Not that I'll vote for him, but if Clinton wins I'll prepare myself to accept President John McCain for the next four years (at least).

First, I'd say I'm voting for Hillary in the Fall.

But really, when we consider the "what if" of a Hillary nomination, we have to look at that scenario. Almost certainly at this point she's going to need either superdelegates to overturn the pledged delegate count or need the Florida and Michigan delegates to somehow be seated.

Given that, I think that any scenario with Hillary as the nominee leaves the Democratic electorate in shambles because it will be viewed as "stolen" (especially by the newer voters and the anti-Hillary block of Obama supporters). I think a huge portion of Obama voters will (in this scenario) sit out the election rather than vote for Hillary.

Pretty simple, actually. We'll hold our noses, vote for her, while McCain takes the Independents and Diebold takes the rest. Then, 8 more (no, 100 more!) years of pax Americana.

urbinato,

You Post:
Given that, I think that any scenario with Hillary as the nominee leaves the Democratic electorate in shambles because it will be viewed as "stolen" (especially by the newer voters and the anti-Hillary block of Obama supporters). I think a huge portion of Obama voters will (in this scenario) sit out the election rather than vote for Hillary.

The converse is true as well.

If Obama is the nominee,it will be viewed as "stolen". The difference is that the "newer voters" will not impact Hillary in the general election. I think a larger portion of Hillary supporters will be inclined not to sit out the election but vote for McCain.

My concern is that we win back the White House and reestablish the principles upon which this nation was founded.

I see very little difference between the Bushes -- who flaunt the rules by doing things in secret -- and the Clintons -- who flaunt the rules by legalistic mumbo jumbo.

I don't see the Clintons reestablishing the principles upon which this nation was founded. Suing state parties? Constantly griping? Bullying? Populace fearing stolen elections?

This is why dynasty politics must end.

Once upon a time an election was a means to an end. Now with the Bushes and Clintons, the election has become an end unto itself.

This thing is over. Actually, it's been over for awhile now. The exact moment it ended was immediately after the Wisconsin primary, when Hillary was giving her non-concession speech to a modest gathering of disappointed supporters in Youngstown, Ohio and all of the networks cut away from that lead balloon to show Obama raising the roof in front of 20,000 raucous fans down in Houston, Texas. You can fool most of the people practically all of the time but when the guys sitting in the corner offices at the networks decide you're no longer relevant, well, that pain in your neck is from the big fork that's sticking out of it.

Clinton won't drop out this week. If she was capable of that, she wouldn't be Hillary Clinton. She's still polling okay in Ohio, she likes her chances in Pennsylvania, she and Bill are holding the chits of a bunch of undeclared super delegates and the Florida/Michigan fiasco is yet to be settled. That all adds up to continuing the fight at least through Ohio.

But make no mistake about it: Hillary's campaign is well into its endgame now. She'll be fine, by the way. It's even money her next job title will be Senate Majority Leader. Assuming she doesn't burn too many bridges between now and the Democratic National Convention.

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I have a bad feeling. I don't know why, logic tells me a Clinton comeback is about as likely as Cheney suddenly announcing he'll run for President.

Reflecting on your opening statement, I understand having a lingering feeling of dread. I'd prefer to liken it to pre-game jitters more than anything. The interval between the Potomac Primaries and next Tuesday is feeling like an eternity, which I suspect must be true for most of us political junkies. As O supporters we really want to believe the polls, but we have a glaring example of inaccurate predictions, from NH. And with 2 weeks to prepare, one has to think HRC has established a better ground game for OH/TX than she has for previous contests.

I think the anxiety is understandable, but I continue to rely on the trends to tell me everything is fine. One poll is not going to tell us much, but two weeks of polls in which the trend is definitely moving in O's favor is what I'm turning to in moments when some news item or another bumps my anxiety level up.

And if Clinton wins? Time to start rationalizing with respect to her weaknesses and jump on the bandwagon to support her for November. To me, getting a Dem in the WH is the ultimate goal, so I think our efforts in support of the candidate in November, should it be HRC, will need to be redoubled.

But really, let's hope this is over next Tuesday so we can train our sights on McCain and get ourselves together and positioned for the coming onslaught from the right.

What about the term "wingnuts"?

this obama supporter is not nervous- four days out and I feel confident that obama takes texas by a dozen points and ohio by a handful. I'm not losing any sleep over the close polls.

Should HRC win the nomination, she will have my vote and she will clobber McCain. While most people are focused on the personalities of the candidates (which do matter), I'm pretty confident the mood of this nation is so ripe for change from the republicans, that November will be one of the GOPs worst election cycles on record.

Hillary und Bill lost me over a year ago - she is a shriil that will keep us In purgatory forever.

I'm a conservative Independent who wants with all her soul to not vote Republican this time around. HRC seems to be out on a daily basis to remind me of why it is that I would never ever vote for her. This makes me a big supporter of Obama. I've even donated!

I really will be crushed if HRC somehow slithers her way to the nomination. And, alas, I will probably have to give up my strong desire about not voting Republican. On this scenario, the democrats would have served up a politician who embodies the Bush-Clinton era-style of win-at-all-costs politics. The Republicans, by contrast, would have managed to nominate the guy who the hard right loathes. Barring unforeseen developments, I'd have to vote McCain.

