Hillary should concede and unite the party

Jake Tapper on the ABC News blog has an interesting post suggesting that House Speaker Nancy Pelosi is covertly endorsing Sen. Barack Obama with her recent statements.

Pelosi speaking in a interview with New England Cable News said that a "dream ticket" of any kind is "impossible."

“I think that the Clinton administration has fairly ruled that out by proclaiming that Senator McCain would be a better Commander in Chief than Obama," Pelosi said.

According to Tapper, Pelosi's views diverge from the triangulation tactics of the Clintons, and she likely seems Hillary as driving down the Democratic ticket, particularly in Red States. This could threaten her own position as leader of the House.

Californians have sensed the same thing based on Obama's endorsements from key Pelosi allies.


Barack Obama talks with Gamesa employees in Fairless, Pennsylvania.

Hillary preparing Barack attack websites?

According to ABC News, certainly a reputable enough news source, the Hillary Clinton campaign is preparing two websites with the express purpose of attacking her opponent, Barack Obama.

ABC News has learned that the campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-N.Y., has registered the names of two Web sites with the express goal of attacking her chief rival, Sen. Barack Obama, D-Ill.

It's the first time this election cycle a presidential campaign has launched a Web site with the express purpose of launching serious criticisms on a rival.

Obama News on Monday

The Obama campaign has decided to capitalize on the reaction of supporters to today's attacks on Sen. Obama by the Hillary Clinton campaign:




Robert Reich, Bill Clinton's Secretary of Labor, also had some comments to make on the Clinton assault:

I’m becoming increasingly concerned about the stridency and inaccuracy of charges in Iowa -- especially coming from my old friend. While I’m as hard-boiled as they come about what’s said in campaigns, I just don’t think Dems should stoop to this. First, HRC attacked O's plan for keep Social Security solvent. Social Security doesn’t need a whole lot to keep it going – it’s in far better shape than Medicare – but everyone who’s looked at it agrees it will need bolstering (I was a trustee of the Social Security Trust Fund ten years ago, and I can vouch for this). Obama wants to do it by lifting the cap on the percent of income subject to Social Security payroll taxes, which strikes me as sensible. That cap is now close to $98,000 (it’s indexed), and the result is highly regressive. (Bill Gates satisfies his yearly Social Security obligations a few minutes past midnight on January 1 every year.) The cap doesn’t have to be lifted all that much to keep Social Security solvent – maybe to $115,00. That’s a progressive solution to the problem. HRC wants to refer Social Security to a commission. That's avoiding the issue, and it's irresponsible: A commission will likely call either for raising the retirement age (that’s what Greenspan’s Social Security commission came up with in the 1980s) or increasing the payroll tax on all Americans. So when HRC charges that Obama’s plan would “raise taxes” and her plan wouldn’t, she’s simply not telling the truth.

I’m equally concerned about her attack on his health care plan. She says his would insure fewer people than hers. I’ve compared the two plans in detail. Both of them are big advances over what we have now. But in my view Obama’s would insure more people, not fewer, than HRC’s.

Obama received an endorsement today from John Adams, Brigadier General, US Army (retired), former Deputy United States Military Representative to the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO).

Barack Obama’s ability to listen and inspire will allow him to shape a new domestic strategy of working together as Americans to safeguard our constitutional liberties and secure the blessings of prosperity for all our citizens. His sound judgment and ability to make tough choices under pressure will help him to shape a new international strategy of cooperating with our friends abroad to enhance global peace and security. We need his vision and integrity to address America's domestic and international challenges,” Adams said in a statement released by the campaign.

Other high-ranking military retirees who have endorsed Obama are Richard Danzig, 71st Secretary of the Navy; Major General Scott Gration, U.S. Air Force (Ret) and General Merrill “Tony” McPeak; Chief of Staff of the U.S. Air Force (1990-1994).

Obama Rapid Response Website

With Barack Obama looking strong in Iowa and New Hampshire, the Hillary Clinton campaign has launched a series of attacks against the Illinois senator as early state voting draws near.

Many voters are starting to look at the candidates more closely and are analyzing how their presidencies might impact themselves, their families and communities. So, Hillary's name recognition and natural appeal to women may be starting to erode as people study her history and issues.

Both campaigns have to be careful in not going too far especially with irrelevant attacks not based on the candidate's public careers. Surveys indicate that voters are not looking for that kind of leadership.

Here is a message from campaign manager David Plouffe announcing a new rapid response center in response to the attacks:

Saturday night, the Des Moines Register came out with a poll that shows Barack Obama has pulled ahead of the Democratic frontrunner and is now leading in Iowa.

The poll also showed that by a wide margin, Iowans believe that Senator Clinton is running the most negative campaign in this race.

Yesterday we found out why.

Less than twelve hours after that poll came out, the Clinton campaign launched a series of baseless attacks against Senator Obama. Panicked by the poll numbers, they even attacked Barack for telling his kindergarten teacher what he wanted to be when he grew up.

I wish I were joking.

The American people find these kinds of attacks tiring and unproductive, but today Senator Clinton promised that this was just the beginning, saying that attacking other Democrats is "the fun part" of campaigning for the presidency.

We disagree. Barack Obama believes that this presidential campaign isn't about attacking people for fun, it's about solving people's problems, like ending this war and creating a universal health care system. Washington insiders might think throwing mud is fun, but the America people are looking for a President who can unite this country around a common purpose, and that's the kind of leadership Barack will continue to offer in this campaign.

But we need your help.

Today we're launching a website that will keep track of all the attacks Senator Clinton has launched since she said she wasn't interested in attacking other Democrats at the Jefferson-Jackson Dinner on November 10th. We're asking all of you to be vigilant and notify us immediately of any attacks from Senator Clinton or her supporters as soon as you see them so that we can respond with the truth swiftly and forcefully.

These attacks could be phone calls, literature drops, blog posts, mail pieces as well as radio and TV ads. Some could even be anonymous or designed to be. Please email us at hillaryattacks@barackobama.com the moment you see something that concerns you.

Senator Clinton has said her idea of fun is to attack Barack each day from here on out, and that's why we need you to help us stop those attacks and make sure that Barack can continue to talk with voters and caucus-goers about the struggles they face and their hope for America.