“OBAMA SUPPORTERS” DAILY NEWS Sunday May 11 2008

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WELCOME TO “OBAMA SUPPORTERS” DAILY NEWS

Sunday May 11 2008


*Esquire magazine features a very long cover essay on Sen. Barack Obama
in its new June issue, which arrives on newsstands May 13.
http://www.esquire.com/features/barack-obama-0608

Esteemed DUer's, please consider taking a moment (or more) to graciously participate
by posting news and announcements about the Obama campaign on this thread. You can:

1. Post stories and announcements you find on the web. :think:

2. Re-post stories and announcements you find on DU,
providing a link to the original thread :applause:

3. Please "Recommend" for the Greatest Page :thumbsup:

4. Clinton supporters or “anti Obama posters please start your own “Clinton Daily News Thread”.

Get your DU-o-matic codificator (to format your posts) here
Read the Daily News Archives here

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1. Here's the Time Magazine and the Economist Mag Covers in case you missed them

This week:

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2. Esquire: The Cynic and Senator Obama

The Cynic and Senator Obama

By Charles P. Pierce Esquire magazine May 8, 2008

The cynic wants to believe. But far too much has happened, and inspiration is no longer enough. The cynic will need to be convinced.

The ownership of the people over their politics -- and, therefore, over their government -- had been placed in quitclaim long before the towers fell, and the president told the people to be just afraid enough to let him take them to war and just afraid enough to reelect him, but not to be so afraid that they stayed out of the malls.

It had been happening, bit by bit, over nearly forty years. Ronald Reagan sold the idea that “government” was something alien. The notion of a political commonwealth fell into a desuetude so profound that even Bill Clinton said, “The era of Big Government is over” and was cheered across the political spectrum, so that when an American city drowned and the president didn’t care enough to leave a birthday party, and the disgraced former luxury-horse executive who’d been placed in charge of disaster relief behaved pretty much the way a disgraced former luxury-horse executive could be expected to behave in that situation, it could not have come as any kind of surprise to anyone honest enough to have watched the country steadily abandon self-government over the previous four decades. The catastrophe that is the administration of George W. Bush is not unprecedented. It was merely inevitable. The people of the United States have been accessorial in the murder of their country.

Someone will have to measure the wreckage. Someone will have to walk through the ruins. Someone will have to count the cost.

...more here

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3. Clinton's Diminishing of Black Voters

Clinton's Diminishing of Black Voters

Derrick Z. Jackson, Boston Globe May 10, 2008

IN HER long, sad self-diminution to being merely a white candidate for subsegments of white people, Hillary Clinton claimed to USA Today this week, "I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on." Clinton exploited an Associated Press poll to say how "Senator Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me . . . There's a pattern emerging here."

This was on top of Democratic strategist and Clinton supporter Paul Begala saying this week on CNN, "We cannot win with eggheads and African-Americans. OK. That's the Dukakis coalition, which carried 10 states and gave us four years of the first George Bush. President Clinton, you know, reached across and got a whole lot of Republicans and independents to come."


This reaches across the aisle all right, straight to right-wing talk show host Rush Limbaugh. Limbaugh, who has been urging people to vote for Clinton to prolong the Democratic primaries, said this week, "Barack Obama has shown he cannot get the votes that Democrats need to win: blue-collar working people. He can get effete snobs. He can get wealthy academics and he can get the young, he can get the black vote, that's about it."

…But in a year in which Republican enthusiasm is in doubt with a bad war and a bummer economy, it must be remembered that Bill Clinton won the presidency in 1992 in three-way races with a grand total of 39 percent of the white vote and 83 percent of the black vote and 61 percent of the Hispanic vote and besting the first President Bush and Ross Perot among all age groups.

Ironically, Obama got to where he is by not being the "black" candidate. It is Clinton who is now the race candidate, diminishing black voters and eggheads, her final hopes resting on the thinnest of eggshells.

...more here

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4. Change the game

Change the game

The Jed Report Sat May 10

Lost in the discussion about demographics is the fact that throughout this nomination contest, Barack Obama has been unwilling to accept the conventional wisdom about how campaigns are run and elections are won.

