Spin Cycle

Clinton and Obama met in person last night -- maybe at Clinton's house, maybe Dianne Feinstein's house, maybe somewhere else. Some reports say the Obama asked to meet, some say Clinton asked to meet.

Here's the statement issued by Obama's press secretary: “Senator Obama and Senator Clinton did have occasion to meet this evening. It’s the end of the primary process. They wanted to talk about bringing these campaigns together in unity.”

And here's the joint statement: “Senator Clinton and Senator Obama met tonight and had a productive discussion about the important work that needs to be done to succeed in November.”

Both suitably uninformative. This is what's clear: While even Hillary backers like Charles Rangel were not happy with the tone of her speech Tuesday and had to push her toward a real concession, her attitude is still that she's special: Former first lady, 17 million votes, historical figure etc.

Right or wrong, Obama has to deal with it. She doesn't just go away like most defeated candidates. Everything has to be negotiated, apparently -- lingering bad feelings, the vice presidency, Hillary and Bill's role in the campaign, Hillary and Bill's role at the convention, the fervor of her support -- and even, apparently, money.

Hillary, according to AP this morning, has a $30 million debt, $11 million owed to herself, and wants Obama to help pay it off -- while she and her fundraisers are promising they can raise $50 million to $250 million for the general election, more than paying back the favor.

DNC chairman Howard Dean met with some big Clinton donors:

"He clearly made the case to this group of people that he needed them very badly and asked for our willingness to reach out and join up with the campaign as soon as possible," said Steve Grossman, a former DNC chairman and a Clinton supporter.

But in return, the group had asked Dean to relay to the Obama campaign "how very focused they are on Hillary being on the ticket," Grossman said.