Grasping at straws as she continues to stay in the contentious Democratic race, Hillary Clinton claimed the following in an interview this week:

“I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on… Senator Obama’s support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me … There’s a pattern emerging here.”

This followed Democratic strategist / Clinton supporter Paul Begala’s quote during Tuesday night’s coverage of the Indiana primary on CNN:

“We cannot win with eggheads and African-Americans. Okay. That’s the [Michael] Dukakis coalition, which carried 10 states and gave us four years of the first George Bush. President Clinton, you know, reached across and got a whole lot of Republicans and independents to come.”

Bill and Hillary Clinton are the ones dividing the Democratic party, rather than uniting it, by diminishing all that Barack Obama has accomplished.

With their dismissive strategy and divisive remarks such as these, the Clintons are indeed reaching across the aisle. Right to John McCain.

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Another week, another day of primaries in the Democratic presidential race. As expected, each of the co-frontrunners had something to celebrate on this critical election day, pocketing a victory a piece May 6.

Below are some photos of last night’s rallies held by Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama - and their spouses - in Indiana and North Carolina.

Click to enlarge any of the shots of the Clintons and Barack and Michelle Obama photos, and follow the jump for many more May 6 pictures …

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Picture this: A straight-shooting war hero is picked by the GOP as its nominee. John McCain? No, Bob Dole in 1996. That didn’t work out too well.

Dole lost after a campaign vexed by senior moments such as when he fell off a stage, or referred to the Los Angeles Dodgers as the Brooklyn Dodgers.

All along, Bill Clinton showed deference to Dole, heralding his challenger’s “half century of service” to the country and talking about his heroism.

It was an effective tactic designed to honor, and at the same time remind the electorate just how behind the times and out of touch the man was.

Not surprisingly, it’s pretty much exactly how Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama begin a lot of their references to John McCain these days.

John McCain brings back memories of Bob Dole.

“The guy’s a war hero,” Barack Obama says frequently, transitioning quickly to the “fierce urgency of now,” leaving McCain, a quarter-century his senior, in the dust.

The Republican nominee-to-be, 71, isn’t helping is own cause.

A new Democratic campaign video shows John McCain at a press conference in Iraq, veering off-message and talking about a non-existent al Qaeda presence in Iraq, only to be saved by friend and colleague, Sen. Joe Lieberman.

As John McCain’s appearance on The Late Show last week showed us, he’s been in good spirits regarding the age question for the most part, joking about being “older than dirt” and having “more scars than Frankenstein.”

In fairness to McCain, he’s a lot more lucid and aware of what’s going on than Bob Dole was 12 years ago. The Dodgers’ last season in Brooklyn was 1957.

Ultimately, though, it will be a platform nearly identical to the failed policies of Bush and our hunger for something better that will be his undoing.

From the front lines of the Democratic campaign comes this first-hand account of an appearance by Bill Clinton in Findlay, Ohio. Emotions ran high Friday as they have throughout this race, particularly among young voters …

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With the Ohio primary looming Tuesday, March 4, both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have been campaigning heavily here for the last week.

The former First Lady even toted her famous husband and daughter along to speak wherever she herself couldn’t be present.

I had been following each candidate’s campaign trail through the Buckeye State on TV and in the papers when I could, but when it was announced in a campus-wide email that Bill Clinton would be speaking at the University of Findlay’s campus and that anyone could attend, to say I was excited would be an understatement.

Canvassing Ohio, Bill Clinton sparks the passion of voters young and old.

Although neither resolutely pro-Hillary nor pro-Barack, I knew that if I missed out on hearing the 42nd U.S. President speak at UF, I would sincerely regret it.

So I roused myself at 7:30 and stood in line among fellow students and Findlay residents outside Croy Gymnasium to hear the former President address us.

Trying to recap every emotion the event elicited in me is daunting, but in summation, it was a rare and special occasion on many levels.

I have not often (actually, not ever) in three years in this quiet, conservative town had a chance to stand in a crowd of predominantly young left-wingers whose political attitudes still hover above the apathetic / ambivalent line.

As I stood there, alternately shaking and tearing up, I became acutely aware of how palpable and electric the excitement was.

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Former Massachusetts State Rep. Raymond Jordan supported Bill Clinton for president in 1992 and worked in Clinton’s administration in the 1990s.

But last month was the first time Jordan, 64, ever received a call from the former president, according to the Boston Globe.

“Raymond Jordan, this is Bill Clinton, and I’m calling you because we’re calling all the superdelegates,” Jordan said, recalling the conversation.

A week later, Jordan received a phone call from Sen. Hillary Clinton, but it was too late. He had decided to support Sen. Barack Obama.

The neck-and-neck race for the Democratic presidential nomination may not be decided until the party convention in August, when superdelegates - party loyalists granted a delegate vote - make their decisions.

In Massachusetts, where After W is headquartered, the race is already fierce for the state’s 26 superdelegates. As of yesterday, 10 are supporting Obama, nine are backing Clinton, six remain uncommitted, and one is neutral.

Mass. Rep. Richard Neal has indicated he will choose Clinton.

According to Democratic Party rules, superdelegates are under no obligation to follow the will of the voters, as history has shown.

In 1984, Massachusetts superdelegates lined up behind eventual nominee Walter F. Mondale, helping him carry the state at the convention, even though Gary Hart had won the state’s primary.

