Pity Party  —  Big picture, May 2008:  —  The Democrats aren't the ones falling apart, the Republicans are.  The Democrats can see daylight ahead.  For all their fractious fighting, they're finally resolving their central drama.  Hillary Clinton will leave, and Barack Obama will deliver a stirring acceptance speech.

Hypocrisy on Hamas  —  McCain Was for Talking Before He Was Against It  —  If the recent exchanges between President Bush, Barack Obama and John McCain on Hamas and terrorism are a preview of the general election, we are in for an ugly six months.  Despite his reputation in the media …

Who You Calling Activist?  —  CALIFORNIA'S GAY-MARRIAGE DECISION REFLECTS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN JUDICIAL ACTIVISM AND, UM, JUDGING.  —  When it comes to gay marriage, California is a hotbed of activism.  Their activist Legislature has twice passed bills that would legalize gay marriage …

McCain reaches out to blogs...on the left  —  The McCain campaign holds weekly blogger conference calls with its candidate.  There are many questions I know you'd like asked, but I've never been able to ask them because I haven't been one of the privileged few conservative bloggers allowed …

What Went Wrong?  —  The exclusive story of Hillary's fall, as told by the high-level advisors, staffers, fundraisers, and on-the-ground organizers who lived it.  —  Endings are rarely as joyous as beginnings—and in the case of a long, wearing, and ultimately disappointing campaign, they can be downright brutal.

SO IF THE REPUBLICANS ARE IN TROUBLE, WHY ARE THESE PEOPLE SO HAPPY?  I'm at the NRA Convention in Louisville, Kentucky.  I haven't been to a big gun event in probably a decade, and the change in mood is striking: People are, well . . . not ebullient, really, but noticeably cheerful and confident.

Perfect timing: Obama's super show-stoppers  —  With her deep party ties, New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton was supposed to own the superdelegate primary.  —  But in the last two months, it's been the rookie, Democratic rival Barack Obama, who has maximized his superdelegate moments.

Obama's sniper tale?  When he stood up to Detroit's ‘cold’ shoulder  —  Is this another Bosnian sniper incident, where a Democratic candidate for president describes a scene involving some personal courage, but later videotape shows that maybe perhaps it wasn't really quite all like that exactly?

Belittled Woman  —  At some point along the way, Hillary Clinton became “poor Hillary” and it stuck.  —  She went up against a charmer who once made an audience cheer just by blowing his nose (poor Hillary), and she lost states and delegates and she bet on a filly that died (poor Hillary) …

Obama Admires Bush  —  Hezbollah is one of the world's most radical terrorist organizations.  Over the last week or so, it has staged an armed assault on the democratic government of Lebanon.  —  Barack Obama issued a statement in response.  He called on “all those who have influence with Hezbollah” to “press them to stand down.”

McCain adviser ousted in conflict uproar  —  John McCain's campaign asked a prominent Republican consultant, Craig Shirley, to leave his official campaign role Thursday after a Politico inquiry about Shirley's dual role consulting for the campaign and for an independent “527” group opposing the Democratic presidential candidates.

Group finds Starbucks logo too hot to handle  —  A Christian group based in San Diego found grounds for outrage over the new retro-style logo.  —  Seems that one person's smut is another person's morning latte.  —  A Christian group based in San Diego found grounds for outrage over the new retro-style logo for Starbucks Coffee.