Good news for Obama after clinching the nomination last night.  He now leads McCain by six points, 48 to 42.

http://www.cbsnews.com/...

I just read a great article by George Packer in the latest issue of the New Yorker.  He discusses the rise and fall of the conservative movement, and its implications for John McCain's candidacy.

Here's a tantalizing quote from Pat Buchanan:

"Every great cause begins as a movement, becomes a business, and eventually degenerates into a racket."

Follow me for more under the fold.

This primary has been hard-fought.  I don't want to debate who was more poorly treated by the press.  I don't want to argue about who played the race card, or who campaigned more negatively, or who whined more, or whose supporters are more deluded.

Unlike many, I think reasonable people can disagree.

For months, my mom has listened to my enthusiasm for Obama without saying much of anything.  Her one comment was during Reverend Wright, part I, when she said energetically that Obama needed to distance himself further from the man.  I did my best to defend Obama, but my heart sank.  Patriotism is one of my mother's hot button issues.  

I have heard her talk approvingly of McCain in the past, so I suspected she planned to vote for him.  But I never came right out and asked.  (I come from a family of reticent Scandinavians, where the unwritten rule is that it is okay to volunteer who you vote for, but it is not okay to ask.)  But last weekend my mom was in town visiting, and at a family dinner talk turned to the election.  My sister-in-law asked my mom point-blank who she planned to support, and my mom said simply, "I'm leaning Obama."

Why I think this matters below the fold.

For the last six weeks, the Pennsylvania primary has been looming.  The last big state.

I really, really wanted Obama to win.

Here is what I did to help him win:

I donated a few times.

I worried incessantly.

I checked DailyKos every few hours.

And Obama lost.

It just shows that if you tell the truth, people will respond.

Here is the diary with Obama's original remarks, the flack that followed, and his kick-ass reponse.

Obama responds to charges of "elitism"

Well, I knew Obama's response would win us over, but what about the rest of the world?

Check out some comments from the CNN story about this.

What did he say wrong. People ARE FED UP.

How about Hillary apologize to the spouses and children of those serving who actually face the REAL threat of sniper fire every day for her and her husbands' lies about it and her joking about it on Jay Leno. There are those who have lossed loved ones to sniper fire and I promise you they are not laughing themselves to sleep at night.
If this is the BEST that either the Clinton or McCain people can come up with– fretting over words that are TRUE...people outside of PA are bitter too about a lot of things. We don't need apologies; we need someone who is in touch with what's really happening. Then this Rebulican is now squarly behind Obama.

more after the jump!

Obama has responded to McCain saying he is out of touch with Americans.

Here is McCain's original comment:

   McCain's campaign also criticized the comment Friday, saying "It shows an elitism and condescension towards hardworking Americans that is nothing short of breathtaking."

   "It is hard to imagine someone running for president who is more out of touch with average Americans," Steve Schmidt, a senior advisor to McCain, said.

Hillary weighed in as well:

"It's being reported that my opponent said that the people of Pennsylvania who face hard times are bitter," Clinton said during a campaign event in Philadelphia. "Well that's not my experience. As I travel around Pennsylvania. I meet people who are resilient, optimist positive who are rolling up their sleeves."

"Pennsylvanians don't need a president who looks down on them," she said. "They need a president who stands up for them, who fights hard for your future, your jobs, your families."

CNN.com

I've seen a lot of talk about how the primary is distracting our candidates (and us) from the real target:  beating McCain.

I believe this is going to be a difficult election no matter who our candidate is.  Follow me past the jump and I'll look at some of the potential strategies against McCain.