Starting Gate: Poetry In Motion
Will she or won’t she drop out of the race? That is the question that has had the political world buzzing over the past 24 hours or so and one that is unlikely to fade if Hillary Clinton doesn’t answer it unambiguously after the results of South Dakota and Montana are in tonight.
All three presidential candidates will deliver speeches to rallies of supporters this evening. And the symbolism which will be on display tells you everything you need to know and serves as almost the perfect punctuation to end the primary campaign -- and as a curtain-raiser on the fall contest.
Clinton won’t be at the site of her latest victory as she was in Puerto Rico, Kentucky or West Virginia in past weeks. She won’t be in Washington, DC, either. Instead, she’ll be in her home state of New York. After more than a year of solid campaigning, she will most likely return to her day job of representing the state in the U.S. Senate. What better way to signal that than return to those who elected her?
Barack Obama is traveling to the battleground state of Minnesota, where it’s very possible he (or at least his campaign) will claim victory in the nomination battle. And Obama hasn’t picked just any venue to appear before what will be a large and raucous audience. He’s holding his rally in St. Paul – at the very site where John McCain will accept the GOP nomination at this fall’s convention.
It may be a little too much of an in-your-face gesture to some. But make no mistake, Obama has repeatedly insisted throughout this campaign that he will be trying to attract not just Democrats and independents in the general election, but he will try to reach right into the heart of the GOP itself. It’s his campaign’s way of saying they’re not about to cede any territory this fall.
John McCain isn’t about to let Obama have the stage all to himself on a night which is shaping up more and more to be the official kickoff of the general election. He’ll be holding his own event near New Orleans, a decision with carries meaning of its own.
McCain has sought to use his time during the protracted Democratic battle to both re-establish his own image and seek distance from President Bush and his administration. He was in New Orleans last month as part of his “forgotten Americans” tour which took him to poor and urban parts of the country that probably hasn’t seen a Republican presidential candidate for decades – if ever. In that way, McCain too has signaled he won’t rely on the base and use the same Republican math that elected Bush twice. Instead, by appearing near the site of one of the administration’s biggest failures, he’ll join Obama to contest everything.
As exciting and historic as the Democratic primary has been, the McCain-Obama match-up may yet prove even more so. All you really need to do is look at the pictures and listen to the words from the candidates tonight to understand that, sometimes, politics can be poetry in motion.
Around The Track
According to the latest CBS News delegate estimate, Obama is just 43 delegates away from the 2,118 needed for the nomination. There are just 31 delegates up for grabs in tonight’s South Dakota and Montana primaries but about 200 uncommitted superdelegates remain,.
Clinton’s campaign tells CBS News’ Fernando Suarez that Clinton has no plans to drop her campaign tonight.
Undeclared superdelegates are signaling a quick end to the process, reports Politico.
Obama edges out McCain in a new USA Today/Gallup poll, 47 percent to 44%.
CBS News chief political consultant Marc Ambinder is reporting that John McCain nearly included a pledge to serve just one term as president when he announced his candidacy last year but that it was taken out of the speech. Aides say they have not discussed the idea again for the past year.
All three presidential candidates will deliver speeches to rallies of supporters this evening. And the symbolism which will be on display tells you everything you need to know and serves as almost the perfect punctuation to end the primary campaign -- and as a curtain-raiser on the fall contest.
Clinton won’t be at the site of her latest victory as she was in Puerto Rico, Kentucky or West Virginia in past weeks. She won’t be in Washington, DC, either. Instead, she’ll be in her home state of New York. After more than a year of solid campaigning, she will most likely return to her day job of representing the state in the U.S. Senate. What better way to signal that than return to those who elected her?
Barack Obama is traveling to the battleground state of Minnesota, where it’s very possible he (or at least his campaign) will claim victory in the nomination battle. And Obama hasn’t picked just any venue to appear before what will be a large and raucous audience. He’s holding his rally in St. Paul – at the very site where John McCain will accept the GOP nomination at this fall’s convention.
It may be a little too much of an in-your-face gesture to some. But make no mistake, Obama has repeatedly insisted throughout this campaign that he will be trying to attract not just Democrats and independents in the general election, but he will try to reach right into the heart of the GOP itself. It’s his campaign’s way of saying they’re not about to cede any territory this fall.
John McCain isn’t about to let Obama have the stage all to himself on a night which is shaping up more and more to be the official kickoff of the general election. He’ll be holding his own event near New Orleans, a decision with carries meaning of its own.
McCain has sought to use his time during the protracted Democratic battle to both re-establish his own image and seek distance from President Bush and his administration. He was in New Orleans last month as part of his “forgotten Americans” tour which took him to poor and urban parts of the country that probably hasn’t seen a Republican presidential candidate for decades – if ever. In that way, McCain too has signaled he won’t rely on the base and use the same Republican math that elected Bush twice. Instead, by appearing near the site of one of the administration’s biggest failures, he’ll join Obama to contest everything.