…I remember a post by Atrios shortly after Iowa that went something like this: "Obama supporters have a way of telling you: trust us, it'll all work out. And you think they're crazy. And maybe they are. But then it does work out. And you start to say to yourself: maybe they know what their doing."
Well, there's no longer a question about that. Clearly, the Obama campaign knows what it is doing. And that's why it's important that today they announced the official kickoff of Vote for Change, a 50-state (no, not 57...) voter registration drive. The Obama effort to reshape the electorate has no equivalent on the Republican or Democratic sides and is a powerful argument for the Obama candidacy.

Skeptics like Paul Krugman may scoff at the notion of trying to change the game by bringing in new voters to the system. And to be fair, it won't be easy. But given the fact that Democrats haven't won a majority since 1976 when Jimmy Carter won 50.1% of the vote, wouldn't it be crazy not to at least try?

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5. More Endorsements For Obama

More Endorsements For Obama

Saturday, May 10, 2008 the Personal IS Political

Obama picked up five more superdelegates today, including two who switched from Hillary, giving him a net of seven for the day. The two supers who switched were Kevin Rodriquez and Carol Burke from the Virgin Islands, and they were joined by Dave Regan of Ohio, Kristi Cumming of Utah, and Rep. Henry Mitchell of Arizona. As of today, officially by all measures,
Obama has overtaken Hillary in superdelegates, which has been the ONLY metric she has ever had a lead in from the very beginning until now.
Now she is behind in EVERY SINGLE METRIC, whether it be states won, pledged delegates, popular vote, land area won, or superdelegates.

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6. The Clinton Divorce

A smattering of stories from around the country...

by John Aravosis (DC) • 5/10/2008

Kind of scary when a Wall Street Journal editorial hits the nail on the head:

The Clinton Divorce

No, we don't mean Bill and Hillary. We mean the separation now under way between the Clintons and the Democratic Party. Like all divorces after lengthy unions, this one is painful and has had its moments of reconciliation, but after Tuesday a split looks inevitable. The long co-dependency is over....

If the Clintons play to their historic form, they will ignore all this for as long as they can. They will fight on, hoping that something else turns up about Mr. Obama before the convention. Or they'll try to play the Michigan and Florida cards. Or they'll unleash Harold Ickes on the superdelegates and suggest that if Mr. Obama loses in November she'll be back in 2012 and her revenge will be, well, Clintonian.

The difference between now and the 1990s, however, is that this time the Clinton foes aren't the "vast right-wing conspiracy." This time the conspirators are fellow Democrats. It took 10 years, but you might say Democrats have finally voted to impeach.

…more at the link

[goclark]

8. I've never looked at it that way

Democrats finally voted to impeached.

Interesting.

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7. Barack Obama sacks adviser over talks with Hamas

Barack Obama sacks adviser over talks with Hamas

The Times May 10, 2008

One of Barack Obama’s Middle East policy advisers disclosed yesterday that he had held meetings with the militant Palestinian group Hamas – prompting the likely Democratic nominee to sever all links with him.

Robert Malley told The Times that he had been in regular contact with Hamas, which controls Gaza and is listed by the US State Department as a terrorist organisation. Such talks, he stressed, were related to his work for a conflict resolution think-tank and had no connection with his position on Mr Obama’s Middle East advisory council.

“I’ve never hidden the fact that in my job with the International Crisis Group I meet all kinds of people,” he added.
Ben LaBolt, a spokesman for Mr Obama, responded swiftly: “Rob Malley has, like hundreds of other experts, provided informal advice to the campaign in the past. He has no formal role in the campaign and he will not play any role in the future.” The rapid departure of Mr Malley followed 48 hours of heated clashes between John McCain, the Republican nominee-elect, and Mr Obama over Middle East policy.

…Mr Obama, who has been trying to assuage suspicion towards him among the influential Jewish and pro-Israel lobby, spoke at a Washington reception marking the 60th anniversary of Israeli independence on Thursday when he promised that his commitment to the country’s security would be “unshakeable”. However, Mr McCain has high-lighted the Democrat’s pledge to negotiate directly with nations such as Iran – whose leaders talk of wiping Israel off the map – and a statement from Hamas saying that it hoped that Mr Obama would win the presidency.

…. more at the link

Talking to an elected group that represents a huge portion of Palestinians should not be a firing offense, especially by an independent NGO specializing in conflict resolution. If Hamas goes into talks, it would be a step forward. But such is politics at this day and age.

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9. Andrew Sullivan: Too Popular Abroad?

Too Popular Abroad?

