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Key Voting Blocs Boost Obama in Indiana
So Barack Obama is back. The results on Tuesday did not provide the "game changer" Hillary Clinton so desperately needed. Instead, Obama built on his leads in delegates and the popular vote. His aides pointed to May 20 as the day when he will clinch a majority of elected delegates, essentially becoming the party's presumptive nominee. And that's not all.
In Indiana, Obama improved his support across several key demographics, despite a bruising month of attacks on his pastor, patriotism and populism. Compared to Ohio and Pennsylvania, he generally drew more votes from white women, Catholics, gun owners, households earning under $50,000 annually, voters prioritizing the economy, and voters without a college degree. A Democratic field operative sent in this graph of the progress:
And in Obama's remarks in North Carolina, he spoke about beating back the attack politics that sideline important issues:
Yes, we know what's coming. We've seen it already. The same names and labels they always pin on everyone who doesn't agree with all their ideas. The same efforts to distract us from the issues that affect our lives by pouncing on every gaffe and association and fake controversy in the hope that the media will play along... This is what they will do - no matter which one of us is the nominee. The question, then, is not what kind of campaign they'll run, it's what kind of campaign we will run. It's what we will do to make this year different. I didn't get into race thinking that I could avoid this kind of politics, but I am running for President because this is the time to end it.
Ari Melber writes for The Nation, where this post first appeared.
Read more reactions from Huffington Post bloggers to the Indiana and North Carolina primary results
Follow Ari Melber on Twitter: www.twitter.com/AriMelber
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GOD'S VOICE HAS BEEN HEARD TONIGHT....AMERICA!!!!!!
I certainly hope not... the last time God was heard in this nation he was telling W to invade Iraq.
No. That's just what W. wanted you to believe, and you did.
It sure would be nice if god would stay out of our politics.
I agree...and to think he's not even a citizen!
God is dead...
didn't you hear?
Before things get better things usually have to hit bottom. The Republican Party has Bush/Cheney inc. to thank for bringing their party and our nation to the abysmal bottom militarily, politically, economically and morally in the eyes of the world.
Whether you were pulling for Hillary or Obama, we who are presumed to be Democrats now have an horrendous job ahead of us. It is going to take every American who loves this country, above party affiliations and above personalities, to undue the disaster that the Bush Administration has wrought on our once proud leadership in the world of nations.
We Americans are symbolic of our leadership based on being the most multinational, most diverse ethnic nation, with the most diverse religions in the history of the world, the United States of America..
Bush has awakened even the most somnolent and myopic citizens with a shot of adrenaline, and it will no longer be possible to lead us like robots down the road 'Stay the Course' to perdition.
Starting today May 7th 2008 we have in Barak Obama, a leader who embraces us and unites us to help rebuild together the Americans Dream, an America where no one is above the law, peasant or President.
If you are truly a Democrat, then there is no sense in attacking our Presumtive nominee, Obama, for it only helps the enemy in our midst.
Blogging is therapeutic and that's good. Now let's begin attacking the opposition, the Bush incarnate, McCain. Amen!
I am a Democrat, have been since birth. I grew up in the birthplace of Huey and Earl Long, it would be impossible to vote for a Republican. But given the shabby manner in which Obama has treated Ms. Clinton it is laughable to read a call for unity behind Obama. Given that Obama has treated Ms. Clinton in a manner similar to how George W. Bush treated McCain in 2000 I do not see how unification is possible. I believe Ms. Clinton will work to get Obama elected, which is a lot more than Obama would have done.
But Obama has alienated the center of the Democratic Party and it may be difficult to win them back.
You liberals still slant your stories, Obama is a bigotted two face lair and should just drop out because he handed the race to McCain
Tsk, tsk, tsk, Christopher! Careful now. Readers could actually get the impression that you are a bit BITTER. We know you wouldn't want that to happen. Take a CHILL BILL HILL PILL and relax. (Sorry, I can't take credit for that little gem, but, I love it none-the-less.)
huh??
Christopher1,
Go get some sleep.. you are sick!!
suffering from fox overload.
Hate much?
What are you afraid of...
I fear a candidate who has been willing to call the Clintons racists and liars. I fear a candidate who has been willing to blame Ms. Clinton for the death of Benazir Bhutto, without ever thinking to apologize for such a vile comment. I fear a candidate who has utilized the same GOP-derived talking points developed for W during his campaign to privatize Social Security. I fear a candidate who has so alienated the center of the Democratic Party that his chances in NOvember are seriously hurt.
The point is Obama has treated Ms. Clinton in a manner similar to the way George W. Bush treated McCain in 2000. It won't be a surprise if some Obama supporters blame Ms. Clinton for the shabby manner in which Bush treated McCain, especially since Obama folks have taken responsibility for the war in Iraq from Bush and placed it on Ms. Clinton. Will Ms. Clinton be able to put aside the uncivil Obama campaign for the good of the Democratic Party? I imagine she will, but Obama does not deserve her support or the support of anyone in the center of the Democratic Party.
