US Presidential Campaign 2008

**Jet Gorgon** · 12-03-2008, 12:01 PM

^ That's why the Reps will come out to vote in force (hopefully).

**Norton** · 12-03-2008, 12:10 PM

Hillary's supporters are doing their best in helping Obama with all the silly BS they spout. Between the good Governor of New York and Geraldine, I figure Hillary has lost far more than she has gained with their "support". Hillary's tactics now have turned to barraging Obama with all manner of accusations in the hope something might stick. As long as her supporters are doing it she can claim as she has done she doesn't support the accusation or statement. Like it or not, the Dems can expect this to continue as it is the only hope Hillary has at this point to go into the convention with a delegate lead over Obama. She must win by a 65% margin in the remaining states! She has no hope of doing this by pulling herself up so can only succeed by pulling Obama down.

In the CNN interview after his win in Mississippi, when asked if he would consider Hillary as his VP, Obama said in a subtle jibe (paraphrased) "She would certainly be on anyones short list as VP."

**Texpat** · 12-03-2008, 12:18 PM

Hillary's only chance is if she were to announce her VP now.

Bill.

**Norton** · 12-03-2008, 12:37 PM

Originally Posted by Texpat

Hillary's only chance is if she were to announce her VP now.

Aside from Bill as you suggest, you have a good point. A very strong VP might just give her the numbers she needs to surpass Obama in delegate count.

**mad_dog** · 12-03-2008, 06:59 PM

Hillary is used Washington goods. Burn baby burn.

**Hootad Binky** · 13-03-2008, 04:22 AM

Originally Posted by Jet Gorgon

^ That's why the Reps will come out to vote in force (hopefully).

They haven't so far:

A record primary turnout for Democrats

Wednesday, March 12, 2008

Texas Democrats were still pinching themselves several days after the March 4 primary. The face-off between Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton in Texas’ hybrid primary/caucus system had generated a staggering turnout not just at the polls, but at the precinct caucuses afterward.

One former precinct chairman in Austin said the highest turnout ever when he was chairman in his precinct a couples miles north of the Capitol was 15. This year, it was 408 (106 for Clinton, 302 for Obama).

That happened all over the state. The turnout of 2,868,454 was not just the highest since Texas’ one-party Democratic days (2,192,903 in 1972), it was the largest in history. On the Democratic side, Democrats turned out more than the general election vote for John Kerry in 2004 (2,832,704).

The jammed polling places, and particularly the precinct caucuses, produced some chaos and some long waits. “We’re estimating that close to a million people participated in the caucuses,” said Texas Democratic Party spokesman Hector Nieto.

But as Travis County elections administrator Dana DeBeauvoir observed, having far more voters show up than anticipated is a good thing.

The reason for the huge turnout was that for the first time in decades, the Texas Democratic presidential contest actually mattered. While Clinton narrowly won the popular vote, and a slight majority of the delegates allocated according to that process, Obama’s turnout was much bigger at the precinct caucuses. Estimates are that by the time the dust clears after county and senatorial district conventions on March 29, Obama will have netted more delegates out of Texas than Clinton.

Originally Posted by ChiangMai noon

can someone explain to me the difference between caucus and a primary and why Texas has both and not one or the other?

Bit more info here:

In most years, the caucuses only serve the purpose of choosing the delegates who will eventually go to the state convention and run the party’s business, draft a party platform and some resolutions – much of which is routinely ignored by actual candidates – and go to lots of meetings.

But this year, the delegates and so-called SuperDelegates – ones who hold their position because of party or elective office, and can vote how they please – will be very important in deciding between Obama and Clinton.

Even Republicans had quite a large primary turnout, of 1,384,662 votes. That was just 48.3 percent of the number who voted in the Democratic primary, but quite respectable nonetheless, since John McCain already had the nomination all but sewn up and was expected to carry Texas anyway. That vote almost certainly would have been higher had the GOP contest been closer.

Still, the Democratic total alone was well over a million more votes than Republican Gov. Rick Perry’s total re-election vote of 1,716,792 in 2006.

Perry, who faced Independents Carole Keeton Strayhorn and Kinky Friedman as well as Democrat Chris Bell, a Libertarian, and a write-in, got just 39 percent of the vote. The biggest vote-getter in 2006 for the Republicans, U.S. Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison, had 2,661,789 votes – still 206,665 fewer more than the Democratic primary vote this year.

