Hillary Clinton talked her way out of the vice presidency on Tuesday night.

E.J. Dionne, Jr. writes in The Washington Post:

Hillary Clinton talked her way out of the vice presidency on Tuesday night.

Barack Obama may never have intended to make her the offer. But Clinton's largely self-focused non-concession speech suggested that what some call a dream ticket could turn into a nightmare.

Clinton . . . made no acknowledgment of the historic nature of her opponent's achievement. The Democratic Party, whose ranks once included die-hard advocates of slavery and arch segregationists, had just taken the decisive step toward making Obama the first African American to be a major-party nominee for president. But Obama was not really on Clinton's radar screen.

By contrast, Obama offered a lengthy tribute to Clinton and "her barrier-breaking campaign for the presidency." He praised Bill Clinton's successes in office. And in a grace note highlighting one of Clinton's many honorable passions, he declared that when universal health care is achieved, "she will be central to that victory."

Clinton's choice was to present Obama with an implicit critique that might be seen as a set of demands. Clinton told her supporters: "We won, together, the swing states necessary to get to 270 electoral votes." Message to Obama: You failed to do that, and you need me to get it done.

She also offered an argument she made during the campaign that John McCain is certain to use, over and over, against Obama. "Who will be the strongest candidate and the strongest president? Who will be ready to take back the White House and take charge as commander in chief and lead our country to better tomorrows?" Whose purpose did she serve by repeating this?

[G]aining the vice presidency by invoking leverage just can't work. It makes the presidential candidate look weak. It breaks in advance the trust that running mates need. It can only presage conflicts and power struggles in a new administration.