Obama: Limping Across the Finish Line
It will not exactly be a sprint across the finish line tonight after the final primaries in South Dakota and Montana for Senator Barack Obama.
The junior senator from Illinois will capture the Democratic presidential nomination after tonight's primary results and a rush of super-delegates will be moving to support his candidacy. It is, of course, an historic victory for Obama and for the Democratic Party and for the country. But he has lost by some lopsided margins to Senator Clinton in the last months of the primary and caucus season and ends the long campaign losing some key industrial states that he needs to win in the fall to capture the White House.
If the Democrats in their wisdom had not devised this ridiculous system of proportional vote counting and it had been a more sensible winner take all system then it could be argued that Obama would not now be the nominee. But that is now a moot point.
The question now is not whether or not the party will be unified in the fall -- it most likely will be -- but whether or not Obama can actually win in Ohio, Michigan, Florida, Pennsylvania and other large industrial states.
There will be congratulations all around and Hillary will agree to campaign with all her heart and soul for Obama but the question does remain: Is he, after all, a strong general election candidate for the Democratic Party?
By limping across the finish line, he still retains his brilliant speaking skills and his appeal to certain segments of the party, but will he win over the working men and women and the labor vote that has been the backbone of the Democratic Party.
The question in the end is: Can he win in the fall over Senator John McCain? It should be a slam-dunk answer with such a low approval rating for our current president and the anger over the war in Iraq and frustration over the economy and staggering gasoline prices.
Yet, polls indicate that McCain and Obama are running almost even among potential American voters.
Now, the focus will begin to spotlight where Obama specifically stands on the issues and contrast them to McCain. As I have said, it should be a slam-dunk but I do not think it will be in the end and the general election will be extremely close. Dare I say, it could even be sent into overtime for the House of Representatives to decide.
Obama now needs to put some meat on all of his ideas and sell them to Democrats, Republicans and Independents. He definitely has the political skills to win the presidency but it will be a competitive and very negative general election campaign.
In the end it will boil down to voters feeling comfortable with Obama as president. He has shown he can excite the crowds and bring out new voters but can he convince people he has the gravitas to be president.
We all pretty much know John McCain's impressive military record and his record of public service but we need to learn more about Obama before we feel comfortable with him as our next president.
The senator from Illinois needs to start filling in the gaps and let people know who he is and where he stands on the issues before his opposition defines him.
It would have been better if he had sprinted across the finish line today instead of limping but a victory is a victory and the one who has the most delegates gets the prize so congratulations to the new Democratic presidential nominee, Senator Barack Obama.
And a final note: What would be so wrong with a brokered convention? Why is everyone so concerned that a "messy" convention would upset the American voter? Look at the interest last weekend when the Democrats met and came up with a successful compromise solution to Michigan and Florida.
The American public does not need to have every event be stage managed like recent political conventions have all been. We could all actually benefit from seeing a convention where the delegates actually debate in prime time and we all watch it on television and learn more about our political process.
Democrats, quit worrying about everything being neat and tidy in Denver so the public won't get upset and quit talking about unity and unifying the party all the time. Does anyone know any family, relationship, company or organization that is always unified?
Of course not. Arguing and debating is natural and the Democrats should not be so quick to unify -- after all Hillary's supporters have issues they want to talk about where they differ with Obama significantly. It is fine for the American public to see these issues vigorously debated live on prime time television this August.
The American public can handle a lack of unity and debate over the issues. It is perfectly natural and will help the party and help Hillary's supporters feel like they are being listened to as Obama gets ready for the general election campaign.
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It is amazing that a writer could take the time write and offer up a blog that any vaguely interested person could have cut and paste from copious rehash that has been offered and re-offered.
Robert Guttman, here is a challenge, rise up from hackery, take some pride in the great privledge of being published for public consumption. Offer the reader some of that "meat on the bone" that you suggest of the candidate. Thanks in advance of your next post.
You do realize that the convention is only 9 weeks before the election, don't you? Ridiculous to have only 9 weeks to pull a campaign together.
