Clinton's Big Win Doesn't Really Matter

McClatchy Newspapers:

Hillary Clinton clobbered Barack Obama in West Virginia Tuesday, but her late win in a small state likely did little to slow rival Barack Obama's march toward the Democratic presidential nomination.

Clinton won the overwhelmingly white state in a walk -- by a landslide margin of 2-1, according to exit polls -- and used the results to argue that Americans shouldn't count her out yet.

"After tonight's tremendous victory here in West Virginia, it's clear that the pundits declaring this race over have it all wrong. The voters in West Virginia spoke loud and clear -- they want this contest to go on," Clinton said in a message e-mailed to supporters Tuesday evening.

"I'm going to carry the energy of tonight's victory into the next contests in Kentucky and Oregon. ...You have worked your heart out, put yourself on the line for what you believe in and given generously. And I'm not about to turn my back on you."

Read the whole story: McClatchy Newspapers

Comments

[MichelleB]

Hillary should enjoy the victory tonight and exit gracefully.

[woodson]

You are right...see won an expected victory in a state with favorable demograhics for Clinton. No matter how you spin it, WV's vote and its population is hardly reflective of the rest of the nation. Further, if Obama was a white man, he would have whipped Hillary by the same % points or greater. That's why the WV contest doesn't mean much..and let's not forget he math.

[rubberneck]

Well, you can chalk up WV as a big L in the Obama column come November. Obama will probably lose Ohio an Pennsylvania. Frankly, we will probably know about the election early in the evening.

[TAC]

"Well, you can chalk up WV as a big L in the Obama column come November."

As it was for Gore and Kerry...

[cubs325]

true if hrc decides not to support the party and look out for her own self centered interests - otherwise she would work tirelessly to deliever the white hard working class vote tot he party in those states - right???

[apcalc]

That's right - he will lose Ohio, PA, Fla, and W Va - all states Hillary can win.

[AdamX]

How pathetic. Can't someone save her? She needs time in a home.

[apcalc]

Oh yeah -real pathetic but nothing a 40+ win in W Va can't solve.

Obama - loser.

Since when has a party nominee lost a PRIMARY by 40 + points.

[goldenshaman]

Unless Obama commits suicide like Vince Foster did.

[TASutpen]

More likely to happen if he selects Clinton as VP.

The Clintonistas will not be denied.

[KISSman]

It's like hitting a solo homerun in the 9th inning when you are down 10 runs. This game is over!!

[PrObama29]

yeah, but the game is a t-ball game.

[Mock38]

Hillary's not so hidden agenda is to run in 2012.
She is doing everything she can to weaken Obama.
She wants Obama to lose in 2008, so that she can run against a 75 year old, worn out ,beat up John McCain.

The current nomination, even as Carville admits, is now Obama's. Hillary will fight for Hillary to be the victor in 2012.

[Rose52]

I think Hillary is in this race to win the nomination now, not in 2012. Her only way is thru the superdelegates (making the electability argument) and seating MI and FL with all the delegates seated. That is basically what McAuliffe is saying. They know she can't beat Obama with pledged delegates, so that's the only route to 2209 (their new number).

[apcalc]

Obama is weak , period. It's really sad that he can't stand on his own two feet, and has to blame Hillary for making him look bad. If he was strong, he would have nothing to worry about. Clearly there are alot of Democrats who prefer her.

She believes he can't win, and she can, so she's staying in.

[person]

What percentage of the 93% + of the black vote for Obama is racially motivated?

[TASutpen]

Very little

[EinChicago]

True 91-92% at most. But no more than 93% absolutely.

[ShyFrost]

Totally agree.... believe me, if it was all about just voting for a black man because he's black, Jesse Jackson would have garnered that support when he ran for president and he didn't.

[ssmit98]

So I guess it was racially motivated when Bill Clinton got 89% of the Black vote too??? Or what about the 65% of the Black vote that Hillary had in the beginning of the race??? Yea, Black people are so racist, NOT!

[apcalc]

93%

[dentuso]

Why do I now get the sense that this idiot is going to take this losing cause into the convention, simply to sabotage a Democratic win and therefore open the slate for 2012? It's being more and more apparent that this is her intention.