Democrats are hoping that the turnout, the publicity and excitement, and the infrastructure they developed gives them a running start on the general election – something which they haven’t had for years. They have targeted voters in areas that normally vote Republican, and hope to use and add to that micro-targeting this fall.

Plus, the Democratic presidential nominee may actually come to Texas for something other than to raise money (but not spend it here), and the ritual stop along the Mexican border just before the election.

Some Republicans crossed over to vote in the Democratic primary, either because they felt that Obama was a change agent, or perhaps they had decided that maybe they weren’t such stalwart Republicans any more, after seven years of George W. Bush as president. And at least some crossed over to cast a cynical vote for Hillary Clinton, figuring she’d be easier for McCain to beat in November, and would have shorter or negative coattails for other Democrats on the Texas ballot.

Whatever the case, the total primary vote for both parties came to 4,253,116– more than 57 percent percent of the 2004 total general election vote.

A record primary turnout for Democrats - Wednesday, March 12, 2008 - Copyright 2007 Ourtribune.com

**Hootad Binky** · 13-03-2008, 05:40 AM

Originally Posted by chinthee

There is speculation that the Clinton campaign is intentionally having Surrogates make these inflammatory type statements, and then having Hilary publically state she doesn't support them.

All in an effort to undermine the support for Obama, play on deep racial divides and polarize her large white vote even more against him.

Well, it's starting to backfire; now she's blaming Obama for her own remarks:

Ferraro Quits Clinton Post

Geraldine Ferraro has left Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton’s finance committee, saying that Senator Barack Obama’s campaign was twisting her words to make her appear racist and that this was hurting Mrs. Clinton, a campaign official confirmed after CNN reported the development.

Mrs. Ferraro had told a newspaper that “If Obama was a white man, he would not be in this position.”

She told CNN she had not been asked by the campaign to step aside but decided on her own it was the best move.

Ferraro Quits Clinton Post - The Caucus - Politics - New York Times Blog

Oops

**Jet Gorgon** · 13-03-2008, 07:19 AM

^ Ya, no kidding. It also took the mass media awhile to get that story out -- it was in a local Cal paper a few weeks ago, no? Are they timing their attacks?

Here's today's Obama e-mail. Notice, no nasties on Hilde:

When we won Iowa, the Clinton campaign said it's not the number of states you win, it's "a contest for delegates."
When we won a significant lead in delegates, they said it's really about which states you win.
When we won South Carolina, they discounted the votes of African-Americans.
When we won predominantly white, rural states like Idaho, Utah, and Nebraska, they said those didn't count because they won't be competitive in the general election.
When we won in Washington State, Wisconsin, and Missouri -- general election battlegrounds where polls show Barack is a stronger candidate against John McCain -- the Clinton campaign attacked those voters as "latte-sipping" elitists.
And now that we've won more than twice as many states, the Clinton spin is that only certain states really count.
But the facts are clear.
For all their attempts to discount, distract, and distort, we have won more delegates, more states, and more votes.
Meanwhile, more than half of the votes that Senator Clinton has won so far have come from just five states. And in four of these five states, polls show that Barack would be a stronger general election candidate against McCain than Clinton.
We're ready to take on John McCain. But we also need to build operations in places like Pennsylvania, Indiana, North Carolina, and Oregon that will hold their primaries in April and May.
Barack Obama needs your support to fight this two-front battle. Please make a donation of $25 right now:
https://donate.barackobama.com/math
With our overwhelming victory in the Mississippi primary yesterday, our lead in earned delegates is now wider than it was on March 3rd, before the contests in Ohio and Texas.
And thanks to your help, we have dramatically increased our support among so-called "superdelegates" -- Governors, Members of Congress, and party officials who have a vote at the Democratic National Convention in August.
As the number of remaining delegates dwindles, Hillary Clinton's path to the nomination seems less and less plausible.
Now that Mississippi is behind us, we move on to the next ten contests. The Clinton campaign would like to focus your attention only on Pennsylvania -- a state in which they have already declared that they are "unbeatable."
But Pennsylvania is only one of those 10 remaining contests, each important in terms of allocating delegates and ultimately deciding who our nominee will be.
We have activated our volunteer networks in each of these upcoming battlegrounds. We're putting staff on the ground and building our organization everywhere.
The key to victory is not who wins the states that the Clinton campaign thinks are important. The key to victory is realizing that every vote and every voter matters.
Throughout this entire process, the Clinton campaign has cherry-picked states, diminished caucuses, and moved the goal posts to create a shifting, twisted rationale for why they should win the nomination despite winning fewer primaries, fewer states, fewer delegates, and fewer votes.
We must stand up to the same-old Washington politics. Barack has won twice as many states, large and small, in every region of the country -- many by landslide margins. And this movement is expanding the base of the Democratic Party by attracting new voters in record numbers and bringing those who had lost hope back into the political process.
Push back against the spin and help build the operation to win more delegates in these upcoming contests:
https://donate.barackobama.com/math
Thank you for your support and for everything you've done to build a movement that is engaging voters and winning contests in every part of this country.
David
David Plouffe
Campaign Manager
Obama for America

