Obama Struggles With Working Class Whites, Dems Emotionally Divided

Coming into the North Carolina and Indiana primaries, an emphasis was placed on two questions: Could Barack Obama win over the small town vote and, to a lesser extent, had the Democratic Party fissured irrevocably over the fight between the two candidates?

A set of exit polls (subject to change) obtained by the Huffington Post suggest that the Illinois Democrat is still struggling among the working class constituency and that the Democratic Party is emotionally divided.

In Indiana, Obama scored only 34 percent of the "working class" white vote, compared to Clinton's 65 percent. Overall the New York Democrat bested her Illinois counterpart 61 to 39 percent among all white voters. Those numbers were even further divided in North Carolina, where Obama picked up 24 percent of working class whites and 35 percent of whites in general.

And yet, for those who argue that Obama is out of touch, 65 percent of Indiana voters said he shared their values, compared to Clinton's 62 percent, while in North Carolina 69 percent of voters said he shared their values compared to 61 percent for Clinton.

Again, the numbers were mixed when it came to the economy. Sixty-five percent of the Indiana Democratic primary electorate cited economic concerns as the most important issue. And among that group 54 percent went to Clinton, 45 percent to Obama. However, those numbers were almost reversed in North Carolina, where Obama picked up 52 percent of that group's vote to Clinton's 44.

So where did Obama make up his vote? With the usual coalitions. Eighteen-percent of Indiana primary goers were first time voters. And they supported the Senator by a 60 to 40 margin. In North Carolina, meanwhile, Obama beat Clinton 71 percent to 24 percent among those under 30 years of age.

As for the final of the two questions: the Democratic race does seem to have emotions flaring. Fifteen percent of North Carolina respondents say they would vote for Sen. John McCain should he and Clinton end up the two nominees. That number rose to 19 percent if it were McCain v. Obama. In Indiana, meanwhile, 17 percent of voters said they would support McCain if he were facing Clinton, while 20 percent said they would back the Arizona Republican if he battled Obama.

Comments

[sherylsworld]

Omaba doesn't have a problem with working class whites. If he campaigned with baggy pants, a gold chain around his neck, and spoke slang, would he be more accepted by working whites?

[lodipete]

Obama should have no problem with working class people regardless of what color they are. The repubs have SCREWED workers & middle class people long enough!!!!­!!!!!!!!!!­!!!!!!!!

[jaynevada]

There is a difference between:

1) What you believe reality should be...

and

2) What reality actually is...

As you are an Obama supporter the distinction is unfortunately lost on you.

[MJD615]

I stopped supporting Obama when Rev. Wright showed his true colors. Regardless of what Obama says now, he sat in the pews for a very long time, so I feel Obama must agree with a lot of the "venom" that came out of Rev. Wright's mouth. I also don't care for Michelle Obama. My perception is that she is very arrogant.

Don't like McCain and his war strategy either.

Guess I'll be voting for Nader.

[gbht12]

Great move, good stategy on your part.

Did you check out the bitter remarks from Hagee, Robertson and Falwell?

And by the way, he didn't sit in the pew for 20 years every Sunday, go ahead and throw your vote away.

[MJD615]

At this point, I feel I would be wasting my vote if I voted for Obama or McCain.

Thanks for your "permission" to cast my vote for Nader.

[SOOKOOYAH GURL]

Nonsense.. First of all, if you listened to all of the soundbites, you's know that they were from some 9/11 sermon. Also, the Rev wasn't wrong about many things. He may have been off on the AIDS thing and his grunting was scary, but is it safe to say that we invited 9/11 into our country?

Our policies are what is destroying us. They are not hating us for our "freedoms", but rather for us stealing their resources, bombing their countries and funding violent dictatorships.

A perfect example is the Iran Contra affair.
Another is the bombing of Grenada.
Iran
Iraq
Afghanistan
The Havoc we wreaked in Soth America
Haiti..
Vietnam..