Listen up you fellow Democrats....We need to clean house....that is, the White House. As we slip and slide toward November, it is time to begin the healing and joining together. Each of us is very enthusiastic about our candidate, some even thinking it impossible to accept that our candidate might not win the nomination and we might have to support "the other". Florida and Michigan! We need them. However, we do not need to lose the war in order to win that battle. A compromise, a compromise, a compromise.
Frankly, I think McCain will do much of the work for "us". But not being able to count on that, we need to start at this very moment to plan for a fight....the fight to take our country back.
It looks like courting the gun-toting, whiskey-drinking, cajones-bragging white males caused Hillary to slip substantially among white women. Just as I suspected: women don't really appreciate the less civilized aspects of manly behavior, they merely put up with it. Surely few women understand this better than Hillary, after what Bill put her through.
Thank you to all the good people of NC for putting one in the bag for Barack in a big way.
Shame on us, shame on us, shame on us, shame on us, shame on us-----------------------------------
So Hillary is giving a victory speech and it's too close to call?????
It would be hilarious if this Obama votes come in and he wins Indiana!!
Key voting blocs? Give me an effing break. Same old same old. Blacks, kids, and elites. Not enough of them to pull out the general. Keep blabbing to yourselves. How in the hell did dipshits get put in charge of the party?
Probably the same way you were allowed a computer and internet access.
Bonzaiboy: Your reply to cfreedom is PRICELESS!! (And, sooooo true.) Thanks for the chuckle.
Define elite.
A black, a kid, an elite and a dipshit walk into a bar...............................
Define kids. So you mean those kids that are fighting in two wars for their country?
Umm, I'm confused, cfreedom. Do you mean the dipshits that got put in charge of the country? Those dipshits?
Thank you North Carolina! BubbaC33, what campaign were you watching? Are you blind, or hard of hearing? All the negativity has been delivered from the Clinton campaign. Are you a bit BITTER?
For the first time in my adult life, I'm ashamed of my state.(North carolina)
Try to get rid of your cynicism. Give him a chance. He will beat McCain by a landslide.
alamoscout,
Leave and go to Pennsylvania. They will love you there!!
Let's see.
Obama said his healt care plan would cover as many people as the Clinton plan. He missed by about 15 million folks. He said she was telling a lie when she said her plan would cost less and deliver more. Obama plan- $4500 per person annually; Clinton plan- $2700 per person annually and would offer more to more people. That was a negative.
Obama called the Clintons racists. Bill was misquoted and so was Ms. Clinton, but Obama never retracted his false charges. He never apologized for his campaign's comment that Ms. Clinton was to blame for the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. Only a coward would make such a false claim.
Obama has misquoted the Clintons. He has lied about his own plans. He has lied about statements he made about Reagan and the GOP. He said Reagan was a great President, something neither of the Clintons ever claimed. He said the GOP had been the party of ideas over the past 10 years, which would include the W administration. Does anyone recall any good ideas coming from the Bush White House? I do not.
Am I bitter, not at all. I just happen to have a sense of history. Obama has treated Ms. Clinton as shabbily as Bush treated McCain in 2000 in South Carolina.
Proud of my fellow Tarheels!!! We did the damn thing today!!!
It is now time for the s. delegates to act. She has no path, there is no way - without cheating.
I love you guys! Hugs and kisses from PA!
Yes we can!
Yes we did!
Thank you and God Bless!
On behalf of North Carolina, we wish to apologize that we didn't elect Hillary. Indiania is much smartter than we here in North Carolina.
Sorry pal, I'd say you are in the definite minority there so quit thinking you have the right to speak for the entire state. BTW, where is Indiania? I think there are plenty of smart people in North Carolina, you just don't happen to be one of them...
I think the Tar Heels are smarter than the Hoosiers, they are aware of what counts as games and what's real.
Actually, maybe not. Indiana is still up for grabs with heavy Obama precincts not yet counted. He could win this.
Obama 08 AND 09
Maybe the voters of NC were actually smart enough (and FAIR enough) to actually listen, assess, and understand the real facts and issues, instead of allowing themselves to be fooled and distracted by non-issues. The Tarheels resoundingly said, NOT THIS TIME!!! Seems like a good chunk of Indiana voters are re-thinking the Clintons, also. Who woulda thunk it???
Go Tarheels! Go Hoosiers! Go Obama, '08!
Seems to me North Carolina has spoken. You alamoscout, however, continue to bleat. As upset as you are, I think the best thing to do is to enlist. It'll take your mind off of your problems. I've heard they could really use you in Bagdad! Best to git while the gitten's good!
southernsepia,
Woot! Woot! Yes you guys did!!
go barack!!