Appreciate the commentors who have asked posters to refrain from using the term 'repug'. I know that partisan politics is fun for the partisans. But it really is a turn-off to non-partisans, even those who are highly energized by a candidate this time around.

Hillary Clinton is the most overrated senator in history. She's accomplished nothing. Her bills don't even have co-sponsors. On the biggest vote of her life, she screwed the pooch. She didn't even read the intelligence estimate before she voted to authorize the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.

As First Lady, the job that supposedly gives her unique insight into the presidency, she failed to foresee the consequences of Nafta ("Seemed like a good idea at a time") and she pursued a flawed strategy on health care that arrogantly dismissed bipartisan compromises suggested by members of her own party. Both failures have brought untold adversity to millions of people.

And she's learned nothing. The pandering to the war party is still there in her vote for Kyl-Lieberman and the arrogance is still there in her refusal to apologize for sending thousands of our sons and daughters to their deaths for no good reason.

To this toxic stew, she's added an astonishingly large sense of entitlement.

So I can be pretty confident that electing her in November would be worse for the Democratic Party -- at all levels -- than electing her husband was. Watch her write off the red states in the fall campaign, watch their recovering Democratic Party organizations wither, watch howard Dean get the boot and watch the Republican-endorsing Clinton crony Harold Ford take over the DNC and end the 50-state strategy.

Then watch the Republicans take congress back in 2010, if they don't get it in November as Republicans who haven't voted for anyone since Reagan and who wouldn't cross the street for John McCain, come out in force to vote against Hillary Clinton.

That means I won't be voting for her. And if McCain wins and women, who will have been responsible for giving the nomination to Hillary in the first place, lose the right to choose when McCain appoints the next Supreme Court justice? Well, cry my a f*ckin' river.

Right now I don't know what I'd do. The Clintons are counting on us having to vote for her anyway. How sad that that is acceptable to them.

I didn't feel this way two months ago. The Clintons have cut away at me a million different ways, and I'm raw. If she pulls this off with the distortions and underhandedness and mean-spiritness she's obviously enjoyed, it will be hard to get over it. Can't believe I'm saying this, but it's true.

I live in a "safe" state. For all her spin about Obama not winning the big states, is there any doubt that New York, Massachusetts, New Jersey and California are going for a democrat? Come on. That he could pull even one or two purple/red states would be an amazing achievement and create the mandate for the next four years. He would have coattails to bring in democratic congressmen, one district at a time. The way republicans built their majority. And she would rob us of this for her petty, selfish ambition. Come on guys: would anyone who had lost 11 races in a row still be in the race? Romney, Guiliani got out, when it still would have been feasible for them to win, for God's sake. But the Clintons will drag the entire party, and the country, through their personal dramas, regardless of the cost. It's truly despicable.

At this point, since I'm in a safe state, I'll probably just not vote for president. But the Supreme Court is at stake, and a President McCain is terrifying.

I'm so angry the Clintons have put us through this, for a SECOND term in the White House. Disgusting.

Though I have come to realize that you will never recognize this possibility, some of us do hate Hillary Clinton, but rather see her for the triangulating, rubber-stamping legislative lightweight that she is.

It doesn't help that she keeps the company of people like Mark Penn, either. He practices that most insipid form of emotional manipulation, public relations.

When will Hillary Clinton be called on to dejectanouncify her two degrees of separation from Blackwater?

Obama will also make his case to the Democratic voters. He won't demand healing, like Hillary would. He would inspire it. Not everyone. Not right away. But I predict the party will be happier with him as the race goes on.

IF he wins the nomination. Anything can happen. It's the Clintons.

For the life of me, I don't understand:

I can want to vote against HRC without hating her. Why do people assume that I hate her if I don't want her elected?

This idea that I am emotionally involved with the woman tells me more about her campaign than anything else.

I really, really, really, do not want to see any Clinton in the White House and I can feel that way without hating her.

Clinton/McCain Ticket Seems Already in Place

While others have been talking about what will Clinton supporters do if Obama is elected and what will Obama supporters do if Clinton is nominated, let me swing this back to what I think is even more important:

THE CLINTON CAMPAIGN IS HELPING REPUBLICANS. She is running general election ads as if Obama is her opponent from another party. Republicans are sitting on the sidelines watching with glee. Is this what someone who cares about the party would do? Have Obama ads attacked her with Republican attack lines? Has he provided the Republicans fodder for a general election campaign.

A general election is about winning over the middle, the independents and whoever is the nominee should not come out weakened by their opponent from the SAME party.

SC, the problem is the more lunatic fringe of Hillary supporters have bought into Mark Penn's talking points--small states, caucuses, black votes, independents, they're all CHEATING. And it's true--if we only count NY, CA, and MA, then Hillary wins in a landslide. Of course the real lunatic fringe of Hillary's supporters think Obama is Hilter/the antichrist.

I get very mad at Hillary and, in fact, publicly said I would never vote for her here the other day, but the Supreme Court is far too important. And John McCain is a warmonger.