I knew that Obama was headed for trouble during the Ohio debate (and a little before that with the release of the photo of Obama in traditional African clothing during an official Congressional visit). It was clear that with the photo... The Clinton camp wanted to scare White voters in Texas and Ohio, where xenophobia and racism are already issues. The Clinton campaign seized on this built-in advantage. But the debate itself was a turning point. After the photo, they went after Obama again (with the help of Tim Russert & the executives who decide the questions) by asking him about Louis Farrakhan. This should have never been an issue & was not an issue before the Corporate media made it appear as such. The question actually caught me a little by surprise. But it had a purpose. It may have helped to emphasize Obama's race, and likely stoked fears among Whites in Ohio and Texas... particularly for those people who already had doubts about a black candidate and who may have been looking for a reason to discount Obama. Clinton only needed the fear mongering to work for a portion of the electorate... just enough to secure wins in the primary vote. After the debate...she went to the fearmongering again (with the help of her friends in the media) when the Muslim question came up during the 60 minutes interview. Then there was the red phone/3 A.M. ad.
According to exit polls and other data.... most of the late undecided voters (those who already had doubts) broke for Clinton 2-1... so the race baiting, & fearmongering worked.
After all of that, Clinton only managed partial success (of course her corporate media allies are not framing it that way). Obama really did everything that he needed to do, according to the list of things that I mentioned a few weeks ago. He won Vermont, and blunted her success in Texas....and he actually did pretty well there. As I type, they are still trying to figure out what is what in Texas....but it looks like Hillary only managed to gain a small handful of delegates from the entire night, when she really needed to get blowouts in all 4 States and gain 25, 30 or 40 delegates. She failed!
From the Obama Camp- Campaign Manager David Plouffe:
Our projections show the most likely outcome of yesterday’s elections will be that Hillary Clinton gained 187 delegates, and we gained 183.
That’s a net gain of 4 delegates out of more than 370 delegates available from all the states that voted.
For comparison, that’s less than half our net gain of 9 delegates from the District of Columbia alone. It’s also less than our net gain of 8 from Nebraska, or 12 from Washington State. And it’s considerably less than our net gain of 33 delegates from Georgia.
The task for the Clinton campaign yesterday was clear. In order to have a plausible path to the nomination, they needed to score huge delegate victories and cut into our lead.They failed.
It’s clear, though, that Senator Clinton wants to continue an increasingly desperate, increasingly negative — and increasingly expensive — campaign to tear us down.
That’s her decision. But it’s not stopping John McCain, who clinched the Republican nomination last night, from going on the offensive. He’s already made news attacking Barack, and that will only become more frequent in the coming days.
Right now, it’s essential for every single supporter of Barack Obama to step up and help fight this two-front battle. In the face of attacks from Hillary Clinton and John McCain, we need to be ready to take them on.
The chatter among pundits may have gotten better for the Clinton campaign after last night, but by failing to cut into our lead, the math — and their chances of winning —got considerably worse.
Today, we still have a lead of more than 150 delegates, and there are only 611 pledged delegates left to win in the upcoming contests.
By a week from today, we will have competed in Wyoming and Mississippi. Two more states and 45 more delegates will be off the table.
But if Senator Clinton wants to continue this, let’s show that we’re ready.
Why isn't the media reporting the reality of the situation with the delegates? Why no reporting about the actual delegate count in the Texas contest?
The media is clearly trying to help Clinton. The corporate media has become an official part of her spin machine.
Even today... I have yet to see one major network report that Obama may have actually won more delegates out of Texas...or at least matched her delegates there. I have yet to see a major network mention that Clinton only managed to gain a small handful of delegates out of the entire night when she needed the kind of numbers that I listed above.
How in the Hell is that a huge victory? It's all about perception.
And they are spinning the Hell out of her wins.
I have yet to hear the big media mention the fact that just 4 or 5 weeks ago... Clinton was leading in Texas and Ohio by very large margins...as much as 20 points... None have given Obama any positive coverage for the way he was able to close the gap to be competitive in States that he was never supposed to win.
Instead...they turned it around and made it a huge failure for Obama...despite the fact that these were States that Clinton was supposed to win all along.
I'm rattled....but not by Obama's perceived losses...but by the way the White corporate media is framing events....and by how they are assisting Clinton by essentially using her talking points and by not scrutinizing her the way that they scrutinize Obama.
I'm also rattled (but not surprised) by the racism amongst the electorate... I expected that all along. That's why I never thought Obama had a snowballs chance in Hell- The U.S. is a racist nation... that will likely never give a Black candidate any real chance. But what really bothers me is how the uneducated voting public in some of these States is falling for the Clinton bull.
I think racism & fear are beginning to trump the "Change" theme. And this is why the Clinton's have been using the issue of race. Yes...people want change...but Clinton is reminding them that Barack is "The Black Guy" and that "Real Change" is not worth that kind of risky "roll of the dice". And what kind of "change" with the d*mb inexperienced n***er bring you anyway?
And once you plant seeds of doubt about a Black candidate in White voters... it takes on a life of its own. The doubt about Black people is already in the White brain....It is built-in; it simply needs to be triggered or turned on. And Clinton understands this and is trying to exploit it for all it's worth.
Barack will be damaged from here on out.... the question will be... to what degree will he be damaged.
It appeared that he lost some White voters in Ohio and Texas... So the racial nonsense is really starting to take a toll.
It will probably hurt him in Pennsylvania, Indiana, Oregon, and other places... even in Mississippi and North Carolina. But he should win enough of the remaining States to stay ahead in delegates. Wyoming will be interesting. Mississippi will be interesting as well... I want to see what percentage of the White vote he gets in both States.
I sat down and wrote a battle plan for Obama (If only I were a strategist for him). Clinton is so vulnerable in so many ways.... Unfortunately... Obama has no political attack dogs who know how to really fight & who could ruin her candidacy. They are too soft.
I could ruin her candidacy in about two weeks if I had the right pulpit.
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2 comments:
Where do you live? And join some community blogs and post there (like www.DailyKos.com). There are many ways to gain the pulpit.
And get on the phone to support Obama - go to www.barackobama.com and start calling people and talking to them one on one. That's how he's been winning so far. She relies on advertising and fear. He's reaching out to people one at a time. That's why big states are more challenging. But it works.
You can help. Do more!!
You are 100% correct in this analysis. I and many I know have been watching the news all week with mounting disbelief and horror, as Obama's power is minimized and Clinton's exaggerated and created out of thin air. ( I might add that I and my family are all white, middle-class, and former Clinton supporters) It is a waking nightmare. One thing is certain: if Obama does not prevail, the Democrats in my opinion will have lost their chance to redeem the times, and I will begin praying furiously for McCain to win the presidency.
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