Just a few months ago, Sen. Barack Obama seemed invincible, propelled by the catchy campaign slogan, “Yes, We Can.” Now, as he struggles to fend off his relentless opponent, Sen. Hillary Clinton, the chants are starting to sound more like, “No, She Can't.” Could the Democrats have devised a more self-defeating scenario? Even if Obama does manage to hold onto the nomination, can he beat Sen. John McCain this fall? Would having Clinton as his running mate make any sense, or any difference?

These are just a few of the questions that are most certainly haunting the party's lame leadership and its two rock star candidates as the endless primary campaign winds to a close, with no clear answers in sight.

Obama remains–technically–the prohibitive favorite to win the nomination. He has the most pledged delegates, and leads in the popular vote. But his campaign has lost all momentum. It feels as if he's playing defensively to run out the clock, rather than driving to the finish line with any flourish.

Clinton, on the other hand, just won't give up, and why should she? She's won just about all the big states–in fact, if the party had followed the general election formula of winner-takes-all, she'd already be the nominee.

She also appears to be favored among those key groups that will be up for grabs in November. She has demonstrated the toughness and persistence to survive the gauntlet that awaits her if she's elected. And as she won't stop reminding you, she has more public policy experience, as well as hands-on familiarity with the inner workings of the Oval Office.

Still, she's widely disliked. Why is that? My personal theory is that Hillary reminds people of Herminie of “Harry Potter” fame–she always diligently does her homework (usually ahead of time, while helping everyone else do their assignments, and handing in extra credit work as well), but gets on everyone's nerves, while Obama is more like Harry Potter himself–the wizard who exudes a quiet charisma and who promises to bring disparate elements together rather than driving them apart.

Whoever wins the nomination at this point, I fear it might be a pyrrhic victory.

For Clinton to win, she will have to convince the superdelegates to discard Obama's lead in pledged delegates and popular votes, which would likely enrage Barack's supporters and prompt many of them to cynically stay home on Election Day.

Or worse, she could somehow twist arms on the party's rules committee to seat delegates from Florida and Michigan, who have no standing at the convention because they broke the rules and voted too early.

Clinton is arguing that the party cannot “disenfranchise” two major states, insisting that the nominee must represent all 50 states, not just 48. But Obama argues that he didn't campaign in Florida and wasn't even on the ballot in Michigan. It just wouldn't be fair to include those states without a new vote, which neither Florida nor Michigan wants to do.

Thus, if the rules committee seats the two rogue states, and they put Clinton over the top, Obama supporters will say she's stolen the election. Good luck courting those voters.

However, if Obama is nominated without counting Florida and Michigan, he might win the battle but lose the war, as voters in both states, annoyed at being left out (even if it was the fault of their own state parties), might just vote for McCain.

Of course, this battle could go all the way to the convention, leaving the exhausted, bitter Democrats just weeks to rally against McCain.

There is talk of “compromise” in the air, with Clinton supposedly offered the vice presidential spot. But I cannot imagine how that would work. Can you? After all the bad things Clinton has said about Obama being weak and inexperienced and tainted by his association with Rev. Wright?

And how could Obama take Clinton on the ticket after promising a new kind of politics? Doesn't that smell like the old-fashioned backroom deals he has decried from the start?

And would he risk Clinton being seen as another Dick Cheney–the more experienced, headstrong surrogate trying to run the White House from the Veep's office?

What a mess!!!

Still, with the economy a wreck and getting worse, with no end in sight in Iraq, and coming off one of the most unpopular presidencies in history, could the Democrats still pull this election out?

You tell me.

Special Reports /

Dems Between Barack And A Hard Place

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