Obama and Hillary's Battle for Presidency Hurts Both Candidates in the End

The riveting, brutal brawl between Democratic presidential hopefuls Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton will probably result in the nomination of the loser of the general election. Both Obama and Hillary are so seriously flawed that only a catastrophic event can propel them to victory against John McCain.

Mrs. Clinton's conduct during this campaign has been incredibly mean-spirited. While Mr. Obama has sought to keep race out of this contest, Mrs. Clinton has employed surrogates to stoke racial animus. We have heard New York State attorney general Andrew Cuomo refer to Obama's "shuck and jive;" Bill Shaheen, husband of former New Hampshire governor Jeanne Shaheen, imply that Mr. Obama is a drug dealer; former congresswoman Geraldine Ferraro say that the only reason Mr. Obama has been a successful presidential candidate is because he's black; and Bill Clinton audaciously remark that Obama was "playing the race card" against him. Mrs. Clinton has followed each of these attacks and others with either an apology and/or firing of the speaker.

It's a nasty but clever strategy similar to an old trial lawyer trick. The attorney makes a prejudicial statement about a witness in court and then "withdraws" it. The remark can be striken from the record, but not from the jurors' minds.

I'm a political independent who has been rooting for Obama in the primaries because, as former Clinton White House adviser Dick Morris has repeatedly warned, "Hillary Clinton is a uniquely pernicious person." I was captivated by Obama's Kennedyesque speaking ability and his sunny, inspirational style promising a post-racial, post-partisan politics. But the revelations of the past few months have left me deeply disappointed.