Dems Fight To A Draw On Super Tuesday

Obama Wins Majority Of States, But Clinton Holds Slim Lead In Delegate Race

(CBS)  This story was written by CBSNews.com political reporter David Miller.

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The Super Tuesday showdown between Democrats Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama gave both candidates plenty of delegates and plenty of things to brag about, but did little to bring the party closer to identifying a clear front-runner.

Obama won 13 of the 22 states holding Democratic primaries and caucuses, but Clinton won the night's two biggest prizes in New York, where her victory was widely expected, and in California, which polls had shown tightening up in the days leading up to the contest.

Both campaigns had surprises: Clinton, a New York senator, won in Massachusetts despite Obama winning high profile endorsements from Sen. Edward M. Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy, daughter of the late President John F. Kennedy. Obama came away with a victory in Connecticut -- a state in Clinton's backyard -- and also pulled off a close win in Missouri, where late returns put him over the top.

Clinton also scored victories in Arizona, Oklahoma, Tennessee, New Jersey and Arkansas, where her husband, former President Bill Clinton, once served as governor.

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View All Super Tuesday Results

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Speaking to supporters, she signaled that the race for the Democratic nomination wasn't over.

"I want to congratulate Sen. Obama on his victories tonight," she said. "I look forward to continuing our campaign and our debates about how to leave this country better off for the next generation, because that is the work of my life." (Watch Clinton video)

Among Obama's other victories were primaries in Alabama, Georgia, his home state of Illinois, which he represents in the Senate, and the Northeastern state of Delaware -- once viewed, like Connecticut, as a Clinton stronghold. He also won all of the night's caucuses, including those in Alaska, Utah, Idaho, Colorado, North Dakota, Minnesota and Kansas, where he had the endorsement of the state's popular female governor and family roots on his mother's side.

"Our time has come, our movement is real, and change is coming to America," Obama said to cheering supporters in Chicago. "Change will not come if we wait for some other person or some other time. We are the ones we've been waiting for. We are the change that we seek." (Watch Obama video)

The only state outstanding was New Mexico, where Obama held a narrow lead over Clinton with some of the vote yet to be counted.

As the breakdown of states suggests, the race for delegates was close. CBS News estimates Obama has won 803 of the night's available delegates, compared to Clinton's 799. Since the race kicked off with the Iowa caucuses Jan. 3, Clinton has won 1,058 delegates and Obama 984. That total factors in the support of superdelegates, the party leaders and elected officials who have a say in the nomination. Clinton leads among that group.

Either candidate could end up ahead in the count by time all Super Tuesday delegates are apportioned. Party rules require a candidate to win 2,025 delegates to secure the nomination. Click here to see the delegate scorecard.

"This race, of course, will be historic because it will produce either the first female or black presidential nominee from a major American political party," CBSNews.com's Dick Meyer wrote in an analysis of the race. "People will also be talking about this campaign for decades to come for its sheer ferocity, closeness and duration -- and its lack of predictability." (Click here to read more of Meyer's analysis.)

CBS News correspondent Peter Maer reports that David Axelrod, Obama's senior adviser, put a positive spin on the night's mixed outcome, saying it defied predictions from earlier in the campaign that the day's voting would wrap up the nomination for Clinton. He expected Obama and Clinton to be "roughly even" in the delegate count once the night's votes were tabulated.

"This was the night that Hillary Clinton announced she was going to close out our campaign and that's hardly happened," Axelrod said. "We're in a strong, strong position coming out of this night."

The calendar for the rest of February does appear to favor Obama, something Clinton's own advisers admitted in a conference call Tuesday before the polls closed. They include contests in Nebraska, the Virgin Islands, Washington and Maine, all of which are caucuses like those Obama swept Tuesday. He also has the advantage in the so-called Chesapeake primary on Feb. 12, when Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia vote -- demographically, all three favor Obama. He should also be a favorite in the Feb. 9 primary in Louisiana, which has a high percentage of black voters. Obama also appears to have an edge in Hawaii, where he spent much of his childhood, and Wisconsin.

