us who have been fighting for women's rights. She would make a great president.
"But for me, Barack Obama is the best choice.
"There are a number of reasons I could cite. He has promoted smart policies to address our nation's greatest challenges. He was right on Iraq when so many were wrong. He speaks with an eloquence that most public officials can only dream of and is inspiring millions of Americans to reconnect with politics or connect for the first time. And he can win in November.
"These are all true and good reasons, but I also believe Barack Obama is the better choice because of something larger and perhaps more important. Simply put, he has made a call to the better angels of our nature. He is challenging us to lift ourselves out of the ugliness that increasingly consumes Washington, where the heat of your argument counts for more than the light it should bring. He is asking us to stand together as Americans and transcend the traditional lines that have so often divided us by party affiliation, economic status, gender, or race. He is calling on us to rethink our approach to problem solving in the face of the enormous challenges facing our country, like Iraq, economic recession, global warming, record energy prices, and 47 million Americans without health insurance, to name just a few. I believe in his effort to put our country on a new path and want to help him make that happen.
"I came to Washington 10 years ago after winning the seat my husband Walter held. In office for a mere 10 months before he died, he had lost none of the idealism and faith in American democracy that propelled his life. Quite frankly, I don't believe he ever would have and I know that I have tried to keep that fire burning. But I'll admit it's hard, when so much of what's going on around you is less about meeting our country's challenges and more about demonizing your political opponents.
"Walter once said that "we are strongest as people when we are directed by that which unites us, rather than giving into the fears, suspicions, innuendos and paranoias that divide." For years I have been waiting for a President that speaks to that vision. I believe Barack Obama may very well be that rare leader."
April 30, 2008, 10:22 am By Jeff ZelenyCHICAGO – With six days to go before the presidential primaries in Indiana and North Carolina, Senators Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are campaigning in cities across the Hoosier State today. That, however, is hardly the only battleground.
Here in Chicago, where the Obama campaign headquarters is located, a vigorous operation is underway in the fight for superdelegates. A similarly aggressive effort is underway at Clinton headquarters outside Washington. Both are sophisticated ventures – run by seasoned operatives – who spend large parts of the day taking the temperature of uncommitted superdelegates and organizing calling trees to check in periodically.
The first get of the day? Representative Bruce Braley of Iowa.
Mr. Braley intends to announce his support this afternoon for Mr. Obama, according to his spokesman Jeff Giertz.
The eastern Iowa congressman endorsed John Edwards late last year before the Iowa caucuses. Only weeks ago, he indicated he might wait until the Democratic convention to make his decision, but aides said after he saw the support for Mr. Obama last weekend at district conventions in Iowa, he changed his mind.
So was he concerned by the controversy created by the latest development in the relationship between Mr. Obama and his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr.?
“I think it would be safe to say he was not swayed by the Wright stuff,” a Democratic official familiar with the Iowa congressman’s thinking said by e-mail today. “He was swayed by the right stuff.”
Barack Obama didn't back down yesterday in his opposition to a so-called gas tax holiday this summer, becoming more vocal in calling it political pandering [from] John McCain and Hillary Clinton for proposing it.
By AMIE PARNES & JOSEPHINE HEARN
“The majority of superdelegates I’ve talked to are committed, but it is a matter of timing,” said Sen. Claire McCaskill (D-Mo.). “They’re just preferring to make their decision public after the primaries are over. ... They would like someone else to act for them before they talk about it in the cold light of day.”
Well, here's a most interesting connection we just came across.Everybody is talking today about how much the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's latest unrepentant militant remarks hurt his most prominent parishoner, Sen. Barack Obama, and his chances to win the Democratic presidential nomination and the general election. So much so that the Obama camp realized the latent danger overnight and the candidate was forced to speak out publicly a second time today, as The Ticket noted here earlier today.
There was little doubt left in today's remarks by Obama, who recently said he could no more disown Wright than he could the black community. He pretty much disowned Wright today. Obama described himself as "outraged" and "saddened" by "the spectacle of what we saw yesterday."
But now, it turns out, we should have been paying a little less attention to Wright's speech and the histrionics of his ensuing news conference and taken a peek at....
who was sitting next to him at the head table for the National Press Club event.
It was the Rev. Dr. Barbara Reynolds, a former editorial board member of USA Today who teaches at the Howard University School of Divinity. An ordained minister, as New York Daily News writer Errol Louis points out in today's column, she was introduced at the press club event as the person "who organized" it.
But guess what? She's also an ardent longtime booster of Obama's sole remaining competitor for the Democratic nomination, none other than Sen. Hillary Clinton of New York. It won't take very much at all for Obama supporters to see in Wright's carefully arranged Washington event that was so damaging to Obama the strategic, nefarious manipulation of the Clintons.
