Obama's first general election stop: Missouri, Limbaugh country

Sen. Barack Obama won't be in West Virginia tomorrow on Election Day. With his sights set on the general election, he'll be in Missouri.

Obama's public schedule isn't offering many details yet, but reveals he will be in Cape Girardeau, MO, on Tuesday.

He'll hold an economic roundtable in the 72,000-population city, located near what's called Missouri's bootheel on the southeast corner. It's a strongly Republican area represented by Rep. Jo Ann Emerson.

On Super Tuesday, Sen. Hillary Clinton won the county 57-39 — but fewer than 8,000 people voted in the Democratic primary. On the Republican side, where 11,000 voters showed up, Mitt Romney edged out John McCain.

More interestingly, it's Limbaugh country. Cape is conservative talk show host Rush Limbaugh's hometown. His brother, a lawyer, and cousin, a judge, still live there, and tourists can get a peek at old Limbaugh home. (I also have family there.)

Here's a piece with some more details written by the Post-Dispatch's Jo Mannies, the David Yepsen of St. Louis.

An Obama aide says the senator "is still focused on winning votes and delegates in primary states," but "we are also spending some time in battleground states going forward to make sure that voters know the real choices this fall."

— Christina Bellantoni, national political reporter, The Washington Times