The Week in Brief
- Barack Obama defeated Hillary Clinton and became the 35th Democratic nominee for president. As Clinton marshalled her forces for her Saturday concession speech, as she demandsand as rumors build that she could run for governor of New York, I thought of this.

- John McCain raised some money.
- Bob Barr ruled the airwaves and asked to be included in the (10!) debates that McCain wants before the convention.

Below the Fold
- Nate at FiveThirtyEight posts a fascinating general election map. McCain is polling better than Bush did in the Northeast, Arkansas, and the punished primary states Michigan and Florida. Obama's polling better than Kerry did basically everwhere else.
- Nas takes the mic to herald the Obama nomination. (Cue O'Reilly Factor expose in 3,2,1...)
- Chuck Todd lights the funeral pyre for the Clinton campaign.
- Bob Barr adds Bob Marley to his "music" page on Facebook.
- Phil Klein watches Jim Webb fluff his VP audition.
- Eve Fairbanks profiles my new favorite Senate candidate.
- And wasn't this the director's cut ending to The Path to 9/11?

Play us out, Steve Hillage!

SATURDAY UPDATE: There are many ways to bask in Hillary Clinton's concession speech. I'm fond of Ana Marie Cox's twitter feed.

What is it w/HRC and children who give up their dreams to support her? Next: "And then I took some candy from a baby."

My snark can not compare, although when Clinton pledged to fight for people in "dead-end jobs," I muttered: "Like the U.S. Senate?"

SUNDAY UPDATE: I'm getting a little thrill from the death rattling of the people who bought the Obama "whitey" hoax. Stop the ACLU posts a video by Pastor James Manning, the nincompoop who gained some fame back in April when he called Obama a "long-legged mack daddy."

I don’t know how reliable this guy is either, but it is certainly interesting.

Please, please, jump down this rabbit hole. See you when you get out! And Larry Johnson's story keeps changing.

I have not spoken directly with the people who have seen the tape, but I have spoken to two of my friends who are friends with those who watched the tape/dvd.

What happened to the "five separate sources who have spoken directly with people who have seen the tape?" Also, now that Johnson is getting raked over the coals and compared to Clifford Irving, why doesn't one of these sources, you know... put Johnson in touch with one of the people who "saw the tape"? Even if they don't give him the damn thing (for obvious reasons of non-existence), they could put Johnson a little closer to the story. The fact that they haven't indicates, even further, that it's a game of telephone and the people who've "seen the tape" are lying and hoping they don't get caught. Johnson does a little more blubbering about his reputation:

Now it is some on the left who are attacking me and behaving in the same manner as those who rejected my reports on Iraq and Valerie Plame.

How unfair! Why did anyone reject his reports on Valerie Plame, anyway?

Also: In lieu of an actual tape, hoaxters have produced a video that recites what HillBuzz said was on the tape. White text on black screen for three and a half minutes.