**chinthee** · 13-03-2008, 10:01 AM

Clinton apologizes to black voters

By DEVLIN BARRETT, Associated Press Writer 35 minutes ago

WASHINGTON - Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton did something Wednesday night that she almost never does. She apologized. And once she started, she didn't seem able to stop.

Her biggest apology came in response to a question about comments by her husband, Bill Clinton, after the South Carolina primary, which Obama won handily. Bill Clinton said Jesse Jackson also won South Carolina when he ran for president in 1984 and 1988, a comment many viewed as belittling Obama's success.

Clinton apologizes to black voters - Yahoo! News

Looks like the Clintons' slippery campaign to polarize the blacks and whites is starting to backfire! Or maybe not, maybe this is yet another ploy to appeal to the whites that the Hilary now has to prostrate herself in front of the blacks and will further polarize the whites against the blacks.

If the super delegates believe that in the general election, whites won't vote for Obama, but will vote for Hilary, she may be gambling they would pick her, in spite of the heat they would take for not picking the popular vote winner, Obama.

**Hootad Binky** · 13-03-2008, 02:10 PM

Originally Posted by chinthee

Looks like the Clintons' slippery campaign to polarize the blacks and whites is starting to backfire! Or maybe not, maybe this is yet another ploy to appeal to the whites that the Hilary now has to prostrate herself in front of the blacks and will further polarize the whites against the blacks

I want that framed. And drawn by Escher

This election is becoming a hall of mirrors with race, gender and ideology in flux.

Originally Posted by chinthee

If the super delegates believe that in the general election, whites won't vote for Obama, but will vote for Hilary, she may be gambling they would pick her, in spite of the heat they would take for not picking the popular vote winner, Obama.

Or maybe they're worried (unjustifiably, imho) that undecided Whites at the last moment might vote for McCain instead of Obama.

Originally Posted by Jet Gorgon

I like this Tucker host

He's been fired again:

"Carlson will stay on as a political commentator through the 2008 presidential election but that his duties hosting Tucker in the 6pm slot are over. A replacement for the man Jon Stewart once famously called a "dick" on CNN's Crossfire hasn't been announced, but it will supposedly be someone from within the NBC News team.

UPDATE: New York says Carlson's replacement will be MSNBC White House correspondent David Gregory. He starts March 17, on the off chance you were planning on watching this time around."

Fresh Intelligence : Radar Online : Tucker Carlson Finally Out at MSNBC

**Norton** · 13-03-2008, 03:27 PM

Originally Posted by chinthee

Looks like the Clintons' slippery campaign to polarize the blacks and whites is starting to backfire! Or maybe not, maybe this is yet another ploy to appeal to the whites that the Hilary now has to prostrate herself in front of the blacks and will further polarize the whites against the blacks.

Backfiring in a big way. Reckon we will see a bunch of this kind of thing in the next few months. Hurl enough crap and some of it might stick is her only chance at this point. Any predictions on what will be next CT. A nice juicy sex scandal might be just the ticket. Even if she managed to get videos of him in bed with McCain's wife somehow it would backfire on Hillary the way her luck is going.