Their supporter, Reynolds, helps arrange a speech by the outspoken and egocentric Wright which receives blanket national coverage to the disadvantage of Clinton's opponent. As Louis writes: "The Rev. Jeremiah Wright couldn't have done more damage to Barack Obama's campaign if he had tried. And you have to wonder if that's just what one friend of Wright wanted."
Reynolds has not returned e-mails or phone calls seeking comment, but Louis notes the obvious conflict between her political allegiance and her press club arrangements. He quotes a February blog entry of Reynolds saying, "My vote for Hillary in the Maryland primary was my way of saying thank you" to Clinton and her husband for his administration's successes.
In another entry, Reynolds notes critically of Obama, "It is a sad testimony that to protect his credentials as a unifier above the fray, the senator is fueling the media characterization that Rev. Dr. Wright is some retiring old uncle in the church basement."
Louis notes himself about the Wright appearance: "It's hard to exaggerate how bad the actual news conference was. Wright, steeped in an honorable, fiery tradition of Bible-based social criticism, cheapened his arguments and his movement by mugging for the cameras, rolling his eyes, heaping scorn on his critics and acting as if nobody in the room was learned enough to ask him a question."
--Andrew Malcolm
By Ryan Alessi"I've listened to the man. I have met with him and, like many of you, I am excited by his message of change for the future," Chandler told about 40 Obama supporters Tuesday morning in Louisville.
He praised Obama as "a man of great integrity and intellect" and of "quiet strength."
As one of the key sought-after Democratic superdelegates, Chandler's decision holds more weight than a normal endorsement. He and Kentucky's other eight superdelegates can pick a candidate during the August Democratic National Convention regardless of the outcome of the state's May 20 primary election...
...Chandler, the grandson of former Kentucky governor and U.S. Sen. Happy Chandler, compared the move to his grandfather's endorsement during the hard-fought 1960 Democratic primary of a young Catholic Massachusetts Senator, John F. Kennedy.
That was an endorsement "against all odds" and the will of other Kentucky Democratic leaders, Ben Chandler said.
Chandler conceded that he is taking some risk by backing Obama, who is trailing Clinton in the polls in Kentucky. But he cited Obama's popularity among young voters as a key reason why he chose to announce his support.
"Now is not the time to be timid. It's instead a time to be bold and support a candidate who can transform our future," he said.
Winthrop farmer Richard Machaceck, an Iowa superdelegate, said today he is pledging to support Illinois Sen. Barack Obama.Machacek, a member of the Democratic National Committee, had been uncommitted. He said he saw little difference between Obama and New York Sen. Hillary Clinton on policy positions or ability.
Machacek, a Buchanan County Democrat also on the party's state central committee, said Obama's performance at Saturday's Democratic district conventions in Iowa tipped the balance in his favor.
Obama netted 16 of the 29 national convention delegates at stake in the state's five congressional districts, while Clinton received nine. Former North Carolina Sen. John Edwards received four delegates, having retained sufficient support in some districts despite leaving the race in January.
"I think it needs to be over, and in good conscience, I can't fly in the face of my precinct, county and district," Machacek told The Des Moines Register in a telephone interview. "The raw numbers coming out of the district conventions really sat me down hard."
Obama won Iowa's leadoff caucuses on Jan. 3, but has expanded his share of Iowa's pledged national national delegates through the county and district conventions.
by Joseph A. Palermo | April 29, 2008 | Huffington Post
Let's review what we've had to endure from the corporate media in recent weeks:
Corporate media shills inundated us with "commentary" about a "scandal" they called "bittergate" based on a single phrase Barack Obama uttered at a closed-door fundraiser. These same corporate media mouthpieces jawboned incessantly about whether or not "bittergate" would hurt the Obama campaign. (That's called a "tempest in a teapot" by the way.)
They amplified a non-story about a remark at a fundraiser and then sat around very nice tables in snazzy television studios "discussing" the effects on the Obama campaign of a media event they created. (That's called a "tautology" by the way.)
Even if Obama never said a word about people feeling "bitter" about any aspect of their perfect lives in America in 2008 the corporate media would have found something else to chew on. If "bittergate" didn't offer up the opportunity they would have created another flap.
The same process was in play with the non-story of Reverend Jeremiah Wright, Jr. Here's a prominent African-American pastor of a large and established church in a large and established African-American community (at least since the Great Migration) doing what he has done for decades. The corporate media then pluck him seemingly out of nowhere -- with ZERO effort to give any context to Reverend Wright's life or his public work in Chicago -- and boil his sermons down to a couple of sound bites. They then throw these sound bites in the face of white America on a perpetual tape loop, played over and over again. And then they sit around their very nice tables in their snazzy TV studios jawboning about whether or not the visual carpet-bombing they just unleashed is going to have an effect on the Obama campaign. (That's called "guilt by association" by the way -- and "propaganda.")
