Hillary cruises in Kentucky, and it doesn’t mean much:

As recently as May 6, Obama trailed Clinton among superdelegates, the officeholders and party leaders who will attend the national convention by virtue of their positions.

But in the days following his convincing victory in the North Carolina primary and his narrow defeat in Indiana, Obama has gained the support of at least 50 superdelegates and taken the lead in that category. Clinton has gained nine over that period.

Obama also has picked up the endorsements of former Sen. John Edwards, who dropped out of the race in the early going, two labor unions and NARAL Pro-Choice America. The abortion rights advocacy organization had supported Clinton throughout her political career.

And Obama is going to win Oregon, though not by the same margin that Hillary wins Kentucky.

I’ll give her this - she’s run a strong campaign, she’s made a good case for herself. But I do think that in the end, the Democratic Party outside the industrialized (or de-industrialized) states has sought to look forward rather than back.

I still say Hillary would make a good VP choice, though of course we don’t know if she’d even accept second fiddle and the talk, now, seems to be of John Edwards or Jim Webb (both of whom would also be good choices). Either way, though, I’m coming to believe that all the talk about how this primary season has been bad for the Democrats is a bunch of bunk. Though the primary got real nasty for a while, it’s since toned down; and the bottom line is that Democratic voters across the country have been energized by this - energized not just by the fact that they, too, could have a say in this nomination, but by the fact that they could help shape the future of the party itself. That excitement has been unmeasurably good for the party - and will pay big dividends this fall, and far beyond.