Although the Democratic Convention was a little sluggish the first day(Monday), the second day it gained some momentum, and the third day was an unqualified success. It can safely be presumed that Thursday will represent the highlight of the Convention as Barack Obama's speech crowns it all. As for the poll numbers, however, for whatever reason there does'nt seem to have been a bump much significance thus far. But, one thing that is eminently clear is that  the McCain campaign's all-out shenanigans to counter and rebut Democratic speeches may have somewhat had some level success in suppressing possible Democratic gains in polls . However, there can be no conclusive determination as to  the impact of the Convention on a level of generality until after Obama delivers his acceptance speech, and until other variables and assumptions have been definitively assessed. Which leads us to this question: Are Democrats going to use similar tactics?   You bet they should. What's good for the gander is good for the goose.  Democrats have to take it to a higher level of perfection however, so that each rebuttal they mete out should be such as to enhance their leverage of tying George Bush around John McCain's neck as well as to accantuate his lack of judgement. This can be done by citing recent evidence of the Taliban's resurgence in Afghanistan and the imperative of troop surge there, as well as the certainty of the eventuality of a timeline for the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq. All the above have long been enunciated by Obama as policy prerogatives, and the Bush administration is , for all intents and purposes, following Obama's lead  in this regard. There is in abundance a treasure of material Democrats could utilize effectively against McCain,  but are often intimidated by the McCain's POW status he invokes out of the blue all the time to cover his tracks every time there are legitimate questions to answer.

In the aftermath of the primaries,  while under the glee of public spotlight, Hillary Clinton campaigned (or pretended to) for Barack Obama, after dark some of her surrogates as well as her hardcore supporters have at her behest campaigned tirelessly to woo Democratic superdelegates pledged to Obama on the strength of which he won the primaries in the first place. Hence it would'nt be unreasonable to assume that their incidious campaign could well climax into an orchestration of a foul play in the Democratic Convention, undermining Obama's candidacy, as it enhances Hillary's presidential prospects either this election circle or in four years' time. As for her campaigning for Obama, taking her pledge of support thereof at face value, it is easy to be convinced that her support is genuine and not driven by ulterior motives.  But watching her closely as she campaigns there is that underlying element of deceit about her that manifests itself in a tepid declaration of support for Obama that seems devoid of emotionality and personal commitment.   Thus, Hillary's role in the Convention will be as critical in determining the unification of the Democratic Party as it will be in determining the prospects for an Obama presidency which, believe it or not, is still reeling from the Hillary attacks and smears that are still surreptiously being fed to the internet by her surrogates who never gave up on their candidate following her defeat, nor forgave Obama for winning. It then, begs the question: what dynamics the interplay between Obama and Hillary supporters is likely to yield? Are these two wings of the Democratic Party going to coalesce into a formidable united force, or simply remain as divided. To be sure, when translated into practical terms, the incentive for political mischief may be high on the part of the Hillerites if viewed within the context of the prospects of its devastating impact on the Obama candidacy. But looming even larger is the is the danger of the incapacitation of the Democratic Party if its Black constituency were to be estranged from the party as would undoubtedly eventuate if Obama's candidacy were to be imperilled by the fellow Democrat. That possibility, if became a reality, has the prospect of consigning the the Dems to the margins of the policy-makig process for a long time to come.