Andrew Sullivan 10 May 2008

Daniel Larison thinks that the argument that Obama could appeal to developing countries' populations and transform American soft power will only hurt Obama at home:

You could not have concocted a more insidious anti-Obama campaign than what many of his supporters (as well as the candidate and campaign) have managed to do in constantly talking up all the foreign places he lived, his relatives in Kenya, and on and on. From a certain perspective, Obama’s background and biography must seem to be undeniable political assets, but slowly it is beginning to dawn on his boosters that a great many, probably most, Americans do not share that perspective. Furthermore, the emphasis on Obama’s background and biography has always meant that the ‘08 election would become a culture clash, and it is one that I suspect the Democrats still cannot win.

I find this too depressing and defeatist an attitude. If Obama's biography and appeal affect global opinion and therefore foreign policy, the subject should be on the table - as a weapon in pursuit of national self-interest. If we cannot have a debate in a democracy about this impact without fostering xenophobia, ignorance and fear, then democracy cannot work. Which, I suspect, is partly Larison's point. I'm not as defeatist - and it's telling that many criticisms of Obama - Carole Simpson's for example - fall into this trap.

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10. The Obama Revolution

The Obama Revolution

Andrew Sullivan 10 May 2008

Matt Stoller examines the organizational overhaul the Obama campaign promises for the Democrats. Yes: it's extremely ambitious. Money quote from an Edwards supporter:

In a strange sort of way, this is rather inspiring. I mean, in almost no time, the guy has managed to consolidate power totally. At the same time, he's done this in a fashion much different from traditional dictators, or even powerful political figures like Clinton; rather than taking the reigns and giving himself the power and closing the windows so no one can see what he's doing, he's opening up the windows more, and simply giving power to those who share his ideology. Yes, this is what Clinton did (empowering the DLC), but he empowered them around himself and neutered any major figures who could oppose them, while Obama is actually training them. I wish he would allow for partisans like us to be in the group, but it is still an interesting thing to watch.

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11. This Time, Racist Appeals Will Backfire in Kentucky

This Time, Racist Appeals Will Backfire in Kentucky

by: Yellow Dog Sat May 10, 2008

Three ways that Senator Clinton's dog-whistles to racists help Obama in Kentucky:

1. It dismays and turns off her non-racist supporters.

As much as Obama supporters would love to believe that all Clinton supporters are racists, it's not true. What is true is that her racist remarks make all her supporters look like racists, and that's chasing the non-racists out of her camp. They're not Obama voters yet, but they're not giving any more money, volunteer time or letters-to-the-editor to Senator Clinton.

2. It shines a spotlight on closeted racists.

The real racists who may not have any love for Hillary but will never vote for a n****r are on the verge of getting outted.

Here's a truth about 21st-century racists that Senator Clinton never learned:

They're not proud of being racists, and they don't like being identified as such.

...more at the link

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12. Obama in Charleston WVa Monday

Obama in Charleston Monday

by: Carnacki at WVA Blue Sat May 10, 2008

OBAMA TO VISIT CHARLESTON ON MONDAY, SPEAK AT CIVIC CENTER

CHARLESTON, WV - Senator Barack Obama will return to the Mountain State on Monday, May 12. Obama will campaign in Charleston, West Virginia and will hold a campaign event at the Charleston Civic Center. The event open to the public, however, seating is limited and tickets are required. Tickets are free and will be distributed tomorrow, Sunday, May 11 at three Obama for America locations in Charleston.
Details of Obama's campaign event in West Virginia:

MONDAY, MAY 12
Charleston Civic Center
200 Civic Center Dr.
Charleston, WV 25301
Doors Open: 10:30 AM
Program Begins: 12:15 PM

Media Coverage: This event is open to the press. For credentials, please visit www.barackobama.com/mediarsvp
Tickets are available on a first-come, first served basis. Members of the public are invited to pick up free tickets at the locations listed below. For more information, please call our Charleston HQ at 304-346-2616.

Pickup Locations for Tickets
Obama for America Charleston HQ
1021 Quarrier St.
Charleston, WV
Tickets are available Sunday, 9:00am-9:00pm
2nd Ave. Community Center
2nd Floor Obama for America Table
1411 2nd Ave.
Charleston, WV
Tickets are available Sunday, 9:00am-9:00pm
South Charleston Office
325 6th Ave. SW
South Charleston, WV
Tickets are available Sunday, 9:00am-9:00pm

***For security reasons, do not bring bags.
Please limit personal belongings. No signs or banners permitted.***
Further details to be announced as they become available.

