When did Obama decide to stop being Obama?

Obama did not have a good night last night, losing to Hillary in two big states in which he'd hoped to win. His campaign failed to give the decisive final blow to Clinton's campaign that Obama supporters sought.

The results of last night's primaries weren't embarrassing--in states where he'd trailed by double digits, Barack managed to give Hillary a run for her money. He still has a strong lead in delegates, but many in the party had hoped the bickering between the candidates could end so that attention could be turned to defeating McCain. Instead, it appears the sniping will continue and Democratic party unity will be threatened while the GOP coasts and laughs at damage Hillary and Barack do to each other in the lead up to the convention.

I am not a pollster, nor a politician, nor a political consultant, but I have a theory on why Hillary generated a small surge in the days leading up to the Texas and Ohio primaries: Obama has stopped being Obama.

In the weeks before and after Super Tuesday, Barack built an almost cult-like following with his optimistic and hopeful message. He seemed to rise above politics, and his confidence conveyed that he would leave it to others (i.e., Hillary) to throw mud and cast dispersions. He seemed like a juggernaut of righteousness, letting criticisms bounce off him like gnats as he led the country to a better tomorrow.

But the last two weeks have been different. He and has campaign have been taken off their message. Where once Obama seemed to be above politics, his team suddenly seem eager to fight in the trenches. Where once he seemed focused on America, he now seems focused on the presidency. And where he used to focus on his message, he now seems obsessed with countering and disparaging Clinton.

Frankly, it's a little depressing to see his campaign complaining about the release of the photo of him in a turban; to hear about his general counsel infiltrating a Clinton media call to complain about her campaign's tactics; to listen to Obama himself question Clinton's qualifications; to see his campaign focusing on Hillary's tax returns; and to witness Obama staffers slinging mud.

Two weeks ago, Obama stood for something more than a quest for the presidency, and today he has made himself a candidate to be compared, contrasted, and considered. Barack's campaign seems to feel the only way to combat a resurgent Hillary is to fight back tooth and nail, but I hope Obama returns to the high road. What matters to Barack supporters is that in him they see a leader who can forge a way to a better tomorrow, not merely that he is better than Hillary.

He needs to remember that there are ways to respond to Hillary's criticisms without referencing her at all: If she says he is unqualified to take the call at 3 am, Barack shouldn't question her own qualifications but should speak confidently to the media and to supporters about his qualifications as a world leader. If Hillary snipes about his health care plan, he shouldn't try to poke holes in her plan but instead should smile and calmly speak about the benefits of his own plan.

All this political fighting just seems unseemly for Obama, and I suspect his campaign's response is exactly what the Clinton campaign hoped would happen, because the more he references and complains about her, the more he is abandoning his own message and providing reasons for voters to choose with their heads instead of their hearts.