Michael Chabon believes that fear is preventing certain Democrats from backing Senator Obama. The following paragraph reflects several notes I've received from friendlies:
In a better world, people tell me, in theory, sure, having a president like Barack Obama sounds great. But not, you know, for real. Not in the base, corrupt, morally spent, toxic and reeling rats' nest that we like to call home. Things are so bad we just can't afford to waste our votes, people tell me, on some fantasy super-president with magical powers. We need someone electable, someone, as I have been told repeatedly in the past year, who can win.
As Chabon later notes, the electability issue is the simplest anti-Obama argument to debunk: if the election were held today, Senator Obama beats Senator McCain. Senator Clinton loses to McCain. Senator Obama is both a "fantasy super-president" and the most likely Democrat to win -- and win in a landslide with Republican voters flipping over to our side.