How in the f**k, when we have an illegal war that's killing thousands of our kids, Two new wars on the Republican slate, Roe v. Wade 1 year away from being overturned, no work on healthcare, environment, social security, the economy, middle east policy, medicare, veteran's rights, stem-cell research, gay rights, lobby reform... how in God's name can every Democrat in this country not be absolutely outraged?

IF she does decide to sabotage it (take it to the convention knowing the nomination has already been awarded), she is effectively dismissing EVERY democratic value for which she supposedly stands.

I sincerely, sincerely to God hope that's not her intention. If it is, I beg Clinton supporters to let her know loud and clear that the lives of our servicemen, the financial burden of the middle class, and the right for a woman to choose COMES BEFORE HER!

[apcalc]

Please - your argument is weak. She believes she can win, and he can't. She beats him ( and McCain) in the states we have to win - Fla, PA, Ohio, W Va. That's alot of electoral votes, and more than makes up Co, ?Iowa, Virginia that Obama thinks he can win.

Also, you get nowhere with the abortion, troops, middle class arguments. Obama ab=grees with Clinton on virtually every one of them

[tene]

That Obama and Clinton agree on the issues 95% IS the point. Clinton's and Obama's similarities are very close and both of their differences from McCain are so stark. But the reality is that according to the DNC rules, Sen. Clinton has lost. She can't catch up in delegates, but dems can rally behind Obama and still have Clinton's policies put in place. McCain will try his best to overturn Roe V. Wade and will continue this war that is costing us trillions and way too many lives. He will continue Bush's horrible economic policies. Obama can beat that. HRC could too if she hadn't lost, but she did. So now we have to let Obama beat McCain. For the good of the country.

[dr4Will]

you stupid left wing obama lovers--you are so biased you can't see the facts before you---Clinton can win white voters obama never will--middle America will not support obama but you geeks say his overwhelming defeat won't bother the voters--you are reporters not campaign managers-get the hell out of the business if you chose one candidate to criticize and let the other constantly have a freepass-you liberals are a pathetic bunch!!

[puffhost]

Thank you Mark Penn

My argument remains that white vote or not, there is too much overlap in demographic support between Clinton and McCain. McCain will effectively siphon votes away from her.

Add this to the growing list of reasons to vote for Obama.

[EnuffsEnuffAlready]

So you're saying Clinton can win the racist vote (such as the WV voters who admitted flat-out that race dictated their vote)...and the uneducated whites....but that because these groups won't vote for Obama, he's in trouble? Take out the racist vote and that leaves the great majority of Americans who are long since beyond 1950s racism and will vote for Obama no matter his color. And a lot of people would challenge you that the media has given Obama a free pass and picked on Hillary. To many, the opposite seems glaringly evident.

[RichLiberal]

And you would characterize the 90-10 AA vote as what? Take that out and what are you left with?

It's obvious, the party has been polarized and the total votes are within less than 1 percent at this point I believe, in fact, after tonight the difference will be under 100,000 after WVa is counted out of 35,000,000, i.e. less than 1/3 of 1 percent, i.e. .003 percent difference.

http://www.diversityj.com/ElectionResults2008Primary.html

It is also transparently clear that anything that can be said about the race-based vote on one side can be equally said about the race-based vote of the other side.

The gripe of the Clinton people is that the MSM only presents one side, and it takes Terry McAulliffe ranting in Chris Mathews face calling him an outright liar to even begin to get the other side heard. What a team: Mathews, Olbermann, Russert. The 3 sleazeballs.

Russert: the big round pie-face from Buffalo going on and on about how broke Hillary is. Russert is lower than ws.

[apcalc]

She won the educated and the young in W Va - buyer's remorse setting in BIG TIME for Obama

Obama = loser in the fall

[TASutpen]

Your use of the term "left wing" as a pejorative says all anyone needs to know about Clinton/McCain supporters.

