Clinton to Speak In New York City Tuesday Night After Primary Results

As Hillary Rodham Clinton made a last-minute appeal to South Dakota voters all signs are now pointing that her marathon race against Barack Obama would end soon. Senator Clinton will be joined by her husband, former President Bill Clinton and their daughter Chelsea at an evening rally in Sioux Falls, South Dakota before flying back east. Clinton plans to hold her primary night rally Tuesday in New York City, a rare departure from the campaign trail and according to sources I have, she plan to meet with key advisers at her home in Chappaqua, N.Y., on Tuesday.

A source speaking on condition of anonymity said it was highly unlikely she would announce an end to her campaign Tuesday night, adding that she would consider all options until Obama secured the 2,118 delegates needed to clinch the nomination. In other inside baseball news, Clinton Campaign staffers and former campaign staffers are being urged by the Clinton campaign’s finance department to turn in their outstanding expense receipts by the end of the week. That’s a sign, to them, that the campaign wants to get its affairs in order soon. If Clinton were staying in the race, there would be no real reason to collect these receipts now; she’d still be raising and spending money from the same primary campaign account. The campaign is in arrears to the tune of about $11 million.

Both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are expected to speak before AIPAC on Wednesday in New York City. A private meeting between the two could be held that day or arrangements for such a meeting could be made. While the Clinton people are still working the superdelegates, and there are still plenty of them to work, and the idea of a re-vote in Michigan and Florida is still being bandied about, I think everything mentioned here suggests a campaign that is slowly but surely coming to its conclusion. I still believe the Clinton campaign could soldier on to the convention in August and bring up its legitimate gripes as to how the Michigan delegates were apportioned to the credentials committee. Like her or not, Clinton needs to get some respect from the party apparatus, many of whom have Bill and Hillary Clinton to thank for being in the positions they are in. It will be a difficult moment for Senator Clinton when the time comes for her to end her campaign. How she does it will be important. To take the real measure of a person is to observe how they conduct themselves in defeat. She has good cause to go scorched earth on the Democratic Party. In the end, she probably will not do so. She will never be a footnote in American History, and still is one of the most important and most powerful people in Democratic politics today. Barack Obama needs her support and wise counsel if he hopes to win in November. She should at least be offered a spot on the ticket, with the promise of an active role as Vice President, with a specific role as carrying the ball on the Universal Healthcare Issue. She can and already has dodged the slings and arrows of this in the past. Its an issue that needs addressing and she as vice president could steer it through Congress like no one else can. It is my hope that the Obama folks, in the midst of their victory lap, stop the cheerleading for one moment and start this campaign off on the right foot by making some sound decisions. Hillary on the ticket would be one. Publishing a serious economic recovery plan as a book, much like Bill Clinton did in 1992 is another. Tomorrow South Dakota and Montana have their say and the primary results may yield a nominee. If they do, certain things have to be done to insure a unified Democratic Party. We can’t afford four more years of drudgery and drift. The time of slings and arrows within the party is over. The time for healing has begun. To all who took part in this process, well done, all of you. You are patriots. Maybe your candidate did not win, but you took the time to hang signs, hand out leaflets, make calls, show up for rallies, make phone calls. You did your part. Take a break. Enjoy the sun. You will be needed again in the fall. Let us make no mistake – The Republicans are tanned, rested and ready and are not going to give any quarter. But this year is different – neither are we. There will be no swift boating this year. It’s on, Senator McCain. And we can write checks just as big as yours. You have been warned.