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It's time to move forward, Clinton supporters say
Democrats emphasize party unity as key to victory in November
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Published: June 4, 2008
Updated: 06/04/2008 12:40 am
Debra Taylor eagerly lent Hillary Clinton her house and lawn in Winston-Salem to shoot a TV commercial ahead of the North Carolina primary on May 6.
On Nov. 4, however, Taylor will be ready to vote for Barack Obama.
As Obama got enough delegates yesterday to clinch the Democratic Party's presidential nomination, Taylor said that Clinton, the U.S. senator from New York, should concede defeat.
"I think, overall, the Democratic Party needs to move forward," Taylor said. "The hope needs to slow down. We need to jump into a little reality, even though I would love for her to be in the front seat."
Clinton, on the night she won the South Dakota primary and lost the one in Montana, congratulated Obama and his supporters "for all they have accomplished."
However, she didn't acknowledge Obama's victory or offer any concessions. Rather, she said that she was committed to a united party and that she would spend the next few days determining "how to move forward with the best interests of our country and our party guiding my way."
Clinton said in a speech that she wasn't going to make any decisions last night, signaling that she was keeping the door open to the prospect of becoming Obama's pick for a running mate.
Democratic Party officials say that the sooner Clinton concedes, the sooner the party can come together. Such party unification would give Obama more time to use his resources to defeat Sen. John McCain, the likely Republican presidential nominee.
Mary Dickinson, the first vice chairwoman of the Forsyth County Democratic Party, said that a concession from Clinton "would be great for the unity of the party."
"We are very glad that the entire primary has had an opportunity to play out, and we are looking forward to a blue November," Dickinson said.
In a race against McCain, Obama might not get all of Clinton's supporters, Taylor said, but he will nonetheless pick up support from her camp.
"The majority of folks, I believe, will come back over. There will be some that will not, but I think the majority will. They may not work as feverishly for Obama, but I think they will go to the polls."
Frank Dickerson, a former Republican who has become one of Obama's biggest organizers in Winston-Salem, said that he would do all he could to make sure than Clinton's supporters cast a ballot for Obama come November.
"There's been some bad blood out there, but I've been saying this all along -- that we really have two good candidates out there, and the differences are really very small," Dickerson said. "Supporters on both sides should prefer both candidates to John McCain."
■ Bertrand M. Gutierrez can be reached at 727-7283 or at bgutiérrez@wsjournal.com.
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