Hillary vs. Obama: Round 21 for the Democratic presidential nomination

Last night Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama engaged in their 21st Democratic presidential debate. Never mind that I thought they had exhausted all they had to say on the issues that matter to the American people after the 10th one. In fact, here’s the national plea I sounded some time ago to end this dog and pony show:

I feel obliged to remind you that this is not an election for the president of a debating society…. Therefore, don’t buy into the media hype about who landed the most punches…. These debates are staged more to entertain political pundits than to inform ordinary voters.

For what it’s worth, however, I thought Obama prevailed….

[Obama-Day Tuesday…South Carolina, The iPINIONS Journal, January 22, 2008]

Moreover, even Obama has come to realize the utter futility of continuing to participate. That’s why he promised supporters that this would be his last debate. This, notwithstanding Hillary’s sado-masochistic pining for at least 20 more – no doubt hoping against hope that Obama might make a fatal mistake in one of them.

But I hope this is at least one promise Obama keeps….

Nevertheless, these debates have had at least one redeeming feature. Because they have showcased Obama’s political genius, adaptability and readiness to serve as president of the United States.

After all, he has compelled even his most ardent critics to go from calling him just a great orator who could never match wits with Hillary in debates, to hailing him as the candidate who not only acts more presidential but also displays superior debating skills.

Therefore, it was no surprise at all that, just as he has done in the last several debates, Obama performed well enough last night to maintain his momentum over Hillary among fickle superdelegates and in these debates.

Indeed, nothing demonstrated his superior political and debating skills quite like the way Obama countered Hillary’s attack on him for sitting on the board of a charitable foundation with a member of the bomb-throwing 1960’s anti-war group, the Weather Underground. Because, after noting that she has based her entire candidacy on her husband’s presidency, Obama reminded everyone that Bill Clinton actually pardoned two members of the same group.

And this only added insult to the rhetorical injury he inflicted on her calling him an elitist for saying, quite properly, that small-town folks are bitter about their economic plight. Because, after ridiculing her for pretending to be everything from a whisky-swigging longshoreman to a gun-toting Annie Oakley to get a vote, he dismissed her antics by saying:

“She knows better, shame on her!”

Of course, what he really meant to say was that Hillary calling him elitist is like the pot calling the kettle black. But then she’d probably call him a racists for saying so….

All the same, Obama should know better than to think that Hillary is even capable of shame. Because it’s patently clear that she is not.

Enough already!

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Democratic presidential debate