Pindell Report

In this amazing 18 month presidential campaign a few moments stick out. Barack Obama's first campaign appearance. Rudy Giuliani's phone call from his wife. Hillary Clinton's tears. During the dramatic five month Democratic presidential contest there were moments that were supposed to signal the end of the campaign. The New Hampshire Primary would be the last day, some said. Then it was Super Tuesday. Then it was Ohio and Texas. But it wasn't over until Tim Russert said it was over. And when he said it, he was right.

WASHINGTON -- Setting the stage for what could be a full day of testimony, voting, and planned protests, members of the Democratic National Committee's Rules and Bylaws Committee held a private, behind closed doors meeting Friday night where they came away agreeing to a broad set of principals, but no clear consensus as to to implement them, especially as Hillary Clinton's campaign believes the committee can be her last best hope to the nomination.

If Obama wants to Clinton to get out of the race, if she is looking to get out of the race, if the party establishment wants her out of the race to unite behind one candidate this weekend watch for a compromise that allows Clinton to declare victory before she declares her loss.

Last week I used this space to explore the possibilities of who McCain might pick as his convention keynote speaker in St. Paul. However, there is a more fundamental question for McCain at the Republican National Convention. What do you do with President Bush and Vice President Cheney?

Next to selecting his running mate, John McCain's most important decision at the Republican National Convention is picking a keynote speaker.

Barack Obama's intensive presidential campaign in Oregon could mean that the DSCC's pick in the U.S. Senate race could be harmed dramatically.

Much of the excitement is over the Democratic presidential contest. As Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton battle for every state, Oregon is seen as a must win for Obama. As a result the Obama campaign has poured significant recources trying to drive turnout.

Last week in Pennsylvania Clinton was able to gain 9 delegates on Obama. For all of the breathless coverage and attention of Pennsylvania if Clinton doesn't have the money to compete in Montana those nine delegates could be wiped out.

DENVER -- Late last week Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean demanded that undecided superdelegates make up their minds soon on whether to support Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton for president.

His intended message: voters in late states should have the final say in who will become the Democratic presidential nominee and not a group of party insider.

As the Democratic presidential campaign continues and Hillary Clinton's lead among super-delegates shrinks, some odd questions begin to get asked.

Odd questions, but not unreasonable. For example, could either of the U.S. Senate's two independents help decide who the Democratic presidential nominee might be at the national convention in Denver?  read more »

In New Jersey, John Ensign is settling for his third choice in the race for U.S. Senate
Add New Jersey to the list of states where John Ensign has meddled and lost. The National Republican Senatorial Committee Chairman made a brief foray into Garden State politics last week when he sought to clear the field for John Crowley, a biotech millionaire with an incredibly compelling life story, to enter the race for the Republican U.S. Senate nomination.

After Crowley’s first announcement last Monday that he wasn’t running, Ensign engineered a full-court press to get him in the race. He had John McCain and five other Republican U.S. Senators call him. He promised him money and pledged to make 84-year-old incumbent Frank Lautenberg an NRSC target. And for a while, it looked like Crowley would run.

But by the weekend, Crowley decided -- for business, family and military (he’s a Navy reservist) reasons – that he could not transition his life into politics by today’s New Jersey filing deadline. On Sunday, a spokesman announced Crowley’s second withdrawal in seven days.