Photo Symbolic of Battle Between Clinton, Obama

Today, I found a photograph of a dead hawk that, in my opinion, might come to symbolize the 2008 Democratic Party presidential race.

The photo shows the claw of a dead songbird protruding from the chest of the hawk and suggests two things:

• First, it suggests the songbird fought to the bitter end; and

• Second, it suggests the hawk won the battle but lost the war.

It’s easy to draw parallels between the battle between the hawk and the songbird and the battle between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton:

• Obama is “The Hawk” — The junior senator from Illinois came out of nowhere and, during the course of a year, seemed to devour the presidential aspirations of his opponent.

• Clinton is “The Songbird” — The former first lady once thought to be a shoe-in for the Democratic Party nomination watched as her chance to become the country’s first female president — something many think she views as her birthright — seemingly vanished before her eyes. But she didn’t quit.

Despite losing so many state primaries and caucuses, “Clinton the Songbird” resisted calls to drop out of the race, kept fighting and eventually won battles in several key states. Now, with only a handful of states remaining, she continues to fight, seemingly focused upon extending the nomination fight another four months, all the way to Denver.

At the same time, Republican John McCain sits back and, like the Energizer Bunny®, continues campaigning and raising funds, content to watch from the sidelines as “Obama the Hawk” and “Clinton the Songbird” continue their divisive political battle.

Only one Democrat — probably “Obama the Hawk” — will emerge from the Democratic National Convention in August, but that candidate will be politically weak, having seen so much campaign cash disappear and so many personal and political skeletons revealed.

By the time the first Wednesday in November arrives, I’m convinced President-Elect McCain will be afforded the opportunity to deliver the eulogies for both “Obama the Hawk” and “Clinton the Songbird” when their presidential aspirations are buried alongside those of Democrats Mike Dukakis, Howard Dean, John Kerry and Al Gore, among others.

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Note: I came across the photo above in an MSNBC article via Neatorama.  Hat tips all around!

-- Bob McCarty Writes