Hand it to the Democrats.  They have found a way to keep the Hillary vs Barack story alive for week after week, and they were still working hard on Monday to iron things out and bring this race to a close, without causing a broader Clinton/Obama rift.

And of course, since most of the journalists gathered here would much rather write about a story that is focused mainly on personalities like the Clintons, then that story gets a lot more attention.

Add to it the relentless drive of the Republican Party to keep the story alive, and Democrats continue to step on their own toes just days before Barack Obama is slated to accept his party's nomination.

"A PARTY DIVIDED" thundered one of many GOP releases that landed in my Inbox on Monday, as Republicans did anything they could to stir the pot on the Clinton-Obama story.

Finally on Monday night, both sides agreed on a plan to have a shortened roll call of the states, where Hillary throws her delegates to Obama in a show of unity.

Ummm, that should have been an idea that they came up with about two months ago, not on the Monday night of the Democratic convention.

I've heard so many different explanations on who was supposed to do what that it really tells me both sides are at fault - and that the hierarchy of the Clinton and Obama teams wouldn't mind if the other disappeared off a cliff.

But despite all that talk, despite all those stories, when you go around the convention hall, when you go to the meetings of various state delegations, there are not any obvious schisms.

Oh yeah, there are Clinton delegates who say they want a vote, and a few who want to stir things up.  But realistically, they are so badly outnumbered that it isn't funny.

Add to that, the general party atmosphere of a convention.  As a delegate it is hard not to get sucked into all the music, the excitement and the non-stop message from the rostrum that Barack Obama is The Man For Democrats in 2008.

The really crazy part about is that Hillary Clinton keeps saying pretty much the right things, but her statements about all of this are so closely parsed, that she almost can't win.

She could probably scream from the highest building that she was for Barack Obama, and there would be someone predicting a convention floor protest from her delegates.

I'm sure she will say the right thing Tuesday night, but someone will still find a hole in her speech, one that raises questions of a Secret Hillary Insurrection.

And that's why the story is so interesting.  People can't get enough of the Bill-Hill soap opera.  Everyone says they are tired of the Clintons.  Maybe they are.  But the media isn't really ready to turn the page.

We'll see how her speech plays Tuesday night.  And then don't forget Bill on Wednesday.

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Students line up after school for school buses at Sequoyah Middle School in Doraville on Wednesday, Dec. 10, 2025. The school’s principal told teachers not to talk to students about ICE, and teachers and activists are pushing back. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

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