I sent this letter to Paul Krugman, but I suppose it could apply to me (an Obama supporter) as well.

Dear Mr. Krugman,

My guess is that you are expecting letters of reaction today.  Why else would you write a column attacking a fellow Democrat during a vital election year?

I very much admire you, but of late I wonder if you have become stuck in the Rovian trap that many of us have been caught in – the  "Obama vs. Clinton" trap.

As a liberal, you must know what rides on the elections in November.  The presidency is not enough.  The Democratic Party needs a strong majority in Congress; indeed, one that can override filibusters.

Whatever you may think of Senator Obama, he offers a grassroots mode of organization that has galvanized millions of voters.  He has brought young people and African Americans back into the process. He has also offered a style of rhetoric that seems to have backbone. (In other words, he does not assume the Republic discourse to be right and echo pseudo-patriotic tropes when he errs or is criticized.)

Whether you support Obama or not, he offers much to the Democratic Party.  Whether Obama supporter support Clinton or not, she has much to offer through strong political networks, an outstanding knowledge of policy, and a loyal following. 

(Of course, both candidates offer much in terms of policy, your concerns about healthcare notwithstanding.)

Think of what a different election this would look like if you consistently directed your columns towards unifying the Democratic Party and pointing out a very dangerous John McCain -- dangerous in that he once he held fairly rational beliefs, and now is courting the most right wing extremism this nation has ever seen.  (If you like graphs, check out the Yahoo/AP poll from earlier this week.  Moderates are moving towards McCain.) 

You can still advocate for Clinton, but you could lead us to unification at the same time, and begin to point us towards a turn around in November. 

The fact is, we are in crisis right now.   Our nation is torturing people.  We are overextended in a war that has killed thousands of our young men and hundreds of thousands of Iraqis.  Our government has been surveillng its own people for years.  The Justice Department is working as a political arm of the executive branch.  We are in a recession and on the verge of perhaps much worse.  And that is a truncated list. 

Frankly, I’ve gotten rather horrified that a man who has a conscience as you do could get so caught up in the need to be right about Obama being wrong, that he stops acting for the benefit of his country.

Please, I beg you, stop this.  We need you to be our conscience, not the devil on our shoulder calling us to anger and division while Karl Rove laughs.

And believe me, Karl Rove loved your column today, of that I have no doubt.