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13. West Virginia leaders endorsing Obama

West Virginia leaders endorsing Obama

Carnacki at WVa Blue. Fri May 09, 2008

From an email:

WEST VIRGINIA LEADERS ANNOUNCE SUPPORT BARACK OBAMA

Legislators, Sheriffs, County Chairs Say Obama Best Person to Unify and Lead Country
CHARLESTON, WV - Days after Barack Obama's decisive win in North Carolina and a tight finish in Indiana, leaders across the Mountain State announced their endorsement of Barack Obama as the best person to unify and lead our country.

Today West Virginia state senators, delegates, sheriffs and Democratic party chairs joined Senator Jay Rockefeller and the state's only member of Congress to endorse, Nick Rahall, in supporting Barack Obama. Obama has also received the endorsement of West Virginia State Auditor Glen Gainer III.

"I have chosen to endorse Barack Obama because he has inspired our nation and will unify the country," said West Virginia State Senator Jeffrey Kessler (D-Marshall). "We need a leader who will finally deliver on the challenges facing our nation, including affordable health care for all, quality education and restoring our nation's standing in the world. That leader is Barack Obama."

"Barack Obama understands the needs of West Virginians," said Delegate John Doyle. "He has a solid plan to revitalize our nation's economy and as a member of the Senate Veterans Affairs Committee, he has been a strong advocate for our nation's veterans."

Below is the list of West Virginia leaders Endorsing Barack Obama today:
Sen. Dan Foster (Kanawha County)
Sen. Jon Blair Hunter (Mon County)
Sen. Jeff Kessler (Marshall)
Del. John Doyle (Jefferson County)
Del. Ron Fragale (Harrison County)
Del. Charlene Marshall (Mon County)
Del. Clif Moore (McDowell County)
Del. Alex Shook (Mon County)
Sheriff John Gruzinskas (Marshall)
Jerry Brookover (Chair, Wirt County Exec Committee)
The following are West Virginia leaders who have previously announced their endorsement of Barack Obama:
Ken Hechler, former Congressman and West Virginia Secretary of State
Glen B. Gainer III Auditor
Del. Tal Hutchins (Ohio County)
Sen. Larry Edgell (Wetzel County)
Mayor Emmett Pugh (Beckley)
Sheriff Tom Burgoyne (Ohio County)
Commissioner David Sims (Ohio County)
John Saunders (former USW local president, Ohio County Dem co-chair)
Frank Slider (Tyler County Chair)

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14. Now On to ‘Florigan’!

Now On to ‘Florigan’!

BETWEEN THE LINES Jonathan Alter News Week

Just the threat of a convention floor fight gives Hillary a weapon to use both in private and in public.

May 19, 2008 Issue

Yogi Berra, meet the Clintons. "It ain't over till it's over" neatly defines their current philosophy on the presidential race. Forget the brilliant Berra ambiguity of the word "over." How about "it"? What is the game they're now playing? The math is clear: Barack Obama will be the Democratic nominee for president unless he's caught on tape taking cash from Tony Rezko or vacationing in Hawaii with Louis Farrakhan. But the only thing dependable about the Clintons is that they never quit. Hillary has more than enough delegates to hassle Obama with the threat that she'll go all the way to the Denver convention or otherwise jeopardize party unity if he doesn't seat Florida and Michigan exactly as she wants. And she may rally her millions of supporters to demand that Obama offer her the No. 2 slot. Don't put it past her.

Before getting to Hillary's game, let me introduce a new ace in the hole for Obama. For all the talk of numbers, there's one that will be most important for superdelegates: 1.5 million. That reflects the 1.5 million names of donors that the Obama campaign has on file. Because no contribution below $200 is publicly reported, the vast majority of those names are in Obama's exclusive possession, to be shared as he wishes. As Graham Richard, the longtime mayor of Fort Wayne, Ind., explained it to me last week, it's all about the Benjamins. Local officials (that's who most superdelegates are) need the tens of thousands of Democratic donors on that list who come from their states. Their re-election depends on successful fund-raising. No Obama at the top of the ticket, no list. No list, and you may be back selling insurance after November.