**chinthee** · 13-03-2008, 03:33 PM

^My guess is that they will start portraying Michelle Obama in a bad light in some way. I'm not sure how they will do this, but I think we've seen the criticisms against her already, and they might find a way to accentuate that. At the same time, They will try to soften Hilary's shrill harshness a bit because it is backfiring. Look for her to be portrayed as a loving, regal First Lady, and for remembrances of Bill to play into it. I think she should use more of Bill's coattails, to convey the idea that if she's elected, Bill will be chief (unofficial) consultant on all issues.

At the same time, I don't see how they can fling any more shit against the wall against Obama, other than to continue to play the race card to the White voters.

**Norton** · 13-03-2008, 04:02 PM

Originally Posted by chinthee

At the same time, I don't see how they can fling any more shit against the wall against Obama, other than to continue to play the race card to the White voters.

I don't think that will work any better than her so called experience line. Obama's come back will be the states he has won that have a majority of white voters or states he has done as well with the white vote.

Think Hillary won't go after the wife. The Republicans will though, big time!

**raycarey** · 13-03-2008, 04:07 PM

Originally Posted by chinthee

^My guess is that they will start portraying Michelle Obama in a bad light in some way. I'm not sure how they will do this

Gee, maybe like this?

Originally Posted by chinthee

am I the only one who thinks she looks exactly like a big monkey?

^taken from the michelle obama thread.

**chinthee** · 13-03-2008, 05:45 PM

^Yes, exactly like that. And, actually, that comment was just said out of humor, but I'm glad to brought it to this thread.

If you read these threads, you would know that I support Obama over Clinton, so don't try to bring up red herrings that bear no weight on the issues under discussion.

**Hootad Binky** · 14-03-2008, 12:33 AM

Originally Posted by chinthee

I think she should use more of Bill's coattails, to convey the idea that if she's elected, Bill will be chief (unofficial) consultant on all issues.

At the same time, I don't see how they can fling any more shit against the wall against Obama, other than to continue to play the race card to the White voters.

As for the Clinton legacy, I have a feeling if Hillary is elected the day after it'll feel very anti-climatic, since we've all been seeing and hearing about Hilary for years now, nothing new really.

As for throwing shit around, Obama may prove more of a fan than a sticking point

**Hootad Binky** · 14-03-2008, 09:51 AM

Oh dear!

Clinton apologizes to black voters

Clinton apologizes to black voters - CNN.com

Ferraro Is Unapologetic for Remarks and Ends Her Role in Clinton Campaign

Ferraro Is Unapologetic for Remarks and Ends Her Role in Clinton Campaign - New York Times

**Jet Gorgon** · 14-03-2008, 01:19 PM

^ She spoke her mind. Average white America will not accept a black president, IMO. The divide is too great. ie, the slaves are ruling us?

**Hootad Binky** · 14-03-2008, 01:53 PM

She implied his race contributes to his popularity, not detracts from it

**barbaro** · 14-03-2008, 02:41 PM

Originally Posted by Hootad Binky

She implied his race contributes to his popularity, not detracts from it

Feraro statement was very stupid, and it was probably intentional.

She's a buffoon.

Race is, and will work against Obama, unfortunately. I am for him.

**mad_dog** · 14-03-2008, 09:55 PM

Is there any detailed polling data on how blacks intend to vote in the election?

**tom** · 14-03-2008, 11:05 PM

JG - Where in the U.S. do average voters still think that African Americans are slaves?

**Hootad Binky** · 15-03-2008, 12:47 AM

McCain seems more worried about running against Al Qaeda than Obama!

"Republican presidential candidate John McCain said on Friday he fears that al Qaeda or another extremist group might attempt spectacular attacks in Iraq to try to tilt the US election against him."

McCain says al Qaeda might try to tip U.S. election | Politics | Reuters

So let's get this straight: no wmds, an admission from the Pentagon of no pre-invasion link to Al Qaeda, but because of the invasion Al-Qaeda is there, and if McCain doesn't win the US election it's Al-Qaeda's fault?

Sounds like he's goading them into heightening their attacks in order to help him out politically and justify his "100-year" occupation ambitions.

**Jet Gorgon** · 15-03-2008, 01:56 AM

Originally Posted by tom

JG - Where in the U.S. do average voters still think that African Americans are slaves?

Sorry. I was referring to the image of blacks, especially among the mid-age and older folks. The younger folks are less likely to see race as an issue, IMO. But, there is still a strong undercurrent of racism in the States, and not just in the deep south.

