I just opened an email from former U.S. President Bill Clinton with an invitation to "join Hillary and me in Denver next week for a truly exciting and historic convention."

Bill Clinton, who has never publicly endorsed Senator Barack Obama, used the email to solicit financial donations to help retire his wife's campaign debts. In that vein, the former President mentioned "Hillary" a total of 6 times in a 309 word communication.

In the email, President Clinton recounted the many roles he's played over the years at Democratic National Conventions. He stressed that Hillary is  going to continue fighting for the issues we all care about going forward and emphasized her need for ongoing support in the future.

A great and inspiring congresswoman was lost today, Stephanie Tubbs Jones. The first African American woman to be in the congress from Ohio. She may not have been a Barack supporter, but I hope that everyone will take a moment to think about the enormous loss we have all sustained. She was a true democrat, opposed to the war, and a real person, who really cared about the people in her district.

I hope we can all take time over the next couple of days to remember her. An intelligent woman, who went to soon.

Call it my personal catharsis.

There is something rotten in Denmark.  Something is not computing.  Why is Obama campaigning still against Hillary and McCain?  Democratic party, why are you letting this occur?

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/...

This poll has tightened like all the other polls but again Obama is still ahead.  (I personally think that the Zogby poll is a joke).

There is good news and bad news about this poll for Obama.

Check it out.

Head to head matchups:

McCain holds advantages in: handling terrorism (51 to 23%), international crises (52 to 27%), and the war in Iraq (46 to 36 &)

Obama holds advantages in: healthcare (48-27%), the environment and global warming (47 to 21%), jobs and unemployment (47-25%), and improving the economy (42 to 30%) (take that Zogby...LOL)

Voter excitement:

McCain (12% excited, 48% satisfied, 41% lesser of 2 evils).  
Obama (45% excited, 36% satisfied, 18% lesser of 2 evils).

Who is closer to your background & values:
McCain (60% yes, 33% no)
Obama (50% yes, 42% no) which is improved

Previous Poll:  Obama 47 McCain 41

Another day and still no early morning text message veep announcement. I'm almost losing my patience. But I'm taking a deep breadth. This is not another veepstakes diary.

As I see it, there is only the one thing, so this won't be a substantive Diary with a lot of documentation, links and evidence.

A lot of us are holding our breath, waiting to see what Hillary and Bill will say at the convention - and I strongly doubt that I am the only one who felt some degree of dismay when it turned out that Hillary and Bill will be speaking on two of the four nights at the convention.  We all know why Barack has agreed to this; he is walking a tightrope - and very carefully.

Some have questioned whether there is a plot afoot; either to steal the nomination or damage Obama enough to ensure that he is a one-term president.  It is at least arguable that the Clintons have done little to allay those fears - thus far.

The Clintons and their people no longer deserve the benefit of the doubt with regard to putting their loyalty to the party above their pursuit of personal legacy. Two evenings ago, Tony Rodham and others met with...

Geez, it looks like I wasn't a concern troll after all.

Barack Obama has reached rarified political air and the precipice of greatness by standing for something. For his staunch and uncompromising ethical commitment to progressive ideals, his promise to pursue them with integrity and his raison d'être of bringing substantive change to a broken country and a political system on life support. That is what inspired an almost hysterical adulation, motivated legions of fervent progressive supporters and enabled him to defeat the Clinton machine in the primaries. It was not pandering to moderate conservatives. Yet this is what Obama, Plouffe and Axelrod have inexplicably decided to do.

And that's why as an Obama supporter, I'll be extremely disappointed in him.  You'll recall that she changed course on a dime and was the good soldier, telling her supporters to get behind Obama.  

If it turns out the announcement is that Hillary was picked as VP, then who's to say that he told her so way back when to get her to stop her attacking the validity of his nominating victory?  Is it possible that word wouldn't have leaked that the fix was in since that time.  Frankly, I haven't heard much talk about this being the arrangement, but of course Obama could have made the offer contingent on it remaining a secret.  

