Mike Boudo
You've heard about Hillary Clinton's iron fist in a velvet glove. Well, tonight, she was on a velvet tightrope, trying to keep her balance and defy political physics.
Could she remain true to herself and to her party?
Could she respect her 18 million cracks in the glass ceiling, without taking a crack at Barack?
My answer is that no one could, but she tried.
What Hillary gave was really two speeches--one celebrating her own campaign, the other calling for party unity.
The problem was obvious: all of her supporters do not support Obama, and will not unite behind him:
"To my supporters, my champions -- my sisterhood of the traveling pantsuits- from the bottom of my heart: thank you. You never gave in. You never gave up. And together we made history." Then she added:
"Most of all, I ran to stand up for all those who have been invisible to their government for eight long years. Those are the reasons I ran for president. Those are the reasons I support Barack Obama for president (applause).
The Clintons have one more day to live at the center of the Democrat's universe. Tomorrow, Bill addresses the convention... Then, on Thursday, it's back to Barack.
For the Democrats, here's what matters: will their convention be remembered for starting and ending with the Obamas?...or for the Clintons, who--once again--came between them?
I'm Andy Hiller and that's my instinct.
(Copyright (c) 2008 Sunbeam Television Corp. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)