[live]

please i know this is hard for you but again as many others point out you know this is west virginia? you also know that your attitude seems to forget the AA vote. Oh thats right clinton
only counts the workiing people we all know only whites work

good luck having insane mccain as your pres. hope you like the supreme court and the neverending war.

thanks for calling me stupid but since it comes from you i know i can consider the source
and totally disregard it

[Vantunow]

If the hard working Whites love Hillary so much, why did she lose the nomination?

[apcalc]

Lots of buyers remorse setting in over Obama now....would love to re-vote those caucuses and primaries....


what's he won since February?

NC and Miss.....meanwhile she's got the votes in PA, Ohio, Texas, Indiana, W Va...


more to follow

[liberaldemdave]

WTF. How many delegates does W. Va. carry into the general?

...and the Clinton-enabling talking heads are trying to spin this as a triumph.

W. Va. ISN'T the rest of the country.

[Vishous]

I believe, WV has 5 electoral votes in the general. The last two elections it has gone handedly to Bush. The results are not very surprising. This is probably her best state overall. It is basically an entire state of her base and none of Obama's.

[ssmit98]

Good point :)

[Mchris1947]

I think people are missing Hillary's larger goal: She needs these "victories" like today in WV and in upcoming Kentucky, to justify raising more campaign money, so she can pay herself back at least some of the $21 million she is in debt! If she quit's she can't raise more money. So today she quotes the Bible "Faith moves mountains..." for the first time in her entire campaign, and it's just a cover-up to raise money, like some two-bit charlatan preacher.

She deserves a slow clap fo that one:

CLAP...
Clap...
clap.

[gregjones]

It's so sad watching cable news as they try to make the W. Virginia win for Hillary a racial issue....as if Obama can not win the white vote....while they simultaneously declare that Obama should win Oregon....an all white state. CABLE NEWS THINKS AMERICANS ARE ABSOLUTE MORONS !!!!!

Greg Jones
B4B

[CountryOver]

"CABLE NEWS THINKS AMERICANS ARE ABSOLUTE MORONS !!!!!"

Were you ... here... during 2004?

[Waitaminute]

Cable news didn't have to make the win for Hillary in WV a racial issue. WVs told them in the exit polls, color mattered. In fact, 21% of them were bold enough to do so. From my experience, at least another 20% had a color problem, but wouldn't admit it. Secondly, who give a dang about dixiecrats (racist) voting for Hillary. Its her kind of state to win. Thats the problem i had with her in the first place. She is a dixiecrat. Her actions prove this. The same dixiecrats who voted twice for that swaggering fool in the white house. They have been a red state, except for 92 when they voted for Bill Clinton. Like Mississippi and the rest of the southern states, they left the democratic party in the 60s, when the DEMs pushed for civil rights. If the DEMs are this racist in WV,' the republicans there would want to re-institute slavery.

[Testtubebaby]

I'm not even watching,I popped in a movie. The cable shows are full of sh*t and are only pushing this mess to get paid longer...forget her. Bill Clinton won the dumb a$$ racist state she rode Bubba's coat tails.

[jaynevada]

Obama is CORRUPT, a LIAR, and his slogan of change an ILLUSION.

1) CORRUPT: A houseowner wants to sell both a house and adjoining land. Obama can afford to buy only the house. No problem, the criminal Rezko to the rescue. Rezko pays full price for the land, whereas Obama gets a discount of $300,000 on the house. Nice to have criminal friends like this!!! (ref ABC News)

2) LIAR: Obama claims he did not know about Wright's America-hating (God damn America) and racist views till it was revealed in the mainstream media in March 2008. Obama attended Wright's church for 20 years, was married by Wright, had his children baptized by Wright, donated over $20,000 to Wright's church and named his book "Audacity of Hope" after one of Wright's sermons. You really believe after 20 years and all this he did not know?

3) ILLUSION: Exelon Corporation had not disclosed radioactive leaks at one of its nuclear plants in Illinois. Obama, a senator for Illinois introduces a bill to make disclosures mandatory. Seems like Exelon doesn't like it. Each draft of the new bill by Obama goes more and more towards Exelon till disclosures end up being "voluntary". What gives? How about $250,000+ donations by Exelon!!! Obama is not change, he is WASHINGTON BUSINESS AS USUAL. (ref NYT)

People need to realize that Hillary has been fighting for them all along. All the way back to 1993 when she tried to introduce universal health care.

