Show her the money

It's becoming apparent that Barack Obama's biggest challenge right now - bigger even than charting a course for the November election - is finding a way to get Hillary Clinton to just go away. With all plausible paths to the Democratic nomination cut off, Clinton has been reduced to clutching at crazy scenarios or hoping that Obama gets hit by a UPS truck. But she's no quitter, and she'll be the first to tell you that as she downs a shot, shoots a squirrel or does whatever else is necessary to appeal to the lowest common denominator in the American electorate. And now, the word on the political street is that Clinton just might want to be Obama's running mate. In fact, Karen Tumulty reports on Time.com that Bill Clinton thinks his wife deserves the spot and, according to a Clinton friend, "is pushing real hard for this to happen." If Obama is smart - and he appears to be a bright fellow - he will run as far away from Clinton as possible when it comes time to pick a partner for the Democratic ticket. The central problem is that Hillary Clinton's negatives outweigh her positives. She might very well attract more female voters and rural white voters to the Democratic ticket, but polls show that a great many people, Democrats included, just don't like her and don't trust her. Just the kind of person you want as a running mate. Plus, you get Bill as part of the package. Talk about baggage. He's the Marley's ghost of modern American politics. Clinton seems to suggest that only she can deliver the type of blue-collar voters Obama will need in November. That's false on its face, but it also avoids the fact that with or without Hillary, the Democrats have little hope of winning in places like West Virginia and Kentucky, where racism helped Clinton roll up huge margins in recent primaries. Those folks might like Hillary, but Obama will still be black in November. And when Hillary recently touted her support among "hard-working Americans, white Americans," that should have been the death knell for any consideration of her for the vice presidential slot. Some names suggested as running mates for Obama include Ohio Gov. Ted Strickland, a Clinton backer who could deliver an important state come November, and former Sen. Sam Nunn, shown above, who once ran the Armed Services Committee and could prop up the ticket on national security issues. Obama is going to win the key Democratic states with or without Clinton. That includes her "home" state of New York. And there are signs that he will be at least competitive in a number of states where Democrats haven't done well in years. It all boils down to Clinton most likely being more of a drag on the ticket than a benefit. There are rumblings that the Clinton camp might want Obama to help her pay off her campaign debts. The Clintons have put $11 million of their own money into the race and reportedly are $20 million in the hole. If that's all it takes for Obama to be rid of the Clintons, he should agree immediately, even if he has to take out a personal loan.