The only time period in this primary where Clinton beat Obama is in the last contests since April 22nd. The calendar at the end was not in Obama's favor. Big deal. Hilliary won by a total of 42 delegates in these contests, and 35 of these came from the bigot vote in Kentucky and West Virginia. Who cares?
Obama will win Pennsylvania and Ohio, and that's all he needs with his electoral map (which includes Colorado, Iowa, and Wisconsin -- all of which Hilliary loses.)
Hilliary is washed up -- yesterday's news. Deal with it. And watch the polls now that she's finally out of the race. Obama beats McCain, and easily.
Maybe, if he did "limp" across the finish line, as you say, it was because he had to run with two angry, power-hungry left-overs from a previous race who would not let go of his leg.
Professor! "Limping"? In what parallel universe was Barack Obama "limping"? He beat the vaunted Clinton machine everywhere but the rural North, with one hand tied behind his back: choosing to remain honest and respectful in the face of an unprincipled and well-financed onslaught of innuendo, distortion and outright lies. He strode across that line!
Also, "There will be congratulations all around and Hillary will agree to campaign with all her heart and soul for Obama."? That had to have been written before Mrs. Clinton delivered her typically self-absorbed and divisive non-concession speech last night. Congratulations and agreement form Mrs. Clinton? That just didn't happen--and she all but promised it won't, any time soon.
The Party now needs to add a qualified woman to the ticket, to appropriately honor the wishes of the true feminists who supported Mrs. Clinton, but to cut off as unambiguously as possible--and as soon as possible--any chance that Mrs. Clinton, a person every bit as as self-impressed, delusional and obstinate as George W. Bush, might ever become President, herself.
For those who are still hoping the die-hard Clintonistas coming around and working for a unified party, this piece should serve well as a reality check.
Forget DLC and Clinton machine. We can win without these ugly baggages.
Rather than viewing it has him "limping" across the finish line, which implies that he's not doing well, I look at it more as two VERY strong candidates that were fighting for one consitituency. One the primary is over, McCain will start going downhill because his message is so far off in left field. Until now, he's been riding the easy train, but it just reached the last stop!
i don't think a double digit win in montana is limping. he did not campaign in any of the last states for more than a minimum of time because he focused his attention on florida, michigan, and the swing states. he could have put his efforts into winning the states at the end; but, he focused instead on the next race which he knew he already was in. this was a smart move on his part. i like the strategy. it makes me believe more in his leadership and judgement.
Why in the UNIVERSE are you talking about a brokered convention? GET THIS THROUGH YOUR HEADS...HI
Taking the high road for the whole election while the Clintons played every card in the deck and the republicans hit him from the other side and you are saying he LIMPED home? Actually he was standing very tall tonight in St. Paul and I have never been prouder of our country in my 50 plus years of life. My daughter and I were crying we were so moved by his speech.
This Mother says Hillary, learn to share, learn to apologize and learn to be gracious. You have none of that and need it badly.
this is a line i want to respond to
Arguing and debating is natural and the Democrats should not be so quick to unify -- after all Hillary's supporters have issues they want to talk about where they differ with Obama significantly.
Barack can not change the color of his skin nor can he change gender which seems to be the main objections of Hillary's supporters
Hey, didn't Hillary say a win's a win?
Obama's ability to learn, and his sheer resilience, have been chronically underestimated by the Clintons, the Republicans, the media, the pundits. His recovery from the Clinton assault during the nomitation process will be swift, and his confrontation with McCain rapid and strong. Hopefully, all Democrats will realize that in Obama we have the shrewdest politician of the Democratic Party since FDR, long before November.
Now that that's out of the way. Are we to turn the clock back or do we turn the page.
History's been made, debts almost paid. [speak truth to power]
Obama survived a full Rovian/Penn type right wing attack machine. This will only make him stronger.
http://www
From Invisible to Inevitable, that ain't bad. [Speak truth to power]
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