Letters to the Editor
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Valid criticisms, but most relevant issue is winning the general election.
The comments I've read include many seemingly valid criticisms of the article and the author, but none of the criticisms explains away the most relevant issue: winning the general election. We can discuss a lot of "what ifs" and "should haves", but the Democrats are in the situation they are in now and must convert this situation into a win at the November general election.
It does no good to the Democratic Party, for Obama to win the nomination only to be defeated by McCain, especially if Clinton has a compelling advantage over McCain. The article contains sound interpretation of polls to support these expectations.
Obama's popular vote margin is too small to claim a popular mandate. The process by which Obama has a lead over Clinton threatens to nominate the candidate that is less competitive against McCain. If the goal is to win the general election, the process is flawed. The Superdelegates have the power (and I believe, the mandate) to correct this flaw by throwing their support to the candidate who will be more competitive against McCain.
If Obama wins the nomination, he'll have a huge burden of debt to win the general election. If he loses to McCain as the polls suggest, the Democrats will have only themselves to blame for setting up a bad nominating process, and for failing to use the power of the Superdelegates to nominate the more competitive candidate.
Obama has his current delegate lead fair and square, but does he have the presence of mind to understand Clinton's advantage against McCain? The Superdelegates have their special voting powers, presumably because they are wise keepers of the Democratic party. Do they have the courage to exercise this power against (a marginal opposition in) public opinion? Does Obama have the humility to postpone his presidential ambitions to help the Democratic party win in '08?
For all the criticisms and ill-will directed toward Clinton, this article suggests she has compelling, rational reasons to stay in the race.