The Hillary Clinton Effect

DENVER—I just filed my analysis for the morning's Denver Post, in which I note that "there is no denying that the "handling" of Bill and Hillary has been a significant distraction for the Obama team at this convention."

But will it matter in November?

"Hillary Clinton's rip-snorting critique of John McCain and the Bush administration's policies says no."

Hillary is a pro. She did what she had to do last night, and will do what she needs to do this fall. Democrats yearn to win. And vital segments in her party—young people and African Americans, in particular—have an emotional investment in this election. Clinton knows that if she is blamed for a November defeat, she'll be a pariah.

And yes, Clinton is a partisan. She cares about what will happen to America under four more years of Republican rule.

"Jobs lost, houses gone, falling wages, rising prices. The Supreme Court in a right-wing headlock....Money borrowed from the Chinese to buy oil from the Saudis," she warned the delegates.

"There are some disaffected Clinton voters, yes, but this mania about disunity in the Democratic Party really is a media creation," said Clinton's former campaign manager, Geoffrey Garin.

"The Republicans have far more serious problems to deal with...they still have a moderate and conservative wing that hate each other," he said.

And "the piece not covered, while all this other stuff is going on, is that the Obama camp is building a campaign organization that would make Karl Rove drool," he said. "There is nothing close to it in the history of American politics."