[MJD615]

Sorry...I don't agree with most things I have heard Rev. Wright say. I believe he is a racist.

[PAposter]

Look, I don't care how many times it is said or written, Senator Barack Obama DOES NOT HAVE A PROBLEM WITH WHITE WORKING CLASS MEN. I volunteered for Senator Obama's campaign in PA and I sat next to White Working Class Men who also supported his campaign. We worked out of 3 Union Halls in my area that were filled with White Working Class Men who are very strong supporters. During the weekend leading up to the election, through Election Day, these Union Workers were canvassing side by side with other volunteers. Not only were there White Working Class Men and Women, there were White and Black Seniors, Asians, Catholics, Jews, Black, White and Latino Youths. I can only speak to the campaign efforts in PA, and it was an amazing mosaic of Americans all proudly working together for a common cause. We "all" get what's at stake this election year, and we "all" know who is best suited to get the job done, us and Senator Obama together. The whites that are not voting for Senator Obama would not vote for any Black candidate under any circumstances, but all our hard work will serve to elect a candidate that will look out for their interests, even if they will not.

[GeoLee]

You are so into Obama that you do not see the forest through the trees.I have been trying to tell you for months that when you spend time with people you KNOW, and not in union hall meetings which are oprobably integrated, and really talk to them about the presidential preferences, there is a great divide. It is the worst I have seen in 40 years. If you know people are for one candidate or the other, the conversation is now is either superficial because you already know no opinions will be changed or almost hostile whereas 4 months ago, it was not nearly so split or intense in the feeling level...mu­ch like the tone of these blogs. What whites will say in an integrated group and what they will say when not, has led me to believe that united we are not. I think so may of you are sending so much time in pro obama sites that you are not aware what is happening in the living rooms and offices in middle America. People actually say, "don't bring up (your favorite candidate)'s name. She or he is for (the other candidate.­) because they are tired of the negativity and arguing. And, it is not all directed against Hillary as it is here. More often lately Michelle's name comes up and Bill's as both have negatives because of shooting off their mouths. A huge number would like a different option than either Dem.

[luvienne]

I no longer watch cable news. They tell you what they want you to think. I refuse to let them control my mind or my vote. Cable news is run by good ole boys. As for the polls ,they are never accurate, just an opinion. another way to control your thinking. I want the truth, not their truth. They have enough money to be elite, just like Hillary. If she has to lend her campain 10 million dollars, doesn't that tell you something? Bush degraded McCain, and then he gave him a pet on the head for the 2008 nomination. Watch the cable news biased coverage for the garbage they put out. .I can think for myself. I will vote Democrat. Voting Republican is not good for my pocketbook. They tell you Obama will not get the white vote. Guess what . They are so wrong. I am confident Obama. will win the nomination .

[gbht12]

I am a white woman over 50 living in the bubba land of TEXAS! I am a loyal supporter of Obama. People need to realize that just because I am a woman does not mean that I would vote for a woman. I am voting for the person most qualified and most able to kick a** with McCain. You have to remember that Clinton has put all these Republican ideas into people's minds. She did all the Republican's damage on Obama for months. It just blew up in her face.

She has so much garbage to pick through. Just ask yourself one question? Just one frea**ing question. Why would Rush Limbaugh, Pat Buchanan, all the Republican pundits praise her to no end? Why? Because they wanted her to be the nominee so badly because they knew she could be beaten by McCain. Atleast that was there game plan. It failed. So suck it UP!

I live in the most ditto head neighborhood and they were over joyed at the primary in TX, of course they didn't count the caucus which he won. They came out for Hillary just like they did in OHIO, IN,NC. But the democrats prevailed and Rush Limbaugh is an idiot. Anyone that listens to that garbage is a moron.

[liberal1976]

I'm what the punditry says wouldn't vote for Obama. I'm a WHITE female who graduated from high school. I DON'T have a college degree. I live in the RURAL SOUTH. My family makes LESS than 50 thousand a year. I see what HRC is all about. She is just another wanna be Republican. She will NEVER get my vote. I will vote for NADER over her if she somehow steals the nomination.

