This isn't diary worthy, I suppose, but it also seems like a good way to let people know what we are seeing here on the ground.

Let's start with the likely assumption that Barack Obama will win the Democratic Party nomination for the 2008 presidential election.  Working off that assumption, the question then becomes whether Hillary Clinton has helped or hurt Obama's chances in the general election by not conceding the nomination and forcing Obama to campaign through (at least) Pennsylvania, North Carolina, and Indiana.

Reasonable people can and do differ on this question.  I think, for the reasons outlined below, the extended primary helps Obama because it provides him with an otherwise unavailable test run to work on wooing his most challenging voting demographic--older working-class white voters.

Jim Neal, running for the Democratic Senate nomination to go against Elizabeth Dole in North Carolina, has endorsed Obama for President.

He then indicates that, having engaged with people who are passionately committed to Hillary Clinton, he believes that the best option is an Obama/Clinton unity ticket.

In the ocean of endorsments, this is certainly a smaller sized fish.  But, with the NC primary coming up, it seemed worth at least noting that this is out there.