This year, with Hillary Clinton’s popular-vote victory in the state Super Tuesday, some of the same conflicts may be in play.

Consider Gov. Deval Patrick.

His endorsement of Barack Obama in October was a coup for the Illinois senator, but it was not enough to deliver the Bay State in the primary.

So, should Patrick accept the will of the voters who elected him in 2006 and go with Hillary Clinton, or vote his conscience as a superdelegate?

Expect stories like these from the Bay State to play out all across the U.S. if what some call the nightmare scenario occurs - and neither Clinton or Obama has run away with this thing after the primary season ends.

Many Democrats are abuzz over the possibility of a “dream ticket” featuring Sens. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama running for the White House.

Some experts, such as James Carville, think it’s highly possible.

Others, such as CNN’s Roland S. Martin, say forget about it.

A great deal will depend on the results of Super Tuesday (Obama-Clinton and Clinton-Obama tickets are very different, as Barack himself said during last week’s debate). But here’s Martin’s reasoning …

1. Clinton will not be overshadowed by a V.P., and her popularity pales in comparison to affection showered on Barack Obama.
2. Barack Obama, win or lose, offers a vision of hope and of change, and would not want to carry Hillary Clinton’s baggage.
3. Too much bad blood between the two during this campaign. We’d say this is easily fixed, but the race-baiting strategy used by Bill Clinton and other Hillary surrogates absolutely enraged Obama’s camp.
4. Being No. 2 is unthinkable for a Clinton.
5. Obama doesn’t want to be LBJ, ostracized because of the influence of Robert F. Kennedy (in this case, Bill Clinton).

We don’t buy a lot of this analysis, but there’s enough validity in some of these points to make you think twice. Clinton-Obama may be the dream ticket to many, but sadly, nothing more.

Bill Clinton said Wednesday he expects blacks will vote Obama and women to vote for his wife - and the dynamic may cause Hillary to lose Saturday’s important South Carolina Democratic primary.

The comments by the former president — who has lashed out at Barack Obama and the news media — mark one of the starkest commentaries yet on the underlying role of race in this election.

His recent outbursts have raised questions about how far is too far - and even led some observers to believe he has become a liability.

Bill Clinton: Asset or liability?

Voting for president along racial and gender lines “is understandable because people are proud when someone who they identify with emerges for the first time,” Bill Clinton said.

Such comments are just the latest round of what is becoming an increasingly contentious Obama-Clinton fight for the nomination.

Obama continues to blast Hillary Clinton’s candor and trustworthiness, saying the New York senator engages double-talk on many issues.

The tension rose when Clinton’s campaign aired a radio ad in South Carolina suggesting Obama approved of Republican ideas.

Barack Obama has been openly critical of Clinton - both of them.

The Illinois senator responded with his own radio spot that says, “Hillary Clinton will say anything to get elected.”

A new tracking poll shows Obama leading by 15 percent in the Palmetto State ahead of the primary Saturday.

Is Bill Clinton going too far?

James Carville, a.k.a. the Ragin’ Cajun, may have a screw loose, but the longtime Democratic political advisor and commentator was his outspoken self and made many lucid points today on Don Imus’ radio show.

Bill Clinton’s former strategist - who once remarked, about Paula Jones, “Drag $100 bills through trailer parks, there’s no telling what you’ll find” - took no prisoners, and broke down the Democratic race as only he can.

Some of James Carville’s wisdom …

• People upset about the recent Barack Obama-Hillary Clinton feud and South Carolina debate need to shut up and “go take a wet shower”
• Politics is a contact sport, not unlike football, and Obama holding back on the Clintons would be akin to the Giants forfeiting the Super Bowl
• Similarly, Bill Clinton shouldn’t dial down his campaigning on Hillary’s behalf - he doesn’t have a dial, just a switch (and “it’s on”)
• Hurt feelings are not only part of the game, they’re inevitable if two people actually think they’re the best candidate
• The Democratic party thinks highly of both Clinton and Obama
• A Clinton-Obama ticket is not only feasible, but more likely after these recent moments of contention
• John Edwards should yield to the two candidates still in contention
• The New York Times doesn’t know the first thing about politics, and only exists in order to whine and pontificate

All in a morning’s work for the ragin’ cajun.

No matter how much you revere or dislike Bill Clinton, you can’t deny the humor of this video taken Monday, on Martin Luther King, Jr., Day.

Nor does it get less funny the second, third or fourth time.

The former president is apparently quite worn out, perhaps from leading the free world from 1993-2001 and taking Barack Obama to task of late.

On MLK Day, Bill Clinton has a dream … literally.

Former President Clinton revealed himself to be a devoted viewer of TV Land at the network’s upfront presentation, according to the Hollywood Reporter.

Bill Clinton said Friday that he enjoys “All in the Family,” “I Love Lucy” and “The Andy Griffith Show” and is catching up on “Bonanza” at night while trying to write his book on citizen activism.

“As you know, my wife is on the road, so I’m home alone a lot,” Clinton said of aspiring president Sen. Hillary Clinton.

“I’m particularly grateful to TV Land for giving me something to do at night.”

Clinton was the guest star of the network’s upfront presentation, which was very light on the typical advertising sales talk and heavy on Clinton speaking about his interests, including global warming, hurricane and tsunami relief and AIDS and childhood obesity.

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