Starting today, you are going to begin to see a lot of posts across the Blogosphere that call for party unity. It is, after all, critical that the two competing camps become reconciled with each other and, as much as possible, become united in the joint purpose of taking back the White House for the American people. So, posts calling for unity are appropriate. But you won’t be seeing any from me.

I see a few articles suggesting that the Clinton campaign is resigned to defeat but I see no overt signs of it. Instead, I see a smear campaign against our candidate’s wife. I see continuing signs that the Clintons are encouraging their supporters to see Obama’s victory as illegitimate, as if he cheated in some manner. At best, they see their loss as due to outside forces, like institutional sexism, rather than any strengths of the Obama campaign or mistakes of the Clinton campaign.

I’m willing to be reconciled, but I am not willing to stop fighting until I see a white flag and an acknowledgment that Barack Obama won this contest fair and square and according to the rules. When I see Hillary Clinton stand up and admit that she lost and that Obama’s victory is 100% legitimate, then I will stop fighting back. I hope to see it soon. And then, I hope, the Clinton supporters in the Blogosphere will stop peddling in hate and unsubstantiated innuendo. We all understand hardball tactics, even if we don’t always respect them. But this contest is coming to a close. And anyone that keeps up the fight against Obama after today is working for McCain. And that includes Hillary Clinton.

Update [2008-6-3 12:21:13 by BooMan]: And lest anyone think I am unsporting, the Associated Press reports that Clinton is not conceding.

Hillary Rodham Clinton will concede Tuesday night that Barack Obama has the delegates to secure the Democratic nomination, campaign officials said, effectively ending her bid to be the nation’s first female president.

Obama is 40 delegates shy of clinching the nomination, but he is widely expected to make up the difference Tuesday with superdelegate support and votes in South Dakota and Montana. Once he reaches the magic number of 2,118, Clinton will acknowledge that he has secured the necessary delegates to be the nominee.

The former first lady will stop short of formally suspending or ending her race in her speech in New York City.

She will pledge to continue to speak out on issues like health care. But for all intents and purposes, the two senior officials said, the campaign is over.

Most campaign staff will be let go and will be paid through June 15, said the officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to divulge her plans.

The advisers said Clinton has made a strategic decision to not formally end her campaign, giving her leverage to negotiate with Obama on various matters including a possible vice presidential nomination for her. She also wants to press him on issues he should focus on in the fall, such as health care.

Universal health care, Clinton’s signature issue as first lady in the 1990s, was a point of dispute between Obama and the New York senator during their epic nomination fight.

What kind of message does that send to her supporters?