Thoughts and Observations: South Dakota and Montana Edition

7:15pm: We are coming to you LIVE from Fenway Park in Boston, the states of Montana and South Dakota, the cities of St. Paul, Minnesota and Kenner, Louisiana, and from a basement somewhere in New York City! I’m joined tonight by special correspondents Sam Adams and Charlie the dog. Yes, it’s true—all the big guns have been brought in to watch history in the making.

7:21: Chris Matthews accuses Hillary Clinton of “running” for Vice President following her earlier comments to the New York congressional delegation (during what was supposed to be an off-the-record conference call) that she would be “open” to the idea of being Barack Obama’s running mate. Newsweek's Howard Fineman makes the point that no conference call in history has ever been off-the-record because there is so little control over who can get on. I would argue that Hillary is smart, very smart, and that she knew those comments today would ignite a media inferno, keep her relevant in this evening’s news cycle, and diminish what is about to be a historic accomplishment by Obama. Is that just me thinking the worst? 16 years of the Clintons will do that to you.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: Two strange twists of fate on this final night of the primary season. First, Justin Masterson has been recalled from Pawtucket and is making his second career start. His first start, you might remember, came two weeks ago on the night of Kentucky and Oregon. Second, Red Sox color man and local celebrity Jerry Remy was this afternoon dispatched to New Hampshire for an appearance with Governor John Lynch to promote the upcoming New Hampshire Day at Fenway. It was of course New Hampshire that bailed Clinton out back in January following her first bout of phony tears. This universe really is just a big snake feeding on its own tail.

7:30: Our first report from special correspondent Sam Adams, and Chuck Todd is here with the delegate math! Obama’s VP selection will be based on the cold, hard reality of the Electoral College map. Where does he need help and who can bring that help? Senator Chuck Hagel would be an across-the-aisle unity pick, and he may help the Dems pick up a vote or two in Nebraska. Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius has been mentioned ever since her response to the State of the Union back in January, but can she really turn Kansas blue? Indiana Senator Evan Bayh has also been rumored as a potential candidate for months…and Todd reports Indiana is one of those states that may be turning purple rather than red or blue. Oh the drama of it all!

Meanwhile, at Fenway: Sox third baseman Mike Lowell gets the Sox on the board with a 2-run homer. They now lead Tampa Bay 2-1. Apparently the kid Masterson has given up one hit—and that one hit is a home run.

7:36: The Hillary for VP sweepstakes is in full swing. Will her supporters be appeased by anything less? I should have been prepared for this. There was no way the Clintons were going to do the classy thing and just go away. Ugh…

Obama is 11 delegates away from the current magic number of 2118. When he clinches it will be a momentous and historic moment—a black man as nominee of a major political party for the first time in American history—but that will always be beside the point. The whole point of his campaign is that he is so much more than that. And if that becomes the story then he will lose. Make no mistake.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: Sox Appeal, a reality dating show produced by NESN during Sox games, is filming in right field. This is marketing gone wild.

7:55: BROKAW! He disagrees that Hillary is trying to “shoehorn” her way onto the ticket, despite the timely comments she let slip earlier in the day. Whatever.

8:03: Matthews references John McCain’s still-embargoed speech, which is now scheduled to be delivered at 8:30. It is all about Hillary, about the strength of the American woman, and about the evils of the American media. Matthews beats around the bush for three minutes, and then…

8:06: The embargo is broken! It was the media and the pundits who installed Obama as the nominee. They never properly respected Hillary. He is proud to call her his friend. McCain is going to pick up exactly where she left off, using tactics that are insulting to American women because he thinks they will work, and embarrassing to American women when they do. If you are a Clinton supporter who buys into this crap then these next four years will be your fault. It is just that simple.

8:10: We have a live look-in to the already packed arena in St. Paul. Obama won’t even speak for two more hours but they are already close to exceeding capacity. Matthews delivers an early contender for Line of the Night honors in regards to the upcoming GOP convention in St. Paul: “I hear Larry Craig is going to start his book tour at the airport there.” Ouch.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: JD Drew has overcome his bout with Vertigo to homer and put the Sox back up 3-2. Yes, you read that right. Vertigo. This guy should get some kind of award for the creative excuses he comes up with to take nights off. This isn’t like saying your grandmother has died four times—that is for amateurs. JD Drew is a pro.

8:30: Howard Fineman reports Obama will offer Clinton the Vice Presidency only if he is guaranteed beforehand that she will not take it. Personally, I would be suspect of any “guarantee” Hillary Clinton gave me. Especially if she brings along Terry McAuliffe to the meeting. Obama should give her the Michael Corleone offer. (“My offer is this: Nothing.”)

8:38: McCain opens his remarks by butchering the pronunciation of “New Orleans”. He enunciates each and every syllable and I think even adds an extra one. Yeah, John, that makes you sound like one of the people. And then it is full speed ahead in the praise of Hillary. He has three daughters, he is proud to call her his friend, her accomplishment has been remarkable, blah, blah, and blah. The crowd does not share his warm and fuzzy feelings for her, to say the least. The applause comes in at strange times and makes it seem like there are less than 15 people in the room with him. There is the very real chance that Obama is going to win this race going away—especially so if this is the version of John McCain he gets to run against.

