Countdown: Obama regains momentum as candidates approach Super Tuesday
Voters in South Carolina overwhelmingly rejected seemingly racially-charged politics on Saturday, handing Senator Barack Obama a major victory in the state’s Democratic primary over his chief rival, Senator Hillary Clinton. Winning handily across demographic lines, Obama captured more than twice the number of votes Clinton brought in, with an approximate 55% to 27%. The victory more than rebuked the Clinton campaign, which some experts believe was punished in South Carolina by voters who tired of the negative - and perceived racial - tactics employed by it and, specifically, former President Bill Clinton.
CNN reported Tuesday that Clinton campaign insiders are increasingly concerned by a “‘huge wave’ of sentiment that Bill Clinton ‘needs to stop.’” The sources interviewed - who spoke on condition of anonymity due the sensitivity of the subject - were both unpaid advisers and surrogates for the campaign. One source remarked that the former president has become “tone deaf” about the negative dynamic he is bringing to his wife’s campaign, and speculated that he has “hurt more than helped.”
Obama, who won more votes than Republicans John McCain and Mike Huckabee combined in South Carolina, got a further boost today when he won the coveted endorsement of Senator Edward Kennedy of Massachusetts. Kennedy, who rejected former President Clinton’s last-minute effort to dissuade him, said today before a capacity crowd at American University in Washington, DC that “It is time again for a new generation of leadership.” Kennedy, the de facto leader of the liberal movement in the Senate and the brother of the assassinated President John F. Kennedy, drew a less-than-subtle comparison between Obama and his late brother, speaking of replacing “the politics of fear with the politics of hope,” and summoning “the courage to choose change.”
The New York Times reported yesterday that Kennedy was angered by former President Clinton’s injection of what he felt were racial themes and distortions into the race.
“We want a president who appeals to the hopes of those who still believe in the American dream,” he said.
The major electoral and personal victories put Obama at the forefront of a major wave of momentum heading into Super Tuesday on Feb. 5, when 22 states will hold presidential nomination contests. The outcome of those contests - in both the Democratic and Republican camps - is still very much uncertain, especially following the proven unreliability of opinion polls after Clinton’s unexpected victory in New Hampshire. Obama’s landslide in South Carolina was similarly and largely unpredicted.
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This is ridiculous. Sen. Obama’s campaign predicted an outright win back in July, and it was their South Carolina press secretary which injected race into the campaign. Obama ostensibly advocates a “new” type of politics, but plays the old games.
See the statement of the children of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy, arguably the more inspirational of the two. Let’s also remember the realities of John Kennedy’s presidency, and how although he inspired the nation, he was very hawkish and not as conciliatory as Obama would have you believe. Moreover, by the time he ran for president, he had over 14 years of service in national office. Obama has, at best, 3, and started planning his bid for the presidency after the 1st year. Obama does not have momentum going into Florida, because the dynamics of the campaign have shifted from being about IA and NH wins to a full on national primary on Feb. 5th. Today’s vote in Florida will decide who has momentum, because South Carolina was handed to Obama on a silver platter by his demographic advantage. It’s time the Editors of “The Saint” reveal their own personal bias and stop inserting it into their “reporting” on this campaign season.
When Florida decided to move up its primary, the Democratic National Convention stripped Florida of all delegates. In a show of support, the major candidates promised not to campaign in Florida. How can Florida’s primary decide who has momentum in the Democratic race if it has no delegates and no candidates have campaigned there?
Also, I am curious about Obama’s alleged “demographic advantage.” If Xavier is referring to the fact that South Carolina has a large percentage of African American voters, he would be correct. However, this does not guarantee Obama a win. African American voters are like all other voters. They vote for the candidate they believe would make the best president. Did John Edwards enjoy a “demographic advantage” in Iowa because he is Caucasian? Will Hillary enjoy a “demographic advantage” because she is a woman and half of the people in this country are women?
if blacks represent a demographic advantage for barack obama, wouldnt white women be a demographic advantage for hillary clinton, now i am not sure on the exact satistics of this, but i know she did not receive as much of a percentage of the white woman vote, as obama received of the african american community- i dont call this an advantage, i call it hard earned votes by campaigning