[pertello]

Obama needs to address the working class whites over 40. He isn't getting to them yet. He is one of them but they just don't see it. He came from a middle class background. His Mom was not rich and struggled to support him. His grandparents scrimped to send him to the HS he went to. He did not grow up priviledged. That's why the "Latte sipping blahblahblah" label is so insulting to him. BIll Clinton hangs out in the Starbucks in Chappaqua when he's not holed up in his 2.5 MILLION DOLLAR MANSION. If anyone is a "Latte sipping blahblahblah" it's Bill.

[lyingtruth]

The headline should read: Obama struggles with rednecks!

These George Bush democrats; mostly older and ignorant are too dumb to know when they are being fed bs.

[Breni]

lyingtruth

The headline should read: Obama struggles with rednecks!

These George Bush democrats; mostly older and ignorant are too dumb to know when they are being fed bs.

* ** *

LOL! You're a "typical Obummer supporter" who resorts to name-calling because your master isn't winning 100% of all states' votes - that includes ALL of the dems, repubs and indies. LOL! You've got it bad for your man, don'tcha?

[pertello]

In my experiences in talking to some redneck dems, you'd be surprised the sort of soundbites they latch onto.
Gas Tax Holiday: That 18 cents they see as the answer to all their financial problems.
Rev Psycho: They all ask "Is this what Obama really thinks?"

And the secret hidden fears of blacks taking over. People really think this! "Then the blacks will be in charge" they say! Amazing, huh?

I sincerely hope Obama can win these idiots over with his natural charm charisma and intelligence. I mean he won a nuanced argument about the gas tax thing. People actually DID start to say "Hey, maybe it's just a vote grabbing ploy". So If he says something often enough maybe people will get it through their thick heads. His next banner behind him should read

"UNITING PEOPLE. UNITING AMERICA"

[wish4change]

"The headline should read: Obama struggles with rednecks!"

OMG! Why would Obama or his supporters label voters "rednecks" or mosty older (over 40) ignorant and dumb and yet still expect that percentage of the population to vote for him! Talk about insulting the very group of people he needs the most.

I think young people don't get it that the older folks have been through many elections and have experienced their candidate being beaten (Gary Hart, Al Gore, John Kerry to name a few) - yes it hurts terribly but actual hatred towards the challengers was mostly missing from the narrative. That isn't the case this time. The media and left wing of the democrat party actually hates Hillary. Its time for the older ingorant and dumb, as well as rednecks to teach the Obama people a lesson. Trust me, its coming your way, so get the crying towels ready.

[Agnim]

All the childish dividing up Americans is missing the MAIN POINT: OBAMA IS WINNING!

If the WINNER, Barack Obama, is so-called 'struggling', then what is the LOSER, Hilary Clinton, doing?

If come November and the American people decide that they would rather a LYING leader that is divisive, deceptive and disingenuous, or a old timer with 4 more years of Bush destruction of the American Dream, then it will be their call.
It is not like the American people do not know what they are getting in the candidates by now?

So all this baby talk about who is 'struggling' against which demographic MISSES the point of this election: THE OLD WAYS OF LOOKING OF THINGS DOES NOT APPLY!

[Bluesage]

Hillary has won the states that a Democrat must win in Nov. Obama has won many states that he has no chance of carrying in Nov. and will have a real tough time carrying the ones he needs like Ohio and PA. It really is about the math and he will not have it in Nov.

[Henk]

Obama struggles with working class whites, Hillary struggles with everyone else!

[sclucie]

Correction: a six-point difference between the candidates on the economy.

[sclucie]

I'm not getting this. If you have a college degree, you're not white? Obama gets white votes, black votes and he won almost all the Rocky Mountain states - which are not exactly integrated. In Indiana - there was only a six point difference between the two.

