Obama and Hillary decided to blame their recent racial tiff on passionate, over-zealous staffers who hate each other with white hot rage. So much rage that they threatened to derail the Democratic race into racial shenanigans!

I still stand by my beliefs that this was all one big mulligan, with the Clintons trying to find a way to wrench black voters away from Obama by knocking off his halo and getting out played by Obama’s people who flipped the Clintons comments as being vaguely racists in their own attempt to wrench black voters away from the Clintons. After all, were the Clintons going to out bright say, “Obama isn’t as black as we are. Sure we’re white, but black is a state-of-mind now, right?” And Obama’s folks danced lightly around whether they were out-right calling the Clintons racists.

Obama and Clinton both tried to put it off on staff but I find it hard to believe that they didn’t know and didn’t approve of the point-counterpoint, outright distortion, Bob Johnson needing to shut up crap that went on. So this was all about saving face. Mostly the Clintons’ face as they got out-maneuvered and called out on their usual parsing of things within an inch of their lives.

But this is what happens when everyone’s running on the same platform. So this is what we should expect from time to time because this is not over. The Obamas’ people obviously don’t trust or like the Clintons (and why should they, why should anyone); and it’s obvious that The Clintons’ people feel like the Obamas have some nerve, showing up and ruining in Hillary’s election. The black vote, after all, was hers and Bill’s by default without Obama in the race. Sure, some might have voted for Edwards, but she’s married to Bill Clinton. She was getting the black vote with minimal effort. The Clintons have never had any real competition in this area and it’s FREAKING THEM OUT. The black vote has never been up for play with them. Hence their poorly executed appeals leaving them exposed for attack.

Which, once again, follows my point that the Clintons have no hold cards on Barack Obama. They’ve got nothing. If they had it, they would have used it the minute he became a threat in Iowa. This is all they can do — try to convince black people not to believe in Barack Obama’s candidacy. To somehow remind black voters of past disappointments involving black politicians trying to get elected, getting hit with the Bradley Effect without actually saying, “Seriously black people. Tell me one state Obama can pick up in the south? One state!”

Which is essentially like saying: “Don’t believe in Dr. King’s dream! Be realists! America is still too racist to elected a black man!” The problem is black people get tired of being disappointed cynics all the time. They want to believe. They need it.

Even me, a cynical pragmatist, needs to believe.

Despite this latest fake fight between The Clintons and The Obamas which caused me to be afflicted by much eye-rolling and audible sighing, I’ve tried to keep my cynical pragmatist meter at an even 50. I so hate it when my Democratic politicians start acting like, well, politicians. To use a phrase that I usually reserve for different situations — keep it in the pants.

I don’t want to see that side of you. I mean, I know you have that and I’m glad you have that for emergency situations, like for the occasional Republican, but please, for the love of Jesus, please, just put it away.

BTW: Oh, and the one with the perfect hair who is always in the midst of an existential crisis that happens whenever he runs into a new Republican viewpoint won Michigan. He beat an old war vet who I occasionally hate, yet still somewhat admire; The “other” man from Hope, a country bumpkin Baptist from Arkansas who I don’t agree with on almost anything, but get very defensive of when the media treats him like he’s mentally handicapped; and Ron Paul, who I applaud for his ability to fuck shit up on the Republican side. He totally rocks. I mean, he’s a crazy Libertarian with some very, err, sometimes interesting followers, but enjoy political agitators and polemics. Keep shouting things others think are heresy. This is America, dammit! You have the right to scream as loud as you want if you’re not in a library or a movie theater.

And Ron beat both the guy from “Law & Order” and the Mayor of 9-11. See, that’s why I like that Ron Paul. He’s like a meter for other Republican candidates to know how much you suck.