Dems can go the nine innings

If the Democratic contest lasts until the convention in late August, so what? That leaves two months for Democrats to “coalesce” around their candidate and fight the Republican. And even that shorter time frame will seem a month too long for voters.

So why not go the nine innings? The great American pastime is not judged by time but by action in the field. That’s how the game is played.

Polls say most ordinary Democrats want more primaries. But Democratic leaders — not coincidentally, Barack Obama’s backers — say Hillary Clinton must drop out for the good of party. She has no chance of winning the nomination.

Wrong and wrong. Obama’s support among independents seems to be weakening — largely because of the Rev. Wright controversy. That Obama tolerated his pastor’s highly offensive remarks for two decades is a problem that will not go away, whatever the polls say.

Republican John McCain would be a formidable foe for either Democrat. But his appeal to the sort of moderates who would otherwise support Clinton adds to Hillary’s argument that she’d be the stronger Democrat in November. Some 28 percent of her backers say they’d vote for McCain if she loses.

As for Clinton’s odds to nail the nomination, they’re not great — but also not nil. Democrats in Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina and seven other states have yet to vote. If she wins big in those places — and the Florida and Michigan primaries are somehow redone — she could emerge with most of the popular vote after all. And even if she doesn’t, the superdelegates could give her the margin she needs — especially if momentum turns in her favor. (Insisting that superdelegates rubber stamp the voters makes no sense. Why have them?)

Obama’s surrogates are nonetheless playing the inevitability card. The race for the nomination is over, they say, so let’s move on.

Long ago, Clinton’s campaign made much the same pitch. It wasn’t attractive then, and it’s not attractive now. Inevitability talk is designed to demoralize challengers but comes off as dismissive.

The Obama camp knows that and so employs a two-faced strategy. It sends out high-profile supporters to chant that Clinton can’t win and is selfish for hanging in. Then Obama sails in with his smooth “Clinton can stay in the race as long as she wants” and a patronizing “I think that she should be able to compete and her supporters should be able to support her for as long as they are willing or able.”

News flash: No one asked him.

The game’s not over ‘til it’s over. And it’s not over until Clinton says it is — or the convention chooses someone. Or Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean gets the superdelegates to designate a clear winner.

If the game were truly over, then Obama’s helpers wouldn’t care whether Hillary stayed in the race or not. Their candidate would be making leisured and genial appearances at events — as McCain did once it became obvious that Mike Huckabee was no longer a serious threat.

Party elders say letting the Democratic candidates snipe at one another through August would hurt their nominee’s chances in the general election. Perhaps. But ending the contest earlier would also extend the time Republicans have a Democrat to attack.

When the baseball game reaches the eighth inning, and one side is way behind, the league doesn’t say: “Team X has no chance of winning. Time to declare a victor.”

When the game goes into extra innings, and people are getting tired, Americans know what to do: Go into the kitchen and make a sandwich. Be patient. It will play out.

Froma Harrop is a Providence Journal columnist. Her e-mail address is fharrop@projo.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Opinion

toon
Editorial cartoons for Tuesday, Feb. 18

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

FILE - In this Friday, Oct. 4, 2019, file photo, a man using an electronic cigarette exhales in Mayfield Heights, Ohio. On Tuesday, Nov. 19, 2019, the American Medical Association said it is calling for an immediate ban on all electronic cigarette and vaping devices. (AP Photo/Tony Dejak, File)
Editorial: Shut down flavored tobacco’s gateway to youths

Legislation in Olympia would bar the use of flavors and menthol in vape products and cigarettes.

Herald report of Everett protest inaccurate, biased

I was at the rally and protest in Everett last on Feb.… Continue reading

Media shouldn’t use ‘she’ for trans people

About 79 percent of Americans oppose those observed male at birth from… Continue reading

USAID freeze halts vital aid work

I am outraged the Trump administration is making the U.S. weaker in… Continue reading

Goldberg: Trump declares war on higher ed, not just woke parts

The move, aided by Elon Musk, to gut NIH funding, is part of a larger and debilitating attack on academia.

Comment: Trump’s Kennedy Center will narrow exposure to art

Trump’s move to takeover the Kennedy Center is not about the arts but about celebrating his tastes.

Rivian, based in Irvine, Calif., has introduced its new R2 models, smaller and more affordable SUVs. (Rivian)
Editorial: Open electric vehicle market to direct sales

Legislation would allow EV makers to sell directly to customers, making lease or purchase easier.

People walk adjacent to the border with Canada at the Peace Arch in Peace Arch Historical State Park, where cars behind wait to enter Canada at the border crossing Monday, Aug. 9, 2021, in Blaine, Wash. Canada lifted its prohibition on Americans crossing the border to shop, vacation or visit, but America kept similar restrictions in place, part of a bumpy return to normalcy from coronavirus travel bans. (AP Photo/Elaine Thompson)
Editorial: U.S. and Canada better neighbors than housemates

President Trump may be serious about annexing Canada, but it’s a deal fraught with complexities for all.

CNA Nina Prigodich, right, goes through restorative exercises with long term care patient Betty Long, 86, at Nightingale's View Ridge Care Center on Friday, Feb. 10, 2023 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Editorial: Boost state Medicaid funding for long-term care

With more in need of skilled nursing and assisted-living services, funding must keep up to retain staff.

toon
Editorial cartoons for Monday, Feb. 17

A sketchy look at the news of the day.… Continue reading

Comment: No one saw Musk’s DOGE rampage coming or its threat

With no formal grant of authority, Musk is making cuts without fully understanding the consequences.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.