There is a “huge, gaping hole that looks like the descent into hell” on Mark Penn’s lawn, but Hillary Clinton is still with us. Perhaps this has something to do with talk of her refusal to drop out of a race unless Obama picks her as a running mate. There is only one possible conclusion from this series of events: Clinton won’t be returning home alone. She’s taking the entire Democratic party to meet Mephistopheles. Although plenty of bitter primaries have concluded with a nominee selecting his arch nemesis as a running mate, Obama’s entire message precludes picking an old lady who exemplifies the old guard. So this puts Obama in quite a jam. He can’t secure the nomination without her. Yet picking her would doom his candidacy.