Another hidden factor pushing superdelegates away from Hillary is "Florigan" or "Michida"—or whatever we should call these scofflaw states that moved up their primaries in defiance of party rules. Out of desperation, Hillary is putting all her chips on the injustice done to Floridians and Michiganders, even though she said early in the process that their votes "shouldn't count." Never mind the hypocrisy here. Never mind that Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe was the one who first insisted the rules be enforced. (When Michigan Sen. Carl Levin wanted to move up that state's primary in 2004, McAuliffe, then party chairman, screamed at him: "If I allow you to do that, the whole system collapses! The rules are the rules." This is from McAuliffe's own memoirs.) The problem for Hillary is that party officials in the other 48 states don't give a rat's patootie about seating Florida and Michigan. In fact, they're angry at those states for jumping the line, then whining about it. The whole imbroglio, says Simon Rosenberg of the New Democrat Network, has been "instrumental" in driving superdelegates to Obama.

...In private, negotiations will open between the Clinton and Obama forces. Even if Obama has reached the magic number of 2,025 delegates needed to nominate (Clinton is now claiming the real number is higher), the Clintonites will have plenty to talk about that relates to the management of the convention. And Hillary has the wily and heedless Harold Ickes on her side. In the past, Ickes has caused big problems for the eventual nominee, and in those days he held fewer cards than he does this year. In 1980, Jimmy Carter led Ted Kennedy by more than 700 delegates at the end of the primaries—but Ickes, representing Kennedy, created a series of procedural obstacles that turned that year's convention into a sour mess and helped doom Carter in the fall. In 1988, Michael Dukakis had sewn up the nomination but needed to deal with the complex question of what Jesse Jackson wanted. Ickes, representing Jackson, made Dukakis look weak, which softened him up for George H.W. Bush in the fall. Obama has said he would negotiate with Ahmadinejad, but he'd be smart not to extend the same courtesy to Ickes.

...more at the link

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15. David Plouffe The Details Man

David Plouffe - The Details Man

NEWSWEEK May 19, 2008 Issue

Obama's quiet, tightly wound campaign manager is a one-man political database.


Plouffe -second from left-

It was clear from the start that Plouffe would be the campaign's organizational mastermind. At a strategy session in December 2006, Obama asked about putting together a plan for the primaries. Plouffe (above, second from left) had already worked it out in his head, and spelled out for Obama the state-by-state strategy the campaign would ultimately execute. Now, along with overseeing that plan, he is in charge of all the campaign's many moving parts—media, staff, fund-raising, travel. Plouffe, who went to Obama through chief strategist David Axelrod, his political partner in Chicago, bulked up on electoral minutiae working for Dick Gephardt and helping elect congressional Democrats across the country. Plouffe recognized early on that Iowa would be critical in toppling Hillary Clinton, and drew on experience working for Sen. Tom Harkin to figure out the state. Publicity-shy, Plouffe would "rather have a pen stabbed in his eye than pose for a photo," says an Obama staffer. "He's the perfect manager for Obama," says his pal Axelrod. "Talk about a no-drama guy. He's unflappable. He rarely raises his voice—but he commands attention."

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16. I'm Sick of the Primaries, so .......

I'm Sick of the Primaries, so Here's a Mop with a Face Jumping Over a Pole

by Princess Sparkle Pony at Thursday, May 08, 2008

Hungarian Puli sheep dog, Fee, jumps over a hurdle during a preview for a pedigree dog
show in Dortmund on Thursday April 24, 2008. (AP Photo/Frank Augstein)

OK, it's a couple of weeks old, but olé! Or, rather, Odelay!

[Window]

17. K/R.

:kick:

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18. Losing Respect For Hillary By the Day

"There is much public talk (and, I'm sure, conversation behind the scenes) of a so-called dream ticket of Obama-Clinton. Although she couldn't win as the nominee without him, I'm still not sure that he could win with her."

Turn out the lights, Hillary
Posted on Sun, May. 11, 2008
By Bob Ray SandersStar-Telegram Staff Writer

It's clear now that she will not be the nominee, and it's even more apparent to me that she should not be.

In her desperation, she has revealed a side that perhaps was always there but became more evident as it became obvious that she would do almost anything to get votes in the hard-fought primaries and caucuses.

Having once been "ordained" the nominee, Clinton found it difficult to deal with the Obama surprise of having out-smarted her campaign in organization, mobilization of supporters and fundraising.

