Barack drifting into the mainstream candidacy

Looks like Richardson is cutting his losses:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/09/richardson.out/index.html

Kerry endorses Barack - talk about mixed blessings, but on balance that will help Obama. This coming the day after the largest union in Nevada endorses Barack will help keep the for-one-second-stalled-by-NH campaign on a growth trend. I'd say his inexperience is going to be spun into a baggage-less asset combined with his very-likely consensus-building magnetic personality. Remains to be seen if there are any scary skeletons lurking in a closet somewhere, but he's good at turning lemons into lemonade, so it'd have to be pretty bad.

Hillary & Barack have virtually identical platforms, but if they both had to enter a smoke-filled room with the establishment to get things done, my money is on on Barack to outperform Hillary 8 times out of 10. In my opinion, her experience - and the fact that others know her as they do - will hinder more than help her. Every time Barack has been dismissed, due to his perceived lack of experience and gravitas, he's more than bounced back.

My ideal match-up of McCain vs. Obama would be very curious indeed, given that it would not only hinge on the vote of the independent voter, but their respective nominations would also vie for the non-affiliated citizen. The Kerry endorsement may add mainstream Dem votes, helping to lessen the Obama camp's reliance on Independents.