An Open Letter to Keith Olbermann

It seems to me that you owe it to your viewers, and to yourself, to make a special commentary Monday night regarding Sen. Clinton's speech today where she officially dropped out of the race.

I'm a long time fan of Countdown and I enthusiastically supported the two special commentaries you made in regards to Clinton over the course of these primaries. On Saturday afternoon, however, it seems that you misread her speech. Jeremy Gerard writes at the HuffingtonPost: "...Keith Olbermann and Chris Matthews started spinning the speech. Their first words were concerned with the number of minutes Clinton spent 'patting herself on the back' before mentioning Obama, and whether her endorsement would be perceived as strong enough to send her supporters into the Obama camp."

Admittedly, I didn't see you or Mr. Matthew's commentary on the speech live. Immediately after it was over I was on the phone with my father talking about what a surprisingly wonderful speech it had been. "More than I had ever expected," my dad noted. "Perfect," I replied, "and impressive." I figured that everyone would agree with that assessment and, for the most part, I've been correct.

Then I read Gerard's piece and was shocked to learn that you had been so wrong during your initial commentary. I was shocked because I'm a huge admirer of your political instincts. I don't often think that you're wrong but in this case you clearly was. And I think you should own up to it.

A special commentary about this on Monday night, directed either specifically at yourself or a more general "pro-Hillary" commentary to thank her for her speech today, would go a long way in keeping my level of respect for you high. One thing I've always liked about you is that you've always been quick to admit when you're wrong.

Today, you were. Hillary gave a wonderful speech. I'm not sure I'll ever forgive her for some of the things she did during the course of this campaign, but before this speech I was certain I never would. Now I have to admit there's a chance I will. After speaking with pro-Hillary supporters the feeling seems mutual. They seem more likely, after this speech, to support Obama then they had been before.

In other words it was a successful speech, Mr. Olbermann. You and Matthews were wrong in your initial assessment of it. I think it'd be a wonderful thing if you aimed that special-commentary gun at yourself this time, or at least used it to give Clinton the thanks she deserves.

Sincerely,
jmk

P.S. If, of course, Gerard misrepresented your initial commentary after the speech (like I said I never watched it live) you should instead put him on your "worst persons" list. If you do that, though, make it the bronze.

Despite the fact tomorrow is a Saturday, and therefore a no-news day, it will end up being a very important day for the Democratic Party. Here's why.

If, like me, you've been monitoring pro-Hillary blogs and websites you'll have noted that while many Hillary supporters have accepted she has lost the nomination, there seems to be a determined minority of die-hards who refuse to accept Obama as their nominee. Many of these die-hards will never change their minds no matter what. Some cancers cannot be cured. But Hillary has the opportunity tomorrow to convince most of them to accept Obama and heal the party.

The key thing to remember is that the more hard-core a Hillary supporter is, the more likely it is they will be paying attention when she formally concedes. They'll want to watch the end even if the ending is something they hate. Even on a Saturday.

Hillary can do a lot to make up for her gigantic blunder Tuesday. She can truly unify the party and bring even her most anti-Obama supporters to his side. But she has to want to do this. She has to tap into their anger, perhaps acknowledge it, and then swing logic over to Obama's direction. She has to show a side of her we haven't seen before. A humble side, a self-depreciating side. If she chooses to do this in an open and honest way, her die-hards will note her sincerity. And they may just come around as a result.

But it has to be about her. Despite what others have written, tomorrow has to be all about her. After acknowledging that the better candidate won she has to focus on why she was the lesser candidate. She has to convince her die-hard fans that she is not Jesus Risen, that she is not infallible. She has to convince them, and perhaps herself, that Obama is the best person to lead the Democratic party. If she cannot or will not accept she was the lesser candidate then her supporters never will.

Tomorrow is Hillary's chance to redeem herself and unify the party. The question is, does Hillary Clinton possess the required amount of humility to pull off such a feat? Despite all suggestions to the contrary, I think she does.

Then again, what do I know? I was stunned by her speech on Tuesday. Perhaps I'll be stunned again tomorrow. Either way, her speech on Saturday will definitely be important. Not only for the future of the Democratic Party, but for the future of the United States.