The Obamessiah's Ego Has Some True Believers Asking Tough Questions

Columnist Andrew Sullivan has been a big supporter of Barack Obama, but even he is starting to question that support in light of the Obamessiah's ever-growing ego:

A few things have unsettled me these past couple of weeks about the Obama campaign. It is not the small adjustments to previously held positions -- FISA, the Second Amendment, Iraq. It's a sense that Obama's ample self-regard is lapsing into hubris. The signs of this are pretty trivial on the surface, but they are troubling nonetheless. That simulated faux-presidential seal was both tacky, silly and presumptive -- a small version of ‘Mission Accomplished’ Obama could well do without. The decision to give his acceptance speech in a stadium, rather than the traditional convention hall is also an unnecessary over-reach. The night will be freighted enough with history; it needs no new drama to set it apart. And the drama of the first black man accepting the nomination - with Obama's rhetorical brilliance -- will be more than enough for impact. Lastly, I was gob-smacked by the Obamas' decision to include their children in a soft-focus TV interview.

I'm beginning to think that the Nuremburg-style mass rally that Obama is planning for the last night of the convention in Denver could backfire spectacularly on him. Planning an outdoor rally in the summer in Denver is always risky because of the possibility of thunderstorms, but a little rain is nothing like the damage that could be caused if that rally takes on a little too much of the appearance of a fascist gathering from the '30's, or some sort of weird personality cult.

No Quarter, an ardent pro-Hillary/anti-Obama site is also concerned that Hillary Clinton may be denied the honor of having her name placed into nomination and included on the first ballot, and they cite these comments from Donna Brazile to bolster their argument:

The problem is “there’s a strong feeling” that Sen. Clinton’s delegates need the chance to vote for her, Mr. Devine said. Many are still angry with a party decision that they feel deprived her of delegates from Michigan and Florida. “You don’t want a situation where anybody feels they’ve been cheated,” he said.

A second option would be for Sen. Clinton to be nominated, complete with laudatory speeches and happy floor demonstrations. By prearrangement, Sen. Clinton then would take her name out of consideration and endorse Sen. Obama’s nomination.

“There’s nothing symbolically wrong to putting her name in,” followed by a scripted withdrawal, said Ms. Brazile. But the spectacle of a rapturous welcome for Sen. Clinton would be irresistible to television and could embarrass Sen. Obama.

~snip~

The Obama campaign said Monday that the Illinois senator would accept the nomination at the 76,000-seat stadium where the Denver Broncos football team plays so that thousands of nondelegates could attend. But the campaign hasn’t settled other key questions about the convention, including whether Sen. Clinton’s name will be put into nomination, said Obama spokesman Bill Burton.

Sen. Clinton’s campaign office didn’t answer emails seeking comment. Under party rules, Sen. Clinton’s huge delegate count gives her the right to put her name into nomination. “But do you do it?” asked Ms. Brazile. ”Politically, does it heighten tensions?”

Obama knows that there's nothing preventing delegates from voting for whomever they wish, and should his ego continue to grow unchecked, might some of those former Obama delegates and superdelegates decide that the Obamessiah is too big a risk to the party? Having Hillary's name on the ballot (and her campaign only "suspended" and not "ended") leaves open the possibility of a last minute draft.

I bet that would get their TV ratings up.