What this article leaves out is a lot. First, Obama has been under Rovian-style attacks for six months - from her own party. Second, no one has been reporting on McCain and the more he speaks and the more his positions are covered by the press, his numbers can only go down - they are stunningly conservative. His health plan is madness. He has no education plan. His position on Supreme Court nominations is the most conservative I've ever heard in my life - way to the right of Reagan and Bush. Third, Hillary has become an NRA/neocon since the California and New York primaries - talking guns, testosterone and nuclear obliteration. People who voted Clinton in California are much closer politically to Obama than the new Clinton. Fourth, Obama has held back - because he was running against a potential Democratic nominee - Bill and Hillary couldn't do it. He is not going to hold back in the same way against John McCain.

[benwha]

Well said sclucie.

[paganmist]

"Why are so many blacks voting for Barack Obama?"

When this started, African Americans were split for Hillary than Barack, who (to many if not most blacks) didn't seem "black enough". Also, Hillary and Bill were known to do a lot for blacks.

You want to know why so many blacks defected?

Look to Hillary's comments on Rev. Wright and the way the media kept driving it in. Look to places like Kentucky, where racists started calling up Bob Chandler who endorsed Obama, wondering why he was supporting that n*gger.

Look to Bill Clinton's comments about fairy tales and irrelevant comments about Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson.

Look to the way the media mercilessly hounded Trinity United Church, and then look at how many people on these very boards were saying things like "Go back to Africa" and "Blacks are just victim personalit­ies."

Look to EVERYONE saying that the only "important" vote was the "white blue-collar male" vote, as if no other votes existed, particularly not blacks. Look to how he was unfairly raked over the fire all in the quest to get this "middle class blue collar vote" which is such a clever code word for "white people who will never vote for a black man".

You want to know why so many blacks are voting for Barack Obama?

Then a lot of people need to walk to the closest mirror and look in it at themselves, and there you'll find your answer.

[Oldtt]

From your argument, it wouldn't really matter what African-American was running, or what qualifications he might have, the fact that he is an African-American is enough to collect 90+% of black votes. Everyone knows this already, but for some reason no one wants to just say the obvious. Thanks for your candor.

[paganmist]

Hillary, Bill, the Media, and a bunch of racists made this about race, and managed to marginalize and make a lot of black people hurt and angry in the process.

I don't know what you expected. People vote for the candidate who will look out for them, no matter what color the skin.

Had the person proved to be Hillary, the votes would have been for her. But she and her husband turned their backs on African Americans, deciding that the "white male blue collar vote" was more important.

So they turned their backs on her.

Pretty simple, really.

You can minimize it down to a simple issue of race, or you can see it for the broader issue that it is.

We are more than nameless demographics.

We are Americans.

We ALL are important. ALL of our votes count.

Barack Obama is the only one who never stopped trying to reach out to EVERYONE.

[hibbiejibbies]

Black voters were for Clinton from the get-go, their votes were the reason Bill was president, black voters loved Hillary and no doubt wanted her to win THIS presidential nomination more than anyone else. Obama was seen as, yes, he's black, but he was just one of the many running for the nomination at the time and didn’t stand a chance against mighty Hillary. BUT, as time went on, Obama began wining plenty of so-called white states and the younger voters, he was gaining momentum and black voters (as well as other voters) took a second look. They started paying more attention to him (the media helped A LOT at the time) but black voters were still on Hillary’s side until she gave them a reason to break from her. Hillary’s fatal move of going negative ‘unfairly’ began turning a lot of voters away. Another mistake strategically was not even trying to address the problem with the black voters, she continued her negative campaigning and her main focus understandably was white blue-collars. She should have tried a bit harder to gain back at least some of the black voters. Hillary was never able to bridge back that gap and although it’s not too late for her to do so, time is running out and I think it too little too late to gain back most of the black voters.

[Moxo]

I can understand why working-class whites have problems with Obama... the Republican and Dem leadership over the years have exported many of their jobs to working-class non-whites in places like India and Pakistan.

[jkminwa]

Umm, so Obama is Pakistani?