Let's get real, almost all of the remaining Hillary Clinton supporters who have not committed to backing Barack Obama are women. And their decision has absolutely nothing to do with politics or policy. There is nothing left to gain for Hillary Clinton politically by having her supporters hold out. And from a policy perspective Hillary Clinton and John McCain are diametrically opposed to one another.
So, why are a lot of these women still saying that they might support John McCain over Barack Obama? Because for them, it's personal. Notice they never, ever talk about how McCain has policy positions closer to Hillary. Because that would be insane and completely indefensible. They always say how Obama hasn't shown enough respect to Hillary or that he he hasn't done enough to reach out to her voters and win them over.
What they're really saying is my husband/boyfriend/father doesn't show me enough respect. The men in my life haven't done enough to reach out to me and win me over.
That sounds harsh, but since there is no plausible political or policy reasons for their petulance, you know it's true. And I know what some will say to this blog post -- you shouldn't alienate these Hillary voters ... you should reach out to them. Yeah, yeah, I'm tired of kissing their ass. If they want to vote against their interests and elect a guy that is going to screw them over just to make a point to themselves or the men in their lives, that's their choice. They know they're being ridiculous and it's time to stop encouraging them.
Having said all that, there is one person who can make a difference in changing their minds. And it certainly isn't me. It's Hillary Clinton. So far she has done precious little to do this. She gave five minutes to Barack Obama in her concession speech and talked for 35 minutes about herself and her supporters. And she went to one campaign stop in Unity, New Hampshire with Obama. That's it. Frankly, that sucks.
Tonight is the night she has to stop all this nonsense and really bring her backers into the fold. If she fails to do this in a convincing way, then she will prove once and for all that she only cares about herself and not about her party and her own principles. This is the most important speech at the convention. We're going to find out if Hillary Clinton will deliver for the Democratic Party or just look out for herself.
PS -- We are having live coverage of the convention, including play-by-play coverage of the speeches (including Hillary's tonight), on our website starting at 5PM Eastern every night of the convention.