Why is this shocking?

The Clinton's have asked a lawyer to help them with their Obama problem and negotiate passage to the land beyond "intense rivalry." Is a lawyer the appropriate mediator, or do the Clintons need medical help or (shhh!) perhaps simply a marriage counselor?  Hillary Clinton has made heavy inroads on the family budget and Bill has been trailing her around and saying embarrassing things in public, so they need a lawyer?

At Mrs. Clinton’s request, the lawyer, Robert B. Barnett, who has brokered multimillion-dollar book deals for clients including Mr. Obama, Mrs. Clinton and Bill Clinton, is working to hash out questions large and small as the two camps work toward a political merger. Perhaps the thorniest question — what to do about Bill Clinton, who friends say continues to refight the bitter primary fight — has yet to be raised by either side, advisers said.

Problem is, a lot of their supporters are acting out, too.

... Nearly three weeks after Mrs. Clinton suspended her campaign and endorsed Mr. Obama, some loyalists, especially on the Clinton side, are having trouble moving on.

Some Clinton supporters are grousing that Mr. Obama has yet to make the symbolic gesture of writing a check for $2,300, the maximum allowable campaign donation, to help retire her debt of over $12 million.

So what is Obama's reaction to all this?

Mr. Obama’s aides said that while he was prepared to help her pay off the debt, there was only so far he would go, given his campaign’s own desire to raise record sums for the general election. In addition to the $12 million that Mrs. Clinton owes to outside suppliers, she pumped more than $10 million of her own money into her campaign.

Mr. Obama said Wednesday that he would not send out e-mail to his small-dollar donors asking them to send money to Mrs. Clinton. “Their budgets are tighter,” he said. “They know that I’m going to be working with Senator Clinton, and if they want to make contributions, there’s nothing wrong with their doing so, and I encourage them.”

Beyond that, the two sides are negotiating precisely what kind of role she will have at the convention, including what night she will make a prime-time speech and whether her name will be placed symbolically into nomination. They are discussing whether Mr. Obama’s campaign will provide a plane and staff for Mrs. Clinton as she travels on his behalf. The talks were described by aides on both sides as complicated, but not hostile.

That's good -- "not hostile."   

Comments

[John]

I don't understand the hostility towards Hillary. She's a great American that actually ran on something (healthcare, experience, policies). She had more people that voted for her than in any presidential primary thus far. And now people like you want to stick your neck into business of which you have no grasp of...

[PW]

There's a lot of business "of which I have no grasp of," John, but I'm pretty familiar with Hillary, with presidential campaigns, and with human behavior in general. You might want to ask people about their hostility towards Hillary and then (important) actually listen to the response.

[janine]

I didn't read hostility in the above account, but there's but so much a body can do to accommodate Hillary's campaign. We have a White House to take over, when is it appropriate to focus on that rather than placating people over a primary fight that's been over for a month now? August? Mid-October?