And then there is the even more desperate non-story of the former Weather Underground member, Bill Ayres, and his "associations" with Obama. This is an old Joseph McCarthy tactic where you take a person out of his or her context from an earlier period of their lives and then imply there are all sorts of nefarious relations and associations that took place that somehow discredit the targeted individual. No one really gives a rat's balls about what Bill Ayres did 38 years ago, not even the FBI, but the story is not about Bill Ayres, it's about sliming Barack Obama. This kind of McCarthyite smear is what you get when you allow an entire generation of Joe McCarthys to have their own television and radio shows. If McCarthy were alive today he'd have his own show on Fox News: "The McCarthy Factor" or maybe "McCarthy's America." I bet ole Tail Gunner Joe is rolling in his grave: "Damn! I was just 45 years ahead of my time!" (That's called "McCarthyism" by the way.)
So with all the "opposition research" and all of the digging and all of the traps set and the casting of the wide net trawling for damaging revelations the only things the corporate media came up with is a remark Obama made at a fundraiser, a black preacher who says some controversial stuff, and a few encounters with a former Weatherman? That's pretty pathetic -- and it won't work in the long run.
The bad news about our nutrient-starved, 24-hour media environment is that there will be more news cycles dedicated to destroying Obama or at least slowing the momentum of his campaign. It's inevitable. After "bittergate" and Wright and Ayres play out they will find new fodder. They will build up non-stories to boost ratings for as many news cycles as they can get away with and still rake in the cash from their corporate sponsors. But they know better than most of us that if the American people get bored with a "news" story they will change the channel. And nothing makes these corporate media outlets move on to the next story faster than deflated ratings. Their producers will be breathing down their necks: "To hell with Reverend Wright run the 'Girls Gone Wild' footage of Ashley Dupre!"
And that leads me to the good news, which is no matter how much the corporate media exploit a non-story to degrade or humiliate or damage Obama, the nature of the 24-hour news cycle militates against running it for too long. These "stories" have short shelf lives. One positive outcome of this terribly long election process is that by September "bittergate," Wright, and Ayres will be ratings dogs.
But you can count on Matt Drudge and the rest of them to concoct new "bittergates," and dredge up more scary black men and '60s radicals -- as well as a host of new and clever devices we cannot at this time foresee. (My guess is that one of their smears will mirror the racist ads the GOP ran against Harold Ford, Jr. in Tennessee that involved -- Gulp! -- a possible premarital hook up with a white woman.) I remember the GOP hatchet man, Lee Atwater, famously declaring that he was going to make Willie Horton so well known that voters would think he was Michael Dukakis's running mate. I wonder who Karl Rove will make voters think is Obama's running mate?
The trick for us is to find alternative sources of information and reject the frames and narratives the corporate media system imposes on our political discourse. It will require greater grassroots organizing and mobilizing and a lot of hard work among the citizenry, but it can be done.
Finally, we should all be very grateful for the work that Media Matters and Fairness and Accuracy in Reporting (FAIR) are doing keeping the shovels moving as fast as they can behind that big fat Republican elephant.
Assistant Professor, History, CSUS. Bachelor's degrees in sociology and anthropology from UC Santa Cruz, master's degree in history from San Jose State University, master's degree and doctorate in American history from Cornell University. Expertise includes political history, presidential politics, presidential war powers, social movements of the 20th century, movements of the 1960s, civil rights, and foreign policy history.
The Associated Press | 04/28/2008"I am announcing my support for Barack Obama for president and declaring my intention to vote for him at the Democratic convention," Bingaman said in a news release issued by the Obama campaign.
Bingaman, D-N.M., said he believes Obama is a better choice than Hillary Clinton on issues such as the Iraq war, health care and improving energy independence.
Bingaman, re-elected to a fifth senate term in 2006, said the United States needs a leader who can rise above partisanship and find common ground. He said it is imperative to "move the country in a dramatically new direction."
AP | 4/28/08:But Dean didn't say which candidate should drop out, only that it should happen after primary voters have been to the polls."
This statement by Howard Dean is unconscionable at worst, and cowardly at best. For Howard to suggest that it is close, or that Obama should consider leaving the race in June, is absurd and insulting.
Wilting Over WafflesHe’s never going to shake her off.
Not all by himself.
The very fact that he can’t shake her off has become her best argument against him. “Why can’t he close the deal?” Hillary taunted at a polling place on Tuesday.
Operation Obama Erasure
It was only by accident that I discovered Operation Erasure, and what I have to report is a remarkable advance in 21st century campaigning.
Dr. Jeremiah Queenheart is not your typical political operative and in fact admitted to me that he was a bit of an anti-social nerd who spent most of his time dealing in parallel universe quantum mechanics. He hadn't voted before (this reality wasn't really important to him) and really didn't know much about the 2008 election before he was contacted by the Clintons to help them solve a problem or two.
