Just up on MSNBC First Read:

From NBC's Chuck Todd
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.  


http://firstread.msnbc.msn.com/archive/2008/04/25/946650.aspx

Are you freaking kidding me? I'm watching KO on Countdown right now and he's stating that the Veterans Administration is trying to cover up the fact that they are seeing around 1000 suicides among veterans a month.

Our veterans are killing themselves at a greater rate than are dying in combat related deaths?

I'm shocked and apalled, and I need to find a link to this information.

The Obama campaign has released a new memo entitled:

"The Strongest Candidate to Face John McCain."

Here's the link to the WaPo article:

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/thefix/?hpid=topnews

Richardson advocates for his candidate.

Carville hurls insults and attacks Richardson.

See for yourself:

http://www.cnn.com/video/#/video/politics/2008/04/23/lkl.highlights.cnn

A lot of emphasis is being placed on how much Obama has spent compared to how much Hillary spent. I see no corresponding mention of just how many campaign stops that the trio of Hillary, Bill and Chelsea make on a daily basis as compared to Obama.

Every day, over in the right column here on Election Central, you can see the multiple stops that Bill and Hillary and Chelsea make each day, which always seem to be five or six times what Obama is making.

So where is the question:

With the Hillary campaign making six times the number of daily appearances as Obama, how did she squander a 20 point lead in Pennsylvania?

Today in Hillaryland it was reported that the number "9" has been outlawed, as are decimal points. Anything that heretofore would constite an 8.00001 or above shall now be considered a 10.  Anything rising above 10.00001 shall automatically be bumped up to 20.

Along with this new legislation, it has been announced that the goalposts shall be moved as follows:

For football fields the goalposts shall be placed on the far corners of the field.

For soccer fields the net shall be stretched from end to end and the position of goalie has been eliminated.

For hockey rinks, the same rules shall apply as for soccer.

For basketball courts, the basket is hereby abolished. From this point forward anyone who gets the ball first and can throw or kick it into the bleachers will be awarded one point and will automatically be considered the winner of all of the games for the rest of the season.

If anyone has any problems with these new rules, please keep in mind that Hillary's dad makes more money than your dad, and...well, you get the picture.

Via CNN:

• Seniors: 61C, 38O

• White male: 55C, 45O

• Blacks: 8C, 92O

• 42 percent say US is in serious recession

Michelle Cotttle has an excellent article up at The New Republic that looks into the chaos and mismangement that has plagued the Clinton campaign headquarters:

"Voices in Her Head: Inside Hillaryland's Fatal Psychodrama"

http://www.tnr.com/politics/story.html?id=54d3af5a-abde-4874-9d98-2bc4b8e23185

It's the most in-depth look at the internal conflict, competing egos, mass defections, and overall neglect that I've come across to date. Is this how a Hillary White House would be run? Is there any reason to believe that she could corral all of the competing groups, the special interests, the long-term friends/advisors, Bill, Mark Penn, and all the others who are involved in the internal power struggles that are outlined so well in this article?

excerpt:

"Rife with big egos and competing centers of influence--veterans of Hillary's First Lady days, relative newbies from her Senate office, Bill's '92 people, Bill's '96 people--Team Hillary has never been a comfortably cohesive group. In happier times, discipline was easier to maintain. But, as this race has grown longer and rougher, the staff's nerves and relations have been badly strained by persistent financial troubles and constant turf wars, not to mention one increasingly unmanageable ex-president. Some days, it's hard to remember that, just six months ago, the campaign was regarded as a highly disciplined machine. More and more, it resembles an unruly rock band plagued by dysfunction and public infighting. From Williams's arrival to Solis Doyle's demise to Penn's ascent, fall, and return, the ebb and flow of power in Hillaryland over the past few months has left multiple people acting like they are in charge--and no one really in control."

And no one really in control. The article makes no mention of today's release of campaign fundraising and debt figures, as it was written before these figures were released, but an ever-increasing debt, now at $10 million plus, underscores the problems that this lack of leadership has created.

Maybe Hillary's biggest problem is not that it's too hot in the kitchen, but that there are too many cooks in it.

The premier international financial daily newspaper, The Financial Times, has endorsed Barack Obama. Some excerpts:  (link below)

"After Tuesday’s vote, the Democrats should move quickly to affirm Mr Obama’s nomination. That is not just because his lead in elected delegates is already unassailable and the contest should be brought to a swift conclusion. It is also because he is, in fact, the better candidate."

"Mr Obama has fought a brilliant campaign, out-organising his opponent, raising more money, and convincing undecided Democrats as well as the country at large that he was more likeable, more straightforward and more worthy of trust."

"On form, he is a spell-binding orator and holds arena-sized audiences in thrall. He is given to airy exhortations, it is true, but genuinely seeks consensus and has cross-party appeal.

Mrs Clinton’s campaign, in contrast, has been a shambles. She and her team expected to have it all sewn up long ago; they made no plans for a long struggle, ran short of money and had to reorganise on the run.

Her speaking style is pedestrian, when it is not actually grating. Those who dislike her tend to do so with a passion: her disapproval ratings started high and after months of campaigning are climbing still. It is a tribute to her tenacity and to the loyalty she commands in the party that her fate was not sealed weeks ago.

How much the way that a campaign is run tells you about a candidate’s fitness to be president is debatable – but it does tell you something, especially if the candidate with the misfiring strategy is running on a claim of management expertise."

http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/19c88b7c-0f00-11dd-9646-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1

Cash on Hand at BEGINNING of the Reporting Period   38,833,089.54 7. Total Receipts This Period   42,832,120.65 8. Subtotal (6 + 7)   81,665,210.19 9. Total Disbursements This Period   30,591,210.20 10. Cash on Hand at CLOSE of the Reporting Period   51,073,999.99 11. Debts and Obligations Owed TO the Committee   0.00    
Itemize all on SCHEDULE C or SCHEDULE D 12. Debts and Obligations Owed BY the Committee   662,784.55    Itemize all on SCHEDULE C or SCHEDULE D 13. Expenditures Subject To Limitation   0.00 14. NET Contributions (Other than Loans)   233,823,864.26 15. NET Operating Expenditures   183,654,584.56