Swiftboating?

Obamaphile Reed Hundt:

Clinton did not make a dent in Obama's lead by her win in Pennsylvania but what has happened is that the republican attack machine has begun the swiftboating in the wake of her negative attacks rightly decried by the New York Times.
It is bootless to speculate about the self-destructive tactics of the Clinton camp. What matters is going on the offense against the author of the typically bizarre, distracting, and hideous rightwing attacks: John McCain.

Hundt (who has problems with capitalization and can't seem to figure out how to include hyperlinks) is simply echoing the Obama camp's talking points, e.g.:

• Obama's got the nomination locked up;
• All criticism of Obama is "rightwing" and thus illegitimate; and therefore
• If Team Clinton benefits from any of the fallout over Jeremiah Wright, Bill Ayers or Tony Rezko, she is essentially helping the Republicans "Swiftboat" the Democratic candidate.

The problem with this argument is that the first premise is false. If Obama has the campaign locked up, why is he now rapidly shuttling back and forth between North Carolina and Indiana? Why are Obama's surrogates furiously attacking Hillary and insisting at the top of their lungs that the Florida and Michigan votes are invalid?

Recall that in late March, Obama took a vacation to the Virgin Islands while Hillary, Bill and Chelsea were stumping all over Pennsylvania. But now, with her double-digit Pennsylvania victory and fundraising windfall, Hillary's seized the momentum, and Team Obama has belatedly realized that the nomination -- which seemed so certain in late March -- is in jeopardy of slipping from their grasp.