AT WHAT POINT DO THE CLINTONS ENDORSE OBAMA AND START WORKING ON SAVING THEIR BRAND?

Another day, another 3 more wins

Obama didn't just win in Wisconsin, which we were told would be very close; he rolled right over her, close to 60% of the vote. Funny, even Hillary beat the entire Republican field. But what Obama did to McCain in Wisconsin, which his operatives claim will be a battleground  state in the general, was just sad. Obama had nearly triple the number of votes that McCain managed to get. He also pulverized Hillary's demographic firewalls, edging her among women and tying her among voters where she would have had to have rack up big margins to have a chance of winning-- or even coming close.

Among voters 49 years old and younger he had a significant 64-39 percent advantage over Clinton. College-educated voters, who made up 72 percent of those polled, favored him 59 percent to 39 percent.

Obama had a slight edge among voters who called themselves Democrats-- 50 percent to 49 percent-- but overwhelmingly topped Clinton among the 27 percent of respondents who called themselves independents, taking 63 percent of their votes to Clinton's 36 percent.

Independents have smelled the Bush stink coming from McCain and they have almost entirely deserted him for Obama. Ron Paul won the few independents voting in Wisconsin's Republican; the bulk of independents voted in the Democratic primary-- and overwhelmingly for Obama. It looks like more than double the number of Democrats than Republicans voted in Wisconsin. Republicans there, like everywhere else, are just dispirited with Bush, McCain, the GOP, the hateful and unpopular policies.

As I head off for the sack, we have word that Hawaii's caucuses are having a record turnout. The Clintons, despite sending their daughter there to campaign, will claim it's just a caucus so it doesn't mean anything and that it's a small state and doesn't count anyway. I mean their Machine stole more votes from certain Brooklyn and Manhattan neighborhoods than there are in all of Hawaii.

"There has not been this kind of interest and excitement in my political lifetime," said US Representative Neil Abercrombie, a veteran lawmaker from the Aloha State who is a superdelegate supporting Obama. "It makes my heart beat fast."

Jane Bond, a Democratic party official who started "Kauai for Obama" on the northernmost island in the Hawaiin chain, said she cannot recall any other political contest here that has energized Hawaiians like the 2008 presidential nominating process.

...Obama was expected to win in the state where he spent 14 of his first 18 years, running his winning streak to 10 contests and claiming most of the 20 delegates at stake.

As predicted, Obama also beat Hillary in the Washington state primary, a straw poll. He already won the bulk of that state's delegates in the caucuses two weeks ago when he trounced her two to one.

The Clintons ought to be working on a graceful and dignified exit strategy for her. She fired the campaign manager and the assistant campaign manager and maybe she'll fire the awful speech writer but none of that matters. People are ready for real change and real change does not mean a Bush or a Clinton or John McCain.


UPDATE: THE VOTES ARE COUNTED IN HAWAII

I hope Chelsea enjoyed her vacation; it was a landslide for Obama-- 76% to 24%.


UPDATE; BURNISHING THEIR BRAND ISN'T WHAT THE CLINTONS HAVE IN MIND APPARENTLY

They're reacting badly to the fact that Obama is now way ahead of Hillary, not just in popular vote and momentum, but with the hard delegate count. Instead of accepting reality, endorsing Obama, singing "Kumbaya" and regaining some dignity and respectability, the Clintons are going for a vicious Rove-like attack on Obama with a 527 of questionable legality. A shadowy group of special interests type Democratic Insiders calling themselves the American Leadership Project, is mapping out "an expensive, stealth campaign to buttress her standing in the must-win states of Ohio, Texas and Pennsylvania. They're canvassing Clinton donors for pledges of up to $100,000 in the hope of raising at least $10M by the end of next week. The money will be placed in the account of a political committee organized under section 527 of the tax code." She'll lose anyway; people are starting to really hate her and her husband. And I guess Obama needs the practice because the mud the Clintons sling his way will be baby play compared to what the McCain Machine has in store for him.


UPDATE: CONGRESSIONAL QUARTERLY GETS IT HALF RIGHT

Today CQ pointed out that Hillary faces two choices: Losing Pretty or Winning Ugly. The Clinton Machine seems to have opted for a third choice: Losing Ugly.