That's good, its nice to know where people stand.

You're right, the things Hillary said are hurting Obama. Its not that there were attacks in this primary season that's hurting him though. In every hard fought primary candidates have attacked one another. Had Hillary won Obama's attacks would have hurt her. Hart's attacks hurt Mondale, Bradley's hurt Gore.

There's a reason Hillary's hurt more. Because they ring so true. Because Obama has no good answer for them, no good comeback.

You're right, "Obama's biggest challenge has always been himself -- his resume, "otherness," etc."

Hillary can't vouch for him. She can't pad the resume that he just doesn't have. She can't take away his 20 year relationship with Wright. She can't make Ayers disappear nor can she make his lies about their connection unsaid. She can't connect him to working class voters that he just hasn't figured out how to talk to in a way that gets them to vote for him. She can't unsay for him that he said those working class people cling to guns or religion as a way to explain their frustrations.

For the first time in my life the republicans don't have to swift boat the democratic nominee. They just have to tell the truth about him and let the voters decide. And Obama has no good way to counter that.

If Obama loses this election you will blame Hillary or racism and never look at the fact that you have picked a candidate with the thinnest resume of any candidate in at least the last 50 years with a couple of rather unsavory and extremely politically damaging relationships who, for all his ability to make inspiring speeches to the young and the well educated, doesn't seem to be able to talk to or connect with the working class and has referred to them in a most condescending way.

Just to let you know where I stand.

You are a Hillary-hater by virtue of the fact that you wrote this hateful post. The fact that you say you are not a Hillary-hater proves nothing. As my grandmother said about nasty things: "FEH". No idea what it means or meant, but I get it and I use it with my kids too. FEH!

Criticize Hillary for her silence and then we get the "Hillary can do no wrong" folks out in droves.

The positive side of last night is that Hillary did enough to unite the party. Was it enough for all of the gushing? I don't think so.

And that will be enough to brand me a "hater". So be it.

There was a middle road that I'm sorry she didn't take -- attack John McCain. For every soundbite out there slamming Obama, give his campaign one from the same source with which to push back. Before the speech I had 3 hopes for it: 1) get her supporters on the Obama bandwagon, make it clear that is what she wants, 2) validate' Barack Obama as a very good person to be president, 3) use the fire we know she's capable of producing to blast John McCain. I think she did a boffo job of the first goal, which is probably the most important.

I don't think she did much of the other two, and I'm sorry because it left a lot of those supporters behind. If feelings are still too raw that she couldn't do the embracing, you can't fake that. But surely the third - attacking McCain - was something she, or anyone!, could do. Hell, *I* can work up a pretty warm speech listing the very, very real, concrete problems of a McCain presidency. She has been around for 30+ years -- her voice would be a powerful one saying "He's changed. He's not the same person. He's sold his soul." I can't help feeling regret - dissappointment - that she didn't do that.

But maybe that job is going to be handled by Bill tonight. That would be good.

"Hillary can't vouch for him. She can't pad the resume that he just doesn't have."

My sentiments exactly.

As for young AJ, who expects more from Hillary than he got last night, reminds me of someone who expects that he should get the job just because he is "special."

In the real world, the world where you don't get everything handed to you on a plate -- in HRC's world, where you have to fight and then fight some more to get anywhere, someone like Barack Obama has to earn her praise as a patriot and an honorable man.

Honestly, he hasn't been around long enough to have much of a record as either.

I think he was lucky to have such a strong speech, and such rallying support from Clinton, who has thus far given the best speech at the whole boring convention.

Well, nobody has to believe me that I'm not a Hillary-hater. I'm just not. When she announced her candidacy, I was uber-excited.

I know Obama will be a good CiC. He's smart, he was right on Afghanistan, on attacking al Qaeda cells, on Iraq, etc.

But Hillary is a Democrat and has done damage. I just think she should do 100%, no 95%. I'm being picky; I'm not being hateful. I really like her and respect her as a woman, politician and wife. Yet, I'm done with caring about Hillary. I don't live in New York anymore. This is my last post on her -- until 2012, or 2016, whenever.

I have been behind Senator Obama from the very start, and I wish you had not created this thread.

During the primary season we all said somethings that the other side could take offense at. That is what happened in the heat of battle. Senator Clinton was magnificent last night, and I did not want to make her do a walkback of shame for everything that McCain choose to use as a weapon against Senator Obama.

After this convention, all that ammo has been defused. You need to know when to stop nitpicking against a fellow Democrat, which Senator Clinton is.

It is time to stop forming a circular firing party, and instead direct all our fire in the direction of our real enemies, Bush/Cheney/McCain.

Keep your eyes on the prize.

Senator Obama is our nominee. Last night was Senator Clinton's finest hour, and one in which she truly found her voice. That Hillary would have been much harder to have defeat. I salute her. Now let us get on with the business of saving the Supreme Court from extreme right wingers, by electing Senator Obama as our next President.