What he did know about, he told me, was creating alternative realities and developing wide-scale historical revisionism software models.
We met by chance (or perhaps not )when I was attempting to dial into a conference call by the Hillary Clinton campaign. It was the day after Clinton's decisive victory against Barack Obama in the Pennsylvania primary and the campaign gurus set to talk about how the tide was turning in her favor.
What I didn't know is that Dr. Queenheart was the driving force behind the campaign's latest phase — and I found that out when I dialed the wrong number.
"PU shop, Queenheart here" was the answer.
"Uh, is this the Clinton campaign conference call?" I replied.
"No, right campaign, but wrong office, I'm afraid. They spin reality upstairs and we manufacture it down here."
"Excuse me?" I stammered.
"Not familiar with alternative realities, are you?"
"No, the one I inhabit is challenging enough."
"You know there are many out and about."
"That's a scary thought."
To make a long negotiation short, Dr. Queenheart, a transplanted Englishman and descendent of H.G. Wells, let me interview him and even to write about it — but he promised me it wouldn't matter because no one would believe me and he would eventually transform the reality of our encounter into non-existence.
"I was contacted by the Clinton people after that peculiar holiday you call Super Tuesday," he explained while allowing another self in a different reality work on his latest project — create a new historical record for the bastard primaries in Michigan and Florida.
"We've been bashing at this a few times. I'm sure you've heard Mrs. Clinton's announcement that she's now the popular vote leader in the primary."
I said I had, but was skeptical because Michigan and Florida don't count in the vote totals because the primaries didn't count.
"So you say. Well, Mrs. Clinton believes it entirely now — that was the problem before when she brought it up. She wasn't entirely convincing. Eventually, we will insert enough pieces of the alternative reality puzzle to have it become reality — one I dare say will be embraced by you and other gullible members of that media herd, the superdelegates, the voters in Michigan and Florida, and even the Obama campaign itself."
When I asked how this was possible, how could history be erased and rewritten, he said it was the wrong question.
"You should be asking, why not?"
Eventually, he admitted, Clinton would win the nomination because it will be proven that Michigan and Florida primaries actually did count and that Clinton won them big and bagged a huge cache of delegates.
"That's why we laugh when we hear another pundit shout that she should leave the race. Give it a few weeks and the conventional wisdom will shift and Obama will be under pressure to quit the race."
I was shocked.
"Dear chap, you know all those irrelevant caucuses in god-forsaken places like Iowa and Alaska and Wyoming?"
"Irrelevant?"
"Indeed." It seems the gang at Clinton's PU (Parallel Universe) office were changing perceptions of results so that superdelegates, even those from caucus states, were ready to dismiss those delegates as illegitimate.
"We call it the Orwellian invective."
Dr. Queenheart continued to tell me that "when the Clinton brain trust called me on Feb. 6, they told me they had made a slight miscalculation. They thought the race would be over because of the inevitability factor, but they missed a few variables. I became their Plan B."
It was brilliant, I told him.
And there was more, he told me. His group of chemists, computer experts and mechanical engineers (the machines used to create alternative realities were recycled from defunct factories) were working fast to create a new Bosnian sniper-fire reality.
"We think by the time of North Carolina primary, not only will the sniper fire in that 1996 incident be real, but many will die — and she will take charge, fly a helicopter gunship, and kill the attackers with a few well-placed missiles. It fits in with her new muscular profile of obliterating Iran if they raise an eyebrow."
When I mentioned this explained why the campaign was broke and had lost 11 contests in a row in February, Dr. Queenheart agreed.
"We were getting some things in place. Hillary will be the nominee; it's guaranteed."
I knew better by this point, but when I mentioned that Obama's delegate lead seemed insurmountable, he quickly cut me off.
"Who's Obama?"
The top alternative reality project is called Operation Erasure and it is the equivalent of a miracle that Clinton supporters were waiting for.
"Obama will simply no longer exist as a candidate. It's tough work and we are fighting hard, but we are making PU inroads. By our calculation, just after she wins the Puerto Rico primary, she will be declared the nominee because Barack Obama won't exist."
"He does exist," I countered.
"Not if his African father doesn't come to America or his mother stays in Kansas. He will become stuck talking about change in a meaningless parallel universe."
It all seemed diabolical, right out of Karl Rove's playbook. Wasn't he afraid, I asked, that all this alternative reality creation for the sake of one person's political ambitions, well, wouldn't it tear the fragile space-time continuum mentioned by Einstein?
"This isn't a game for the faint of particle heart. People forget what Rove and Einstein both said: If you can't stand the heat, get out of the kitchen of alternative realities."
When he's not jumping into parallel universes, political columnist Michael McCord is the editorial page editor of Seacoast Sunday and the Portsmouth Herald.
