Whoever LOSES the nomination is responsible for uniting the party.

[Bicoastal]

I know, it may seem counterintuitive. But the way things have been going lately, supporters of the losing candidate aren't going to listen to the winner. They're going to listen to THEIR candidate.

Some people have been whispering that if the winner can't unify the party, they don't deserve the nomination. Well, right now this description applies to BOTH candidates. And the impetus will be on the candidate who attempted to unify the most voters and delegates behind them and failed.

If the losing candidate retires back to Senate, refusing to campaign for their formal rival and maintaining a facade of neutrality, and telling their supporters and former superdelegates to do like wise, our party IS screwed in November. That's the long and short of it, and the nominee wouldn't be able to bring those voters back into the fold no matter how gracious and let-bygones-be-bygones their own attitude is. It's ALL about what the losing candidate does and says.

And if they are sore losers, and we go down in November because of it, said losing candidate will fully deserve to be burned in effigy in every Democratic organization in the country. In my eyes, at least, if they don't do their duty in defeat and bring us squabbling Dems together, they're worse than Lieberman, worse than Zell...perhaps even worse than McCain.