Clinton supporters weren't blame-free

Last week in this space I reported on an internal memo prepared by a volunteer Washington state precinct officer for Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton.

This person had prepared the memo based on her experience during the Washington caucuses and from information sent to her by Clinton volunteers in Iowa and Nevada. It was sent to Texas Clinton volunteers in advance of that state's Democratic primary and caucuses. It explained to those volunteers tactics alleged to have been used by supporters of Sen. Barack Obama to disrupt caucus activities and votes in early caucus states.

I wrote: "From a balance perspective, it is equally important to keep in mind that similar countercharges are circulating to be sure among Obama volunteers — it is just that none of this nature has crossed my desk in particular. If I receive any from reliable parties, I will be happy to write about them in subsequent columns."

Needless to say, I was deluged, not only with information from readers about alleged disruptions by Clinton volunteers but also from Clinton supporters confirming there were indeed problems created by Obama supporters. I was not provided with any new internal memos. But Obama and Clinton supporters described their own caucus experiences, in about equal numbers. A sampling of each follows, first from Obama supporters.

This from a Nevada caucusgoer: "The Clinton folks were unruly, rude and intimidating. This included Bill Clinton, who hung around the caucus sites on The Strip until the last minute, at which time he was practically forced to leave."

This from a Kitsap County, Wash., caucusgoer: "When we arrived, about 20 minutes early, the parking lot was already filled. Inside there were large 'Hillary '08' signs hanging in the school gym with a few small Obama signs scattered around."

And this from yet another Washington-state caucusgoer: "Yes, precincts were crowded because Washington had a record turnout, more than doubling the previous record of 100,000. Yes, there were bottlenecks and lines around the building. No, sitting was not an option in the overcrowded school building. Well, this is truly cause for alarm! People showed up to cast their vote in record numbers, and we're complaining?"

This from a Seattle-area caucusgoer: "How dishonest of you and that anonymous former university professor volunteering for Clinton in one of our Washington-state caucuses. I, a 73-year-old Hispanic-American female who was going to vote for whomever won the primary but changed her mind after the Clinton tactics, attended a crowded caucus of well-behaved Seattle-ites who were exposed mostly to Clinton signs."