I guess after Bill Richardson threw high support behind Obama, the pundits decided to start putting their two cents in–this is Halperin’s 14 reasons Hillary should throw in the towel:1. She can’t win the nomination without overturning the will of the elected delegates, which will alienate many Democrats.
2. She can’t win the nomination without a bloody convention battle — after which, even if she won, history and many Democrats would cast her as a villain.
3. Catching up in the popular vote is not out of the question — but without re-votes in Florida and Michigan it will be almost as impossible as catching up in elected delegates.
4. Nancy Pelosi and other leading members of Congress don’t think she can win and want her to give up. Same with superdelegate-to-the-stars Donna Brazile.
5. Obama’s skilled, close-knit staff can do things like silently kill re-votes in Florida and Michigan and not pay a political price.
6. Many of her supporters — and even some of her staffers — would be relieved (and even delighted) if she quit the race; none of his supporters or staff feel that way. Some think she just might throw in the towel in June if it appears efforts to fight on would hurt Obama’s general election chances.
7. The Rev. Wright story notwithstanding, the media still wants Obama to be the nominee — and that has an impact every day.
8. Obama might not be able to talk that well about the new global economy, but she (and McCain) can’t either.
9. Many of the remaining prominent superdelegates want to be for Obama and she (and Harold Ickes) are just barely keeping them from making public commitments to him.
10. She can’t publicly say more than 2% of all the things she would like to say about race, electability, beating McCain and experience.
11. If she somehow found a way to win the nomination, she would have to offer Obama the veep slot, and she doesn’t want to do that.
12. This is a change election, and Bush-Clinton-Bush-Clinton can never truly be change.
13. Obama is having fun most days, and she isn’t.
14. Even though her campaign staff is having more fun than it has for a long time, there’s hardly anyone there who, given half a chance, wouldn’t slit Mark Penn’s throat — and such internal dissension won’t help her in the home stretch.
Obama gave his famous race speech and its been all the news can talk about for days. Here is the latest analysis on that speech:
“Sixty-nine percent of voters who have heard or read about Obama’s speech say he did a good job addressing the issue of race relations, and 63 percent of voters following the events say they agree with Obama’s views on race relations. Seventy-one percent say he did a good job explaining his relationship with Wright.
When registered voters were asked if Obama would unite the country, however, 52 percent said yes — down from 67 percent last month.”
Ashley Alexandra Dupre is America’s next pin-up. Hustler Magazine has reportedly offered the woman former NY Gov. Spitzer just couldn’t resist— a million dollars to pose nude for their magazine. Penthouse is making comparable offers as well. And, all those kids on American Idol begging for votes. This, apparently, is how you attain instant celebrity status in the good ole’ U.S. of A.
From the Washington Times: “President Bush threatened to veto the latest House version of an update to foreign surveillance law, as the chamber’s members last night held their first “secret session” since 1983 and only their sixth since the end of the War of 1812 to hash out the issue.”
The House went into secret session last night, at the behest of Republicans who wanted to speak more freely about the nature of intelligence threats and to explain past cooperation by telecommunications companies with the government. The House often held such sessions in the republic’s early years, but before yesterday there had been only five since 1815.
The White House is seeking legal immunity for these telecom companies, which is a major sticking point for Democrats.
You’re looking at a picture of Admiral William Fallon, the former US commander of US forces in Iraq and Afghanistan-former as of today. He announced his retirement, citing the “embarrassing situation and public perception of differences between my views and administration policy” as the reason for retiring.
His difference of opinion? He is opposed to the use of force against Iran over its nuclear program. He was described in an Esquire magazine article as “the strongest man standing between the Bush Administration and a war with Iran”.
Everyone is out to make a quick buck this political season. “America’s Love Doctor” now has a book out about staying together through these trying political times. If you and your mate are on different ends of the political spectrum, here are some quick tips:
Try changing up the way you normally argue about hot button topics or what news channel to watch - new communication skills are the key to better relationships!
When you begin to communicate in a positive, workable way, your relationship with your lover, kids, and friends will begin move in a positive direction and become more pleasant.
Having your point of view understood and then VALIDATED creates a truce between the sexes and builds Dr. Olson’s Three C’s of love: Chemistry, Compatibility and Commitment.
Have you noticed whenever those who don’t like Obama call him by his middle name Hussein, the Obama camp gears up for damage control?
I’m just curious as to why it is acceptable for politicians like Iowa’s Rep. Steve King to say things like “Al-Qaida would be dancing in the streets in greater numbers than they did on September 11 because they would declare victory in this war on terror.”….if Barack “Hussein” Obama is elected president.
Obama’s response is not, “why should it matter if my father is Muslim or if I were Muslim?” Instead, Obama’s response is “But I have to say that Mr. King and individuals like him thrive on offensive or controversial statements as a way to get in the papers, so I don’t take it too seriously. I would hope Sen. McCain would want to distance himself from that kind of inflammatory and offensive remarks.”
Being called Muslim, apparently, is offensive and no one balks when a politician directly says that.
Here is the response from the Muslim community, according to The American Muslim Association: “AAI is deeply troubled that Senator Obama’s name continues to raise suspicions about his religious affiliation and is especially concerned about how commonplace and acceptable it has become to defame and degrade Islam. Any notion that questions the fitness of any loyal American to elected office because of race or religion is unacceptable and must be addressed.”
Gov. Eliot Spitzer of New York is apologetic today. We’re not sure if he’s sorry for hiring prostitutes from a prostitution ring or for getting caught.
From CNN: “Spitzer, a Democrat, rose to prominence as a hard-charging attorney general hailed by Time magazine as “Crusader of the Year.” He was nicknamed “Eliot Ness” by the New York tabloids in reference to the incorruptible hero of “The Untouchables.” He was known for rooting out corruption within Wall Street and on the streets.”
“He also made a name for himself by busting prostitution rings.”
If you watched Austin legend Carole Keeton Strayhorn give her political analysis on Austin News last night, you were in for a treat. With punchy soundbites and political humor, Strayhorn broke down the local and national races with ease and a good dose of Texas sayings. She has a fan in me.
In case you have been under a rock, Hillary Clinton won the popular vote in Texas last night.
Clinton got 51% of the total votes to Barack’s48%. CNN has a great map of each county and how they voted.
Out of the 126 Delegates awarded through the actual primary:
Clinton: 65
Obama: 61
67 delegates will be awarded with the results of the caucus. The caucus numbers are still being calculated and you can get the updates throughout the day here.
Here are the caucus results thus far for our counties:
