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Can Clinton Faithful Accept Obama?

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The New York Times

Published: June 7, 2008

Now that a would-be first female president is ending her quest for the White House, the race is more about women than ever before.

With Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton ending her campaign for the Democratic nomination, the two presumptive nominees are moving to claim her followers, especially her signature bloc - the millions of women who cast primary votes for her.

Sen. Barack Obama's campaign is positioning itself as the rightful heir to these loyally Democratic voters. Sen. John McCain's strategists are seeking to convert them, particularly older women who are skeptical of Obama's thin resume.

Even the Democratic National Committee chairman is avidly trying to make up for accusations that he allowed sexism in the race to pass unchallenged. "The wounds of sexism need to be the subject of a national discussion," Howard Dean said in an interview. "Many of the most prominent people on TV behaved like middle schoolers" toward Clinton.

Not Letting Go Of Clinton

Many Clinton voters say she will remain their leader, that she has created a lasting female constituency, a women's electoral movement unlike any other. So with Clinton ready to endorse Obama in a speech today, the vanquished candidate faces her first post-campaign test. Can she pivot millions of supporters toward Obama, the candidate she just stopped denigrating?

"I don't know any Hillary or feminist supporter who isn't going to support Obama," said Gloria Steinem, adding that a stray few could write in Clinton's name on the November ballot. The question, Steinem said, is the degree of support these followers will offer Obama, whether they will merely pull levers for him or will apply some of the vast energy and generosity they did for Clinton.

Not everyone agrees. Cynthia Ubaldo, 44, a Clinton supporter in Columbus, Ohio, just switched her registration from Democratic to Independent and donated $10 to McCain.

The endorsement is a mandatory, empty gesture, Ubaldo said. "I'm sure Hillary's cussing Obama out to Bill and Chelsea as we speak," she said.

Many of Clinton's female supporters have settled on a metaphor to describe letting go of her candidacy. They say they are grieving. And they refer to stages like "denial," "anger" and "acceptance."

In keeping with this close bond, many supporters say they are less likely to transfer this heartfelt allegiance to Obama than to simply follow their heroine's cues.

The 350,000 e-mail messages Clinton received after soliciting supporters on Tuesday include "an overwhelming chorus of 'We want you to continue to be our leader,'" said Ann Lewis, a Clinton adviser.

"Hillary is going to be helpful to him, and I'm going to help her be helpful to him," said Beth Dozoretz, a longtime donor.

Many Clinton supporters say they will not be able to make their peace with the Obama nomination until they know Clinton's role on the ticket, in the campaign and in the party.

Because Obama is unlikely to select a running mate right away, the question will remain unsettled for some time.

"It's going to take more than a speech saying that Hillary has made great strides and that will help his children," said Deborah Larkin, another longtime Clinton donor, referring to Obama's comments Tuesday night.

A classic stage of grief is bargaining, and just as Clinton has surely been thinking about what she wants to extract from her run, her supporters have been making their own wish lists. The most popular item, is a spot on Obama's ticket.

Health Care And Gender

If he does not offer the position to Clinton, "I'm going to be really angry," said Alida Becker, a member of Clinton's finance committee. "Hillary is not interchangeable," Becker added, warning Obama not to select, say, Gov. Kathleen Sebelius of Kansas as a gesture to please female voters.

Some Clinton supporters have other priorities. "I don't see the vice presidency as a very exciting thing," said Nancy White, 69, of Bloomington, Ind., who would prefer that Clinton to return to the Senate to assist Obama on health care and other issues.

In the days since Clinton signaled that she would leave the race, the list of what her supporters might want from Obama has grown long. Former Gov. Madeleine M. Kunin of Vermont suggested in an interview that Obama promise to appoint women to half his Cabinet positions.

Steinem said Obama should deliver the same sort of ambitious speech about gender that he did on race. An aide said the campaign is considering such an address.

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