Don't Do It, Buddy

Rumors are swirlling that Bill Clinton is pushing hard for Obama to take Hillary on as his running mate (articles can be read on Politico and Time).

All I can say is, big mistake. You don't unify the party by giving the second place finisher the second slot. Voters had a choice, and they chose. If Hillary cares about the party, she needs to get behind Obama and work hard for him, and he needs to be graceful, grateful and respectful. But the Vice-Presidency has long ceased being the 2nd place finisher's automatic slot (and when it was, we got guys like dualist Aaron Burr).

Hillary ran to be President and she lost. Deal with it.

But before we can deal with it, she needs to. She needs to own up to losing and bow out gracefully. Until that happens, nothing Obama does will unify the party. The triumphant victor can't just bask in his own glow if the loser is still on the sidelines rallying her supporters behind her.

The Democrats don't need Hillary on the ticket to unify the party. They need her to be a graceful loser.