[flydoghead]

Jbird, learn to live with it

[HopeObama08]

You sound do funny, just like your candidate. LOL

[iPolitics]

You're evil.

[dentuso]

No offense, bud. But you sound like a rambling idiot right now. You'll find that the vast majority of those who support Obama follow politics very closely, and are pretty much unimpressed with the 3-month old, manufactured BS that might impress or affect only those who didn't do their homework.

[Vishous]

Hillary's lucky that Obama hasn't tapped into all the ammo that the GOP has on her. The Clintons carry a lot of baggage, but the GOP was hoping to save it for the GE as she was the inevitable nominee. Too bad that having all the advantages in the world, name recognition, powerful surrogates, all the money, that she got beat by the upstart who ran a better campaign with a better message and better fundraising apparatus. I only hope the Clintons don't ruin the Dems chances in November with their scorched earth style. The country can't afford four years of McSame.

[dentuso]

That's another point entirely. How does someone who is provided with every advantage (brand, money, machine, network) completely mismanage something so small as a campaign, but be considered as being a better manager (more electable) than the man with every disadvantage, who beat her?

[Liam]

Yeah, Hillary. Just keep telling yourself that.

The fact is that to tie Obama, you needed to win about 83% of the votes in every remaining state. This one was one you were favored to win by a huge margin and even here, it doesn't look (at this point) like you hit that 83% margin.

So where do you expect you'll be able to make up that difference? If the results come in like the exit polling suggests they're going to, it looks like now you need 90% of the vote in all of the remaining states, many of which are not as favored for you as West Virginia was.

It's too late. You're making yourself look stupid!

Liam.

[jupitor]

Man they poll west virginia, a state she didn't win, but her husband won for her! So west virginia wants her to stay in theis race! Well how about the rest of America! All the sudden it doesn't matter What over 40 other states wants, jusst west virginia! This one lousy state means she gets to stay in again! When does it end? May 20th she has to have her bills paid! How will she do that when she owes 21 Million dollars? this lady wants to have control of our finances and she can't even pay her bills, and she keeps on going to rake up bigger debts. I'm sick of it! I can't understand why the big people just don't end it, or why the delegates don't end it? And yes once again she wants to change to goal post to let herself have all of Florida and MI, and steal it all from Obama! I can guarantee you if this lady is our nomanee, and they steal this from Obama they will lose all the financial gravy train he's build up, because them donors will not give to her the way they did to Obama. Those repub's who want him, will see mccain as a better choice than her! The black will not vote for her , and the independent will simply go backk to the repub's. She's out or a lot of us are now out!

[notthistime]

It isn't going to end. Someone mentioned on MSNBC that this will probably all the way to Denver.

[apcalc]

The Indy's have left him already, the Democratic base has left him - you've got the elite whites and the black who support him. We're talking McGovern Dukakis territory here with Obama.

You want that?

[dr4Will]

you are stupid using your spinning to cover up a very embarrising loss for your black candidate!!

[GBecker]

And how do you sound defending your woman candidate who can't win the nomination but doesn't know how to gracefully step away with her tail between her legs? Worse than stupid!

[TAC]

"you are stupid using your spinning to cover up a very embarrising loss for your black candidate!!"

Nice try on embarrassing. Is that your home schooling showing, Goober? Try spell check when you call someone stupid.

[Waitaminute]

Hillary is done. Stick a fork in her. I don't make excuses. Not hard for Hillary to win in a state such as WV. After all, they are the type of voters she attract. DIXIECRATS. They became dixiecrats, because they didn't like it when the DEMs were fighting for civil right for blacks in the 60s. Get it, Barack hussien Obama is black. WV DIXIECRATS VOTED AS EXPECTED! LIKE THE RACIST THEY ARE.

[anuevomi]

I will pray for you and all the other racist bloggers who can't have a debate with out resorting to cruelty

Which is what the black candidate does ... debate with out cruelty

[Liam]

So, you've embraced the racism that is at the core of your candidate's campaign now?

When did he become not "your candidate" in your mind, but "your black candidate"?

Liam.