Link: Pundits Declare the Race Over - New York Times.
Very early this morning, after many voters had already gone to sleep, the conventional wisdom of the elite political pundit class that resides on television shifted hard, and possibly irretrievably, against Senator Hillary Clinton’s continued viability as a presidential candidate.
Joe Andrew, the head of the Democratic National Committee from 1999 to 2001, will switch his endorsement from Sen. Hillary Clinton (D-N.Y.) to Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) today, The AP reports. Andrew is set to hold a press conference today and is writing a letter explaining his switch that he says he plans to send to other superdelegates.
Link:
Obama and Clinton will know when to quit: party chief
| Reuters
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GRAHAM, North Carolina (Reuters) - Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama will know when to pull out of the U.S. presidential race in order to unify the party for the general election, the chairman of the Democratic Party said on Monday.
In a round of network television appearances, Howard Dean warned that a prolonged battle between Clinton and Obama could hurt the party's chances in November's election against Republican John McCain.
Link: With Bingaman Endorsement, Obama Takes Senate Support Lead | The Trail | washingtonpost.com.
Sen. Barack Obama officially pulled ahead today in the scramble for endorsements from colleagues in the U.S. Senate, thanks to Sen. Jeff Bingaman of New Mexico.
Never one of the Senate's most high-profile members, Bingaman now has a claim to political fame: He put Obama over the top after his long slog to catch Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, who had a head start in winning the support of her peers. Obama now has 14 endorsements to Clinton's 13.
Obama will also get the vote of Sen. Russ Feingold (D-Wis.), who has not officially endorsed him but said he will support Obama at the convention in deference to his state's voters. Clinton has a similar pledge from Sen. Barbara Boxer of California.
"Our nation faces a daunting number of critical challenges: reasserting America's leadership in the world, meeting our needs for energy independence, addressing global warming, making healthcare accessible and affordable, positioning our economy to effectively compete globally, and extricating ourselves from the war in Iraq, to name a few," Bingaman wrote in his endorsement announcement. "To make progress, we must rise above the partisanship and the issues that divide us to find common ground. We must move the country in a dramatically new direction."
Of course, Clinton can still flip the endorsement balance back in her favor: Not counting Clinton, Obama, and the Senate's two Democratic-leaning independents, 18 Democratic senators still have yet to endorse.
Link: Big HRC fundraiser defects to Obama - First Read - msnbc.com.
One of the things that both Dem campaigns are always nervous about is defectors. In particular, Clinton is more vulnerable to this problem since she's the candidate that is trailing. Well, NBC News has learned that a major fundraiser for Hillary Clinton, former Amb. to Chile Gabriel Guerra-Mondragon is leaving the campaign to join up Barack Obama's campaign. Officially dubbed a "Hillraiser," Guerra-Mondragon raised nearly $500,000 for Clinton's campaign, according to some estimates. He has been informing people inside Clintonworld this week in what's been described as some tough conversations. A formal announcement of a role for Guerra-Mondragon on Obama's national finance committee will be made next week. Guerra-Mondragon was appointed Amb. to Chile by Pres. Clinton in '94 and served until '98.
Among the reasons for Guerra-Mondragon to defect, according to one informed source, was he was uneasy with the tone of the Clinton campaign and was beginning to worry about what this would mean for the general election.
It's unclear if this defection will lead to others; the Clinton camp has been particularly effective at getting folks to keep their powder dry. For Obama, this comes at a time when his campaign is trying to re-convince insiders that the math indicates he has the nomination virtually wrapped up. In addition, Guerra-Mondragon's defection could serve as a tipping point with some key Hispanic Democratic leaders that Obama is ready to start making a bigger effort to court Hispanics.
Link: Top of the Ticket : Los Angeles Times : Bill Richardson's mom takes offense.
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Bill Richardson's mom takes offense
The flap over long-time Clintonista James Carville tagging Bill Richardson a "Judas" for rejecting Hillary Clinton and endorsing Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential sweepstakes has pretty much receded. The race moves on, and other controversies flare (as Obama, at the moment knows only too well).But the slur Carville directed at Richardson can be expected to fester for at least one living soul -- the New Mexico governor's mother.
"She's 94," Richardson told Times reporter Mark Z. Barabak during a recent interview. "And very Catholic" (making Carville's epithet of choice all the more grievous for her).
Worse, Richardson confided, his mother thought former President Bill Clinton had made the remark. (Clinton, who made Richardson his U.N. ambassador, then Energy secretary, had some choice things to say about the governor in a red-faced tirade at the California Democratic Party convention last month, but avoided biblical references. At least in public.)
"How could your friend say that?" asked Mother Richardson, who still lives in Mexico City, where the erstwhile presidential candidate was raised.
"That's politics, mom, " Richardson said he replied.
Link: Why Gov. Bill Richardson didn't endorse Clinton - Los Angeles Times.
There was that "3 a.m." TV ad, in which Clinton questioned Obama's personal mettle. "That upset me," Richardson said.
There were some ham-fisted phone calls from Clinton backers, who questioned Richardson's honor and suggested that the governor, who served in President Clinton's Cabinet, owed Hillary Clinton his support. "That really ticked me off," Richardson said.
Still, even as he moved from Clinton toward Obama -- "the pursuit was pretty relentless on both sides" -- Richardson wrestled with the question of loyalty. After 14 years in Congress and a measure of fame as an international troubleshooter, Richardson was named Clinton's U.N. ambassador, then Energy secretary: "two important appointments," Richardson said.
Link: Clinton's Chief Strategist Steps Down - washingtonpost.com.
ALBUQUERQUE, April 6 -- Mark J. Penn quit Sunday as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton's chief strategist, the second shake-up in her campaign's top ranks since the onetime front-runner for the Democratic presidential nomination began trailing Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.).
Link: Newsmax.com - Richardson Says Exchange With Hillary Heated.
Bill Richardson described the conversation he had with Hillary Clinton on his decision to endorse Barack Obama as "heated" and "tough" in an interview with NBC Nightly News.
"It was tough to make the call, but I did. It got a little heated. It got a little tense. But it was understood, and I'm proud of my decision."
Richardson added that Democrats would be hurt if the long fight between Clinton and Obama continued.
"We have a man who's won many, many primaries. Who's won the most primaries and delegates. Who's unifying the party and the country. Senator Clinton has run a great race, I'm not saying she should withdraw that's her decision. But we can't be wounded heading into Denver and the Democratic convention with negative campaigning. And this campaign has gotten too negative," he said.
Link: Top of the Ticket : Los Angeles Times : Bill Richardson stops short of endorsing .
He came close. Oh, so close. But Bill Richardson stopped just short early this afternoon of endorsing one of his former competitors for the Democratic presidential nomination -- a coy game he's played before.
Speaking at a conference on rogue states and diplomacy at the UCLA Ronald W. Burkle Center for International Relations, Richardson was asked by moderator Maggie Farley, who covers the United Nations for The Times, who he thought was best able to handle both the domestic and international challenges facing America.
Richardson, as New Mexico governor, is a Democratic Party superdelegate, and he demurred on the question. But his answer still served as tea leaves to be read. "I'm truly conflicted," Richardson said. "I'm torn. I see ... a lot of loyalty I owe President Clinton. He made me U.N. ambassador. He made me secretary of Energy. He's treated me extremely well. But you know what? I paid him back. Because I served well." Richardson described Hillary Clinton as "enormously capable ... but I did run against her."
Then he focused on Barack Obama, someone he said "I don't know as well. But I think there's ...
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