"Pipe dream" refers to the pleasant delusions obtained from smoking opium. A pipe dream is a drug-induced fantasy that must, alas, vanish as the addict returns to earth. Today, lucky people, I want to address three such fantasies which seem to have taken hold of the Democratic Party.
1. The Dream Ticket:
Forget it. There will be no Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton ticket. Senator Clinton is being brilliantly devious and cynical in suggesting it. It is directed at waverers and late-deciders. She is saying, in effect: You have a choice. We know the choice is hard for you because if it was easy, you would already have chosen. If you choose me, you'll get both, so it's really not a choice at all!
That is what is going on. HRC is not going to accept the Vice-Presidency. Neither is Obama, unless I've vastly overestimated his intelligence. There is no reason for him to vanish over the Political Event Horizon for 4-8 years.
2. Gallant Gore on his Shining Steed
We've heard this one for months. In this fantasy, a deadlocked convention realizes it can't nominate Obama or Hillary. They send an SOS to the Mountaintop and Al Gore, hearing the cries of a desparate nation, humbly returns. The Democratic delegate, eyes moistened with tears of relief, annoint him President.
Again, wrong-o. For most Americans, Gore has been MIA for eight years. That is not at all fair, because Gore has been very productive. Nevertheless, the first reaction, aside for the tiny part of the electorate that reads Liberal blogs, will be,"huh?"
Gore has won zero primary votes. He has no superdelagates. He has puropsely elevated himself the world of politics, and his return to earth would not be without problems. How do you tell rank-and-file Obama voters that the "compromise " candidate will be Bill Clinton's "Bestest Friend"?
3. The Party Elders Weigh In
In this scenario, the Leaders of The Party step in and prevent a train wreck by brokering a deal. The problem with this is obvious. There are no such people as "Party Elders." There is no Establishment. The DNC Chairmnan, Howard Dean, does not enjoy the stature to propose, much less enforce, a deal. We won't have a Party establishment until, ironically, this nomination process creates one.