Outrageous Vulnerabilities
It's Still The Economy, Stupid
In Week Before Labor Day, Pointless
Palin's No Shrinking Violet
Danger Signals
Palin's Learning Curve
Obama Off-Balance from Palin Flip-Flops on O'Reilly
Johnny's Got A New Girl
Martha's Big Adventure - Enquiring Minds Want to Know
Abstinence Education Is Still A Good Idea
Crying Wolf On The Economy While Ignoring Real Perils
The Dems Do Denver
JFK: Democrats' Role Model?
Palin, Pregnancy And The Pulpit
Sarah's Choice
Convention(al) Reflections
Farewell To An American Hero
The New Life of The Grand Old Party
Want Real Change? Quit Nominating Lawyers!
Harper's Index
Don't They Have Birth Control Up In Alaska?
Professor Bush's Economic Nostrum
Saving The GOP And The Unbearable Lightness of Being Sarah Palin
Building The Bridge
Married Liberals With Children
Mosdirection In Minnesota
Logical Consequencse
Which Ticket Really Will Deliver Change Voters Want?
The Perfect Stranger
Game On: Let The Race Begin
Michelle Obama: Family-Values Feminist -- Or Phony?
The Role of A Lifetime
What's So Terrific About Mccain's Palin Pick?
The Four Stages of Conservative Female Abuse
Later Conventions Make For A Strange Election Season
Stick With Sarah
'RomneyCare' Should Keep Mitt Off McCain Ticket
Most Sarcastic Campaign Ever
Report From A Forgotten War (4th in a Series)
McCain Comes Through
Confessions of A Third-Rate Sexist
Mccain Veep Criterion: 2 'X' Chromosomes Are All That's Needed
On Shooting Taggers: Why Conservatives And Liberals Differ
Mccain Wants Moose Hunter In White House
Me For President
Welcome Back Dad
A Human-Resources Handbook
Palin's Gender Alone Won't Sway Women Voters
The RNC's Unconvention
Palin's State Reaps The Windfall Profits McCain Decries
Finally, We Care About A Teen Pregnancy
McCain's Best Way
Palin Has Tall Mountain to Climb
McCain Palin Can Join the Club -- Interview with Pat Toomey
What Standards?
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We've Come A Long Way, Baby
Impulse, Meet Experience
Gustav's Silver Lining



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Why The Democrats Could Lose
Steve and Cokie Roberts 5/1/2008
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Democrats seem intent on nominating Barack Obama, in the face of mounting evidence that Hillary Clinton would be the stronger candidate against John McCain in November. And they only have themselves to blame.

Yes, the Clinton camp made strategic blunders that allowed Obama to score heavily in Republican states where few Democrats vote. But the real culprit is the party's stupid, self-destructive nominating system, which has two major flaws.

First, it was designed to anoint a nominee by early February, far too early in the process. The result: Obama built up an insurmountable lead at a time when he was still largely unblemished, untested and unscrutinized. The past six weeks have brought tougher media coverage, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright's tapes, the candidate's ill-considered comments about "bitter" voters and a wave of second thoughts among key groups like union members and white Catholics.

Second, the nominating system was completely incapable of reflecting these shifts. Not only were few states remaining on the calendar, the rules of proportional representation made it almost impossible for Clinton to catch up.

Since Feb. 19, seven states have voted. Clinton has won four -- Pennsylvania, Texas, Ohio and Rhode Island --building up a popular-vote margin of 483,000. Yet her total gain in delegates