**blackgang** · 15-03-2008, 09:32 AM

E mail from an avid Repub friend. but so true

Obama's pastor
Is this what you want for president? Not me. Is this Crazy Bullshit what we want running our country. He will damn sure run it.....Straight into Hell!! DO ALL YOU CAN TO HELP GET THIS MADMAN OUT OF THE RACE FOR PRESIDENT! YOURS, MINE, OUR CHILDREN, AND GRANDCHILDREN ARE DEPENDANT UPON US GETTING RID OF THIS CRAZY MAN!
Will Media Hold Obama To Repudiate His Pastor's Hateful Remarks? By John Stephenson Created 2008-03-13 21:25 Update: Don't expect Obama to repudiate these remarks. He still hasn't addressed his friendship with the terrorists of the Weather Underground. [1] Rev. Jeremiah Wright has been Obama's pastor for 20 years. Obama named his book, "Audacity of Hope" after a sermon of his, and he and his wife were married by the pastor. He is even a part of Obama's campaign [2]. Now video has surfaced [3] of Rev. Wright preaching a very radical message where he accuses the government of creating drugs and giving them to the poor, creating AIDS to destroy blacks, and blaming America for 9/11. [4] “The government gives them the drugs, builds bigger prisons, passes a three-strike law and then wants us to sing ‘God Bless America.’ No, no, no, God damn America, that’s in the Bible for killing innocent people,” he said in a 2003 sermon. “God damn America for treating our citizens as less than human. God damn America for as long as she acts like she is God and she is supreme.” In addition to damning America, he told his congregation on the Sunday after Sept. 11, 2001 that the United States had brought on al Qaeda’s attacks because of its own terrorism. “We bombed Hiroshima, we bombed Nagasaki, and we nuked far more than the thousands in New York and the Pentagon, and we never batted an eye,” Rev. Wright said in a sermon on Sept. 16, 2001. “We have supported state terrorism against the Palestinians and black South Africans, and now we are indignant because the stuff we have done overseas is now brought right back to our own front yards. America’s chickens are coming home to roost,” he told his congregation. So, Obama asks Hillary to repudiate Ferraro’s remarks about him only being where he is because he is black, and she quits. When will Obama repudiate the message of hate from his own minister, who is a part of his campaign? [5] There is also the question of his pastor running afoul of the IRS because of politics from the pulpit for Obama. [6] During a Christmas sermon, Wright tried to compare Obama’s upbringing to Jesus at the hands of the Romans. “Barack knows what it means living in a country and a culture that is controlled by rich white people,” Wright said. “Hillary would never know that. “Hillary ain’t never been called a nigger. Hillary has never had a people defined as a non-person.” In his Jan. 13 sermon, Wright said: “Hillary is married to Bill, and Bill has been good to us. No he ain’t! Bill did us, just like he did Monica Lewinsky. He was riding dirty.” FOX News purchased the video recordings of Wright’s sermons from the church. “It’s pretty clear an indirect endorsement of Barack Obama - that’s not something you’re supposed to do according to the tax code,” said Andrew Walsh, a professor at Trinity College who specializes in religion in politics. The tax code bans churches from participating in or intervening in a political campaign. Violations can result in the loss of a church’s tax exempt status. FOX has been reporting this like the damning story it is and ABC provided the video. However, as of right now the story is nowhere to be found on the front page of CNN, MSNBC, and CBS. The AP even defends Obama by stating the attacks are fearmongering. [7] O'Reilly pointed out tonight that the left wing media and the mainstream media ignored the story today, but that they will not be able to ignore it tommorrow. We will see. Will this story get the legs it should have, or will the media try to sweep it under the rug? They didn't ignore Geraldine Ferraro's remarks that Obama asked Hillary to repudiate over race related tones. Enough pressure was put on her that Ferraro quit. Will the same standard be held to Obama to repudiate the real racist rhetoric from his pastor? My personal question: Does Barack actually bring his children to listen to this man preach such insanities?
This email was cleaned by emailStripper, available for free from PaperCut - emailSTRIPPER - Print management, quotas, control, monitoring and accounting

Thread: US Presidential Campaign 2008

Thread Tools

Display

Thread Information

Users Browsing this Thread

Posting Permissions