...When it became clear that she had no realistic way to catch Obama (much less surpass him) in pledged delegates or the popular vote, she began to change her mind about the Democratic rules disqualifying delegates from Michigan and Florida -- delegates she had agreed should not count because their states had moved up their primary dates despite party regulations.

...more
http://www.star-telegram.com/245/story/634725.html

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19. Obama's Two-Front Battle Has Given McCain An Edge

Obama's Two-Front Battle Has Given McCain An Edge
Chicago Tribune
By Jill Zuckman | Washington Bureau
May 11, 2008

WASHINGTON — Three months ago, Sen. John McCain made a calculated decision to begin painting a not-so-pretty picture of Sen. Barack Obama.

Although Sen. Hillary Clinton was — and still is — battling Obama for the Democratic presidential nomination, McCain began preparing his case against the Illinois senator early on. McCain's advisers, like other observers, had concluded that Obama was the likely nominee and wanted to begin shaping Obama's image while the Democrat was still consumed with fighting Clinton.

Defining one's opponent is a key task of any campaign, and simply put, McCain has had a long head start. As early as Feb. 12—the day McCain and Obama each won primaries in Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C. — McCain suggested Obama was guilty of hollow promises and a messianic self-image.

...Unlike McCain, Obama has been fighting a two-front war, trying to beat back an onslaught from Clinton while taking opening shots at McCain. Recently Obama has started focusing more squarely on the presumptive Republican nominee, attacking his positions on the war and the economy.

...Some of McCain's arguments about Obama have already been tried by Clinton, who has portrayed Obama as inexperienced and unlikely to get big things done.

...more at the link
http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/politics/chi-mccain-obama_bdmay11,0,1005225.story

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20. Hillary Clinton’s suicidal gamble with race poison

They are used to loving and supporting minorities – as long as the minorities know their place and see the Clintons as the instrument of their salvation.

From The Sunday Times May 11, 2008
Hillary Clinton’s suicidal gamble with race poison
Andrew Sullivan

...Last Thursday, Senator Clinton – dazed from a brutal setback in last Tuesday’s primaries – went even further. She told USA Today to consult an Associated Press story “that found how Senator Obama’s support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again, and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me”.

Yes: a candidate was explicitly arguing that she was the candidate of white Americans. No Republican would be so crude, certainly not John McCain. And that became her primary rationale for carrying on. After North Carolina, the short-term electoral costs have evaporated: West Virginia has a black population of just 3.3%, Kentucky has 7.5%, Oregon has 1.9%, Montana and South Dakota both have less than 1%. There are no black superdelegates willing to switch from Obama to Clinton at this point.

And so a strategy that was essentially telling superdelegates that a black man could not win the general election became Hillary’s last resort. In this, the Clintons were egged on by the less principled members of the Republican right.

...Black Americans – skilled at judging when they are being dissed – got the message. In last Tuesday’s North Carolina primary, Clinton got only 7% of the black vote – a lower percentage than Nixon or Reagan had won in general elections. If someone had told me last year that a Clinton would get less than 10% of the black vote in a Democratic primary, I would have asked what they were smoking. But in a few months, the Clintons have turned a 30-point lead among African-Americans into a deficit of more than 80 points. No constituency has swung as much over the past few months. And the black turnout last Tuesday was massive.

...more at the link
http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/comment/columnists/andrew_sullivan/article3907239.ece

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21. Conyers 'worried' about Clinton's impact on Dems' presidential chances

Saturday, May 10, 2008
Conyers 'worried' about Clinton's impact on Dems' presidential chances
Gordon Trowbridge / Detroit News Washington Bureau

DETROIT -- Rep. John Conyers said Saturday he is "very worried" that Hillary Clinton's continued campaign will make it more difficult to unify the Democratic Party this fall, but told fellow supporters of Barack Obama that the best way to end the nomination race is with kindness.

"Here's how we close this thing down early," the Detroit Democrat told 100 or more Obama supporters. "We are going to be real nice to anybody who did not support Sen. Obama. Real nice. Super nice.

...He acknowledged that some Democrats, including many African-Americans, have been upset by comments Clinton made this week to USA Today. Clinton, citing an Associated Press story, told the newspaper "Sen. Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again" -- remarks that were taken by many as racially divisive.

But Conyers refrained from commenting on Clinton's remarks: "I haven't heard it. I haven't read it. Because I have to be nice to her. I just finished telling everyone that."

...more at the link
http://www.detnews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080510/POLITICS01/805100406&imw=Y