8:44: The praise continues and I am thoroughly disgusted. So are many of his supporters. I deal with it by wrestling on the ground with Charlie. He wins.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: The Sox now trail 4-3. Not sure what happened. It is really easy to forget this Tampa Bay team is currently in first place, if for no other reason than it makes me feel like we are in some sort of Bizzaro alternate universe.

HOLY COW! Manny beats out a grounder to short for an infield hit. No, now the scoring is changed to an error on Rays’ SS Jason Bartlett. That is probably the right call.

8:57: Another special report from Sam Adams.

9pm: The polls close in South Dakota and this is the moment: NBC News is projecting that Obama has secured the necessary delegates and is the nominee. That news is tempered somewhat by the ominous “Too Early to Call” in regards to the result there.

9:08: Keith Olbermann and Tom Brokaw compare this to the moment we first landed on the moon. I’m not sure I would go that far—but I also did not live through the strife of the 1960’s. Different generations are going to view this from quite different perspectives.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: Masterson is all done after six solid innings. Manny Delcarmen comes into start the 7th and promptly gives up a 4 pitch walk. Oh boy…

9:17: Andrea Mitchell reports that “senior Clinton advisors” are telling her Hillary wants a private meeting with Obama to discuss the VP job. Matthews, Olbermann, and myself all have the same reaction: “This is obviously a leak, Andrea. Why would they be telling you this if they actually wanted a private meeting?” Mitchell, to say the least, is PISSED. This news was the result of her hard work reporting—not because of a choreographed press leak. Keep telling yourself that Andrea.

9:22: Clinton is the projected winner in South Dakota. I begin to cringe but then realize the silver lining in that news:

THAT IS THE LAST TIME WE WILL HAVE TO HEAR THAT!!!

9:28: Terry McAuliffe is the warm-up act for Hillary in NYC. Well, that serves this crowd right. Somehow McAuliffe or Clinton blows the cue, and there is an awkward 45 second delay between when he introduces her as “The Next President of the United States” and when the Clintons emerge from behind the curtain. As much I dislike Clinton, I’m happy to blame this one on McAuliffe.

9:32: She congratulates Obama and asks her supporters to recognize his accomplishment—but never refers to him as the nominee nor describes exactly what accomplishment she is referring to. Now it becomes clear why this speech is being given in a basement, two floors below street level, out of cell phone range and without television monitors. Hillary is pretending she has not lost, and she has sealed off communications to and from the room so many in the audience are none the wiser. This is a move worthy of Stalin. Are we looking at New York City or North Korea? Baruch College or Burma?

Then it is back to the popular vote and attacking the media. She will not concede—ever. Not in any dignified manner. She has lost that opportunity tonight. Any concession she issues from here on out will be to control the damage to her reputation, whatever little there may be left of it. This performance is an embarrassment to her supporters, to her staff, and to herself. Hillary Clinton is fortunate this night that she is immune to feeling shame.

9:41: She is talking about all the closed factories and the jobs shipped overseas, but makes no mention of NAFTA or her husband’s role in it. This truly is a speech better suited for Fantasy Land.

9:48: Alright, I’m officially calling BULLSHIT: I don’t for a second believe this story about the little boy in Kentucky selling his bicycle and video games so he can donate the money to her campaign. Not for one second.

She wraps up by announcing that she will make no decision on her future tonight. No class or sense of decency and decorum. None.

Meanwhile, at Fenway: Papelbon is in for the 9th with the Sox still up 7-4. Thank you, thank you, thank you. I could listen to Clinton no longer.

10pm: The Rays go down in order in the 9th, and strike 3 is called just as the polls close in Montana. Obama is immediately the predicted winner. This is further proof of the age old adage: Big Sky country loves a guy named Barack.

10:10: The nominee speaks in St. Paul, notable for being the very sight of the GOP convention in August. This is a brilliant move. The room is literally throbbing with listeners, some estimates are as high as 17,000, and John McCain on his best day will be unable to recreate it. St. Paul just became Obama country.

He thanks his wife, his daughter, his volunteers, his staff…and finally his grandmother. His affection and reverence for her comes across so clearly, so genuinely. I almost get a little choked up. Almost. He lavishes praise on Hillary (the classy move) and McCain (the smart move). The time to attack the latter will come soon enough—for now it is more effective to link him to Bush, to the faltering economy, to the war, and to the past.

Money quote: “We call ourselves Democrats, we call ourselves Republicans, but we are Americans first. We are always Americans first.”

10:45: Obama wraps up to thunderous applause. He was on tonight in a way he hasn’t been for the last few months. He rocked that room. It might have a little something to do with the knowledge that somehow, finally, he will be rid of the Clintons. I think we can all understand that.

It should also be noted that of the three speeches we saw tonight, his was the only one that came across as being presidential. McCain stumbled badly, and Clinton’s will always be remembered for its ugliness and her selfishness.

Bring on the general election! Finally, after six long months of left vs. left and right vs. right, finally, let us get into Red vs. Blue.