Clinton's poll-party: Legionnaire's Central

by Rick Pearson

PHILADELPHIA --Politicians can be as superstitious as baseball players. If something works, they stick to a routine. And there are always plenty of political signs of fate, omens of the good and the bad.

Just ask Howard Dean. Four years ago, his faltering presidential bid faced a plethora of bad omens. During a Wisconsin campaign stop, he addressed a crowd from an old restored opera house which the locals said was haunted by a ghost--named Howard.

At a campaign trip to New Mexico, Dean and his entourage stayed in a beautiful downtown Santa Fe resort. One problem, its lovely Spanish name, translated into English, meant: "The Inn at the End of the Trail."

On Tuesday night, Sen. Hillary Clinton opted to remain in Philadelphia and host a celebration for her supporters in Pennsylvania, while Sen. Barack Obama opted to move quickly onto Indiana, which is the next major contest on May 6, and hold a rally in Evansville.

Philadelphia is filled with history. Independence Hall. The Liberty Bell. The home of Legionnaire's Disease.

Yes, Legionnaire's Disease. In July 1976, at a state American Legion convention celebrating the nation's bicentennial, more than 180 people fell ill and 29 people died due to a then-unknown disease. Eventually, the dangerous microbe was traced to the cooling tower of the Bellevue-Stratford Hotel where the legionnaire's were staying. The microbe traveled into the famed old luxurious hotel through its air-conditioning system.

The Bellevue-Stratford Hotel no longer exists by that name. Now, it's the Park Hyatt Philadelphia at the Bellevue -- the home of Hillary Clinton's Pennsylvania election night celebration.