As exciting and historic as the Democratic primary has been, the McCain-Obama match-up may yet prove even more so. All you really need to do is look at the pictures and listen to the words from the candidates tonight to understand that, sometimes, politics can be poetry in motion.
Around The Track
Best-selling author Mitch Albom on his first nonfiction work since "Tuesdays with Morrie."
Barack Obama appeals to a Very Wide Demographic, that''s why he''s wining. He won handily in Wisconsin, Illinois, Minnesota and Iowa all Very White States.
As much as some would like to make this a Black vs White thing, it really is not.
The fact that the majority of Obama supporters are White bears that out.
Total black turnout has been 21.4% according to
www.fivethirtyeight.com
Since the black census population in the US is around 13.5 Million that means about 3 million Blacks went to the primary polls. of those, 90% voted for Barack.
That means of his nearly 18 million votes, 15.3 million were Non-Black or about 85%. Feel free to check my math.
MOST DEMOCRATS & REPUBLICANS ARE MODERATES, IN THEIR THINKING,& DAILY LIVES AND INDIFFERENT TO RELIGOUS BELIEFS OF OTHERS, THE TITLES MEAN NOTHING.
ONLY A FEW REPUBLICANS ARE TRULY CONSERVATIVE, AS THE TITLES GO.
ONLY A FEW DEMOCRATS ARE TRULY LIBERAL.
BOTH PARTIES ARE MAINLY MODERATE OR INDEPENDENT, IN THEIR POLITICAL THOUGHTS, THE MEDIA CALLS INDEPENDENTS `SWING VOTES`
YOU BILL OREILY, SEAN HANITY, RUSH LIMBAUGH AND ANNE CULTER RADIO & CABLE TV BRAINWASHED A!! HOLES !!
PS: JAMES CARVILLE IS MARRIED TO A REPUBLICAN & THE BUSH & CLINTON FAMILIES ARE VERY CLOSE, FAMILY FRIENDS...
SEE, THE BIG JOKE AND THE CON GAME, IS ON IDIOTS LIKE ...YOU.
DEMOCRATS & REPUBLICANS ARE THE POLITICAL VERSION OF VINCE MCMAHON`S WWE WRESTLING.
THEY ALL PLAY THEIR ROLES AND MAKE YOU BELIEVE THAT THERE IS REALLY HATE AMONG THE 2 PARTIES, WHEN THERES NONE, ITS ABOUT BRAGGING RIGHTS OF MY PARTY.
http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2007/08/17/europe/EU-GEN-Russia-China-Maneuvers.php
Russia & China hold Joint Military Exercise
August 17, 2007
Go and Vote for John McCain, We will be 1 More Arab Country Invasion Away, from (World War 3)
CHEBARKUL TESTING RANGE, Russia: President Vladimir Putin said Friday he had ordered strategic bombers to resume regular Long-Range patrols as Russian and Chinese forces held their first joint military Exercise on Russian Soil %u2014
A show of Armed Muscle Aimed at Sending a Pointed Message to the United States.
The resumption of bombing patrols, which analysts say signaled a significant change for Russian military policy, comes amid a Growing Chill in U.S.-Russian Relations, strained over Washingtons criticism of Russias democracy record, Moscows objections to U.S. Missile Defense Plans and Differences over Global Crises.
Both Moscow and Beijing share a Heightening (Distrust) of what they see as the United States oversized role and Influence in Global Politics, and the Two former Cold War Rivals have forged a "Strategic Partnership" aimed at Counter Balancing Washingtons Policies.
The Russian-Chinese War Games, which took place near the Urals Mountain city of Chelyabinsk, coincided with Russian air force maneuvers involving 20 strategic bombers which ranged far over the Atlantic, Pacific and Arctic oceans.
stay in there HILLARY --- he is not worthy to shine your shoes ---
It''s statements like these that show HRC supporters in their true light. The metality that says "If I can''t win, I don''t want to play."
They, like the candidate they support, do not care about the party or the country. It is they who will get the blame as Iraq drags on for at least another 4 years under McSame.
Sad.
he is is a sleeze bag who disenfrancises voters in IL in order to win his first campaign
then he gets his high placed friends in the mayorial office to open SEALED divorce papers to force anotrher opponent out
he cannot fairly win a race and he talks honesty and change -- what a sham and a scam
Senator Clinton''s pages are not flawless -- but she is not a hypocrite and she has all the qualities for a great leader of the USA
More young American men and Women will DIE in Iraq as McSame carries on the Bush legacy.
Health care will continue to be out of reach for millions.
Tax breaks for the wealthiest Americans will continue.
How can you, in good conscience do this to your party, to your country?? If Hillary were the nominee, I would not be happy about it, but I would still support her in the fall because the only thing that matters right now is getting the republicans and their failed policies out of power. You should be ashamed.
Their motto of for the party, of the party and by the party stinks.
May the new democratic party come forward.