From The Road
June 1, 2008 6:43 PM

Clinton To Superdelegates: "We Are Winning The Popular Vote"

By
Fernando Suarez
Topics
Hillary Clinton
(CBS)
From CBS News' Fernando Suarez:

SAN JUAN, PUERTO RICO -- Hillary Clinton reached out to uncommitted superdelegates at a celebration rally in Puerto Rico after a double-digit win on the island helped push Clinton past Barack Obama in the popular vote, according to the Clinton campaign's count.

"We are winning the popular vote," Clinton told the crowd, but she reminded supporters eager to see Clinton as their nominee that Democratic Party rules do not award the nomination to a candidate based on popular vote, rather through delegate votes.

"So when the voting concludes on Tuesday, neither Senator Obama nor I will have the number of delegates to be the nominee," Clinton said. "I will lead the popular vote, he will maintain a slight lead in the delegate count. The decision will fall on those leaders in our party empowered by the rules to vote in the Democratic convention. I do not envy the decision you have to make, but a decision has to be made."

Her analysis of the delegate count isn't totally accurate, however. After Tuesday, Obama will be very close to clinching the nomination, even if no superdelegates endorse him between now and then. And in terms of pledged delegates, he has already received a majority of those, so there's no possible way she can catch him in that count.

With the nomination winding down, the only thing left for Clinton to do is to make the case to uncommitted superdelegates that her lead in the popular vote makes her the rightful choice to lead the party's ticket in the fall.

Clinton told supporters at the rally that their votes helped put her over the top and that that the new popular vote tally should leave "no doubt" in the minds of superdelegates as to who should become the nominee.

"Tonight you've come out strong and defied the skeptics more people across the country have voted for our campaign, more people have voted for us than for any candidate in the history of any presidential candidates. We are winning the popular vote, now there can be no doubt, the people have spoken and you have chosen your candidate," Clinton said.

Clinton is giving no indication that she plans on dropping out of the race or has any intentions of slowing down her campaign as she is scheduled to campaign in South Dakota all day tomorrow.

Over the next few days, Clinton campaign national chairman Terry McAulliffe says Clinton will be contacting uncommitted superdelegates in hopes of gaining their support, he says that will be her main focus.

Add a Comment See all 34 Comments
by chuckamok June 2, 2008 5:18 PM EDT
In the LA Times today, it sez that "key Clinton backers" are recognizing the new finish line (required delegate count)and once Obama reaches it, the fight is over.

In other words ... HILDEBEAST IS TOAST.

No more Clinton ooze in the White House. Ever.

Reply to this comment
by chuckamok June 2, 2008 5:09 PM EDT
Sorry, Hildebeast, the rules - that you bought into - mean DELEGATE COUNT.

Trust the Clinton felons to whine when the rules don''t serve them anymore.
Reply to this comment
by cruiser829 June 2, 2008 3:00 PM EDT
Yes, you may call me stupid, because I do not understand why we need delegates and superdelegates! Why when we Americans vote and our vote is our say...why do we need delegates who don''t always commit to the candidate who has the most popular vote. Would someone please explain?? Yes, I slept through government 101, but this does not make sense to me!
Reply to this comment
by chinchin6 June 2, 2008 2:33 PM EDT
Somebody has been out in the pasture a little to long there cowgirl.

OBAMA 08!!!!
Reply to this comment
by stirg June 2, 2008 2:13 PM EDT
By convention time in August-superdelegates will have buyers remorse as they watch Obama fall in the polls against McCain, Hillary should suspend her campaign and not concede-take it to the convention in Denver.By then reality will have set in and superdelegates will switch to her
Reply to this comment
by craigh9 June 2, 2008 11:53 AM EDT
How does she keep a straight face when when she says this stuff????
She only leads the popular vote in her twisted little mind and based on the process for obtaining delegates she is getting beaten badly. She must be on drugs!
Reply to this comment
by b-easy63 June 2, 2008 11:52 AM EDT
Based on the DNC rules AND the pledge that both candidates signed on 9/1/07, NEITHER candidate should get any of the delegates from Florida and Michigan. Rules are there to maintain order and prevent chaos. That is what this is. Once the states decided to break the rules, the Dems should have stuck with them not being seated even if they lost the election.

One has to think about the ramification of rules and sticking to principles BEFORE the rules are put in place, next time if a state wants to flout the rules, they can point to this outcome as a precedent. In the meantime, even if HRC could change the SD count, she opens up herself and the DNC to the possibility of a Supreme Court challenge--because neither should have got any in the first place. All the delegates could have been "seated" but with NO ties or clout with either candidate. Their states forfeited that when they ditched the rules.

As for the popular vote---HRC has been saying all along (when Obama was leading) that it was irrelevant--only the Superdelegates count, her supporters have parroted the same comments. Now this. TAlk about whiney, sore losers who don''t know when to quit....
Reply to this comment
by hwebb54 June 2, 2008 5:52 AM EDT
Oh yeah....one of the major networks has a tape of Michelle Obama calling white people "whitey" and maybe even more. I hope the Obamabots feel like *** when they lose the white house in an unlosable year.
Reply to this comment
by hwebb54 June 2, 2008 5:50 AM EDT
I''m done with the Democratic Party. It''s not just females that feel like this nomination has been stolen. At the very least, they are nominating the weakest candidate since George McGovern. Just because he has a (D) beside his name doesn''t mean we will fall in line and be good democrats. McCain here I come......check book and all.
Reply to this comment
by lordmi June 2, 2008 5:11 AM EDT
to bswalker12: maybe you will start develope Your own personality?
Not with gossips but with accurate facts?

clintonists are so low-minded..could not even express the thought, poor creatures
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