I am not saying that there is going to be upheaval or that we need to be upset.
I am pointing out in this diary that some troubling signs are popping up and  we need to be aware and vigilant.

Last night I read an article on the strong arm tactics by some former Clinton supporters towards the delegates going to the convention next week.
Today, on Political wire I read about Hillary's brother and some former backers meeting with McCain's aide, Fiorina.

http://politicalwire.com/...

http://www.commercialappeal.com/...

I removed it, most of you infants can now get back to sleep with your pacifiers.

I thought I would get a mature response with some criticism, but you guys, sheesh...you give the word "intolerant" a new meaning, is there a special uniform you wear or something?

Carly Fiorina, known best for reassuring ex-Clinton backers that John McCain voted for Ginsburg/Souter/et cetra's confirmation even while McCain says he'd never appoint them, while also hinting that McCain won't give a preference to viagra over contraceptives when it comes to medical coverage(actually, he does!), has met privately with the brother of Hillary Rodham Clinton in Pennsylvania.  I am not kidding you.   Hillary Clinton's own brother is planning to vote Republican after supporting her in the primaries.

Wasn't Clinton suppose to reach out to these people?  Per the Times Tribune of Scranton, Pennsylvania;

I know many of you guys will say, polls don't mean anything but in case anybody hasn't noticed, John McCain has managed to shore up the conservative base and will surely pick up a hard right neoconservative to run with him.  While Obama has tried to move more toward the center and gather some of the middle vote, McCain has gone hard right while still portraying himself as a leader of change when it comes to alternative energy as well as a proponet of domestic drilling.  Attacking Obama's strengths and going negative has also projected McCain into a 5% national lead (and you guys still want to play nice) and allowed McCain to trump what should be our biggest card, the economy..

Now that Hillary has put her name back in play and full voting rights have been restored to Michigan and Florida, a chorus of critics have suddenly emerged attacking Obama from within the Democratic Party. Many of the folks giving interviews to newspapers, like Ted Strickland, are well known Clinton allies. What is their real agenda? As a Democrat I am embarrassed at the way these folks, who have not spent one moment plugging Obama, are now excitedly tearing him down and calling him weak.
Could it be that Hillary is putting her name in nomination as another threat and show of force towards Obama? Is she still hoping to secure the nomination or at the very least, the vice presidency? Are there political strategists still locked in a dark room smoking Hillary cigars thinking, "We can still pull this off!"
Here is another scenario: The PUMAs and company are using the roll call to align their forces. They are planning a parade and demonstrations in Hillary's honor as I write. They are angry, militant and determined that the way to respect Hillary is to put her on the ticket. Are they winking to Obama that any other choice will unleash a Pandora's box of trouble at the convention, similar to what went down at the DNC meeting?

The fair and balanced FOX news has created a new affiliate that they're calling FOCKS news.  I have been hired as their new investigative journalist.

For my first FOCKS report, I have been doing some investigative work into where our great hero, John McCain, stands on the issues.

I was surprised to find, despite his being a former POW, that he is really a radical liberal who wants socialized medicine.

You know, Count Orlok.

Enough with this Hillary nonsense.

We all know what Obama's real problems are versus McCain:

Age.

Experience.

Sheer calculating evil, without the capacity for feeling mercy for man or beast.

Obama's choice is going to be Nosferatu.  Trust me.  You know it.  I know it.  Vegetable lasagna knows it (has that reference become "obscure" yet?).

So let's stop fucking around and plan for keeping the blood banks open 24/7 in Denver.

(more)

After a flirtation with Wes Clark, I'm comfortably settled on Sebelius as my most-hoped-for VP pick. A scan of the press/blog CW finds that the most common knock on Sebelius is that it will alienate Clinton supporters, who will be angry that Obama picked a woman other than Hillary.

Now, this is a plausible-enough-sounding talking point, but really turn this one over in your head.