The same thing has happened after every one of Hillary's 'victories". Yes, she's proven that she can pull out all the stops, go low, and narrowly win a few carefully chosen (if not cherry-picked) states.
Invariably, the karmic burden she earns doing this provokes a backlash of voter disgust that results in a wide loss in the next states to vote, which erases all the gains she made. It happened after New Hampshire, it happened after Ohio and Texas, and it just happened after Pennsylvania.
Excellent observation.
Am I happy tonite; Looks good on Hillary, look's great for the World. Obama....thank you, you did it. Not even the crossover's saved Hillary. This means moving forward. Wow. I was praying and the World is talking on the blogs all day...hoping for Obama. McCain watch out!!! Get plenty of sleep in the next two weeks, it's your turn now.
What does it tell you that Rush Limbaugh urged Repubs to vote for Clinton in Indiana.
They think they can slaughter her in the general election.
The GOP fears Barack Obama. Spin it any way you want, call it chaos, its not. Its fear of Barack Obama, and further proof he's the stronger candidate.
They're not going to vote for the candidate they fear.
Can Obama win enough pledged delegates to secure the nomination? No. Can Ms. Clinton? No. So, until enough super delegates are confirmed for Obama the race is not over and Obama is not the nominee. No amount of spin by Obama supporters can change that fact, though it seems many are determined to try.
One things is increasingly clear, if Obama wins the nomination after the Rove-inspired campiagn against Ms. Clinton he will have alienated a large portion of the Democratic Party. And many folks who would never vote for McCain or Nader may just stay home. It isn;t always the fault of Obama, though he has a lot to account for, but his supporters have spent an entire campaign not working for Obama, but attacking Ms. CLinton. And that has turned off a lot of folks who have never voted for anyone except the Democratic nominee.
Excuse me? Have you been watching the same campaign as the rest of the country? In spite of the Clinton spins, pandering, and not so suble attempts to paint doubts about Obama, the people are still seeing something in him that is needed in this country. I hope the superdelegates see this and start moving over so we can get on with the business of campaigning against McCain.
The Obama campaign accused Ms. Clinton of being to blame for the death of Benazir Bhutto. Obama called Ms. Clinton a liar for truthful statements she had made about her own health care plan. He did so in order to cover the lies he was telling about his own plan, the idea that his plan would cover as many as the Clinton plan. It will not. This is very Rove-esque, attack your opponent for your own weakness.
And you have not addressed my point, Obama cannot win enough pledged delegates to secure the nomination. So, the nomination is not his. And if you cannot see or understand the alienation his campaign has caused you are not paying attention.
I won't lower to your level, for that would only anger you further because looking at something similar to yourself must be disgusting. No, instead I will just say one thing "More than 50% of those who vote in Democratic Primaries have voted for Barack Obama. For a country that despises Rovian tactics, it seems that the majority has decided who is the true user."
Your posting makes my point perfectly. Rather than discuss all you can do is attack.
If a majority of the nation hates Rovian tactics how is it W did so well in 2004? And how is it his tactics have been so successful outside DC? The answer is the tactics work, as the Obama campaign has proven. Obama called the Clintons racists. His campaign blamed Ms. Clinton for the death of Benazir Bhutto. He lied about his own health care plan while calling Ms. Clinton a liar for honest remarks she had made about her health care plan.
And your posting is proof Obama supporters are unable to write about Obama with specifics or substance. All you seem to be able to do is attack Ms. Clinton with spin and distortion. All you succeed in doing is to alienate the center of the Democratic Party to an extent he will lose them in November.
I think you missed the whole point. Like he says - we should stop talking about how different everybody is and what everybody is not going to do. WE --the UNITED States of America have to turn this country around. It is OUR country. We have to face hard truths and do the work now - not leave it to one man in the White House. Lets stop the rhetoric and do something about our country.
The one thing I wanted him to say tonight is that this is not blue America or red America, this is the UNITED States of America!
Obama WILL take California in '08!
Obama has given details on his health care plan and on Social Security. Neither is an adequate plan. The first does not offer coverage to as many people and will cost about $2,000 more per year per person than the Clinton plan. ON Social Security he has used the scare tactics developed in a right wing think tank paid for by the GOP.
Nothing in your posting speaks to my point, Obama and his supporters have alienated a huge portion of the Democratic Party to an extent he may not be able to recover them for November.
I take this post as evidence that Limbaugh's "Operation Chaos" is lamely limping along on the internet having failed at the polls.
As usual an Obama supporter unable to argue the point spins and distorts. If you believe this sort of attack is going to win over the center of the Democratic Party you are going to be sadly mistaken. And that will be a shame, McCain as president will be a disaster.
So, Bubba, show us your math. I'd like to see how you count delegates.
And BTW -- check out the look on Chelsea's face as she watches her mom. She knows it's over. So do the folks on Faux News. They look like they're at a funeral.
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