Often citing the lack of his policies, alongside the three minor scandals that have so far hit his campaign, critics of his campaign (rather than supporters ofhers) engage in malevolent hypocrisy, and downright nasty ignorance. I would certainly expect that from the likes of Carville (for example, calling Richardson “Judas” after his endorsement of Obama), but not from educated, University students.

Those who claim not to know anything about Obama, his platform or his history may be forgiven however, because the total lack of substantial and correct reporting of his campaign is sadly lacking within the UK media, last nights Newsnight report is a key example.

However, any absence of information from the BBC or others cant be blamed solely for their ignorance. In the information age, information is, as the age’s title suggests, freely available. Indeed, Obama, unlike many other contenders, has fully engaged and deployed one of the best Web 2.0 campaigns ever seen. I point all those critics of his policy vacuum to his extensive “Blueprint for Change” http://www.barackobama.com/issues/ .

I offer a sincere invitation for all his critics to engage, read and then criticise if you do not witness anything that you might be drawn to. But claims that he is some form of Manchurian, sleeper candidate without policy is simple sophistry. Anyone professing the claim of “no policy” can then be seen clearly for what they are, ignorant of the truth, and the peddlers of negative campaigning.

Not to say that they have been getting campaign memo’s from the demoted, but still involved strategist Mark Penn, but for critics of Obama’s effective and inspiring rhetoric that is bringing independents to the Democratic party like no candidate has since Roosevelt, such claims appear not surprisingly, as empty rhetoric, much like the Clinton camps recent advertisements in the Pennsylvania primaries.

Hillary needs to win 63% of all the available remaining votes, and will not do so. Tracking polls are not showing a post Pennsylvania bump, she is trailing 23 million dollars behind Obama in campaign funds. She is way behind in North Carolina, and level in Indiana. Superdeleagates are now speeding up their endorsements for Obama, whilst party bosses have already signalled their intentions that the race will end sooner, rather than at Denver.

Obama has won 30 states to her 15. He has brought millions of Independents to the party and put much of the south and Midwest in play for the November election, alongside winning big swing states like Virginia. With the other larger states like New York and California unlikely not to vote for a Democrat (and Pennsylvania increasingly becoming less of a swing state, the democrats having won landslide victories for Senate and Congressional candidates in ’06), there is a real risk that party factionalism will aid McCain in his bid for the Presidency. The numerous skeletons that hide in the Hillary closet, which Obama refuses to expose, will certainly be exploited by the Republicans, and with Rove’s continual attempts to spin the notion that they fear her over him, because of this fact and others, is transparent as a tactic,

No amount of negative campaigning, and do-over political twisting of arms by Hillary and Bill can escape the fact that:

Now is the time for Clinton to leave the race, lest she plunge the US, and the world into 8 years of a McCain government.