If Obama performs as well in February as expected, Clinton may have to wait until March 4 to regain the advantage in the delegate count. That day includes primaries in Ohio -- full of blue-collar workers who have traditionally favored her -- and Texas, where a large Hispanic population should give her a boost. Exit polls indicate Hispanics favored her by a 2-to-1 margin Tuesday. (Click here to read more about Super Tuesday exit polls.)

Clinton also led in two key demographics on Super Tuesday that bode well for her campaign in the long haul: women voters and those over 60 years old. CBS News exit polling indicated white women voted for Clinton by a huge margin, 58 percent to 38 percent. Among those older than 60, she won, 55 percent to 38 percent.

Given the close delegate count on Tuesday and the outlook for the upcoming contests, it's possible the race for the Democratic nomination could drag on for months, possibly until the party's convention in Denver.

"It may be all the way to the nominating convention before we know who is going to get the Democratic nomination," CBS News chief Washington correspondent Bob Schieffer said. "It may be one of these old fashioned, which delegation are you going to seat at the convention, and all that kind of business … all those thrilling stories of yesteryear."

Going forward, both Clinton and Obama may increase their focus on the economy. Exit polling showed that nearly half of Democratic voters said the economy was their top priority, and more than 90 percent said they thought it was in bad shape.

According to nationwide early exit polling, nearly half of Democratic voters said the economy was their top priority, and more than 90 percent said they thought the economy was in bad shape.

Just over half, 51 percent, said the ability to bring change was the most important quality in a candidate, with 23 percent citing experience.

Yet those two qualities didn't end up driving Tuesday's results, Schieffer said.

"I think the interesting thing here is we were talking about this being an election about change or about experience, it’s breaking down to be an election about gender and about race," he said. "I think this is not all about what we thought it was going to be about tonight."

[sgtrds]

Every primary has seen record numbers of Democrats turning out to vote. This bodes well for real Americans and not so well for fascist neocons.

[ov442]

I dont know why the Title says that, every other article on most major news sites says Obama is leading in Every single state poll in the country.
IF their polls are right, then Obama wins in a landslide. period.

[sgtrds]

IF their polls are right, then Obama wins in a landslide. period.

Posted by ov442 at 05:28 PM : Feb 05, 2008

And whoever wins the nomination should win the White House fairly easily. Still if it''s Obama or Hillary I hope they have extra security, because I have no doubt that the neocons, esp Di*ck Cheney, will not hesitate to have them killed to keep power.

[rowdytexan2]

Posted by SgtRDS at 05:31 PM : Feb 05, 2008

Good point!

[irliberal]

GO HILLARY! GO OBAMA! WOOHOO!! They''re both just great lol. Now I mean that sincerely, even though everyone knows that it certainly doesn''t take much to be better than what we''ve got right now. Heh.

[byeneocons]

I think between now and the convention, Hillary and Obama will probably take turns being on top.

[searingtruth]

Well, I''d asked the campaigns and supporters of Obama and Hillary a few times to point me to a public 2008 campaign speech link where either of them pledged to restore our Constitution on the day they were elected, but no one was able to point me to a link where the word "Constitution" was even mentioned.

So radiob came up with the idea of a protest vote, and offered the name of his loyal canine companion, Drew Shelt, as a candidate of common protest. I voted for Drew today in the California Democratic primaries.

Many Americans simply cannot in good conscience vote for candidates who voted for the Treason Act, the Torture Act, and the abolition of Habeas corpus. Even if they did give them sweet sounding Orwellian names like the "Patriot Act" and "Military Commissions Act".

And in the end all we were asking for from either Democratic candidate was a simple public pledge to restore our Constitution, and bring all those who have subverted it to justice. Something that in the past would not even have to be asked of any American. This should have been a natural, but it wasn''t.

So I hope the Democratic Party will heed this warning.

Many Independents will no longer follow the Democrats in lock step, and will demand that they execute their primary Constitutional obligation, which is to protect the Constitution itself, at all cost.
ST


"Our representatives had become politicians, precluding all hope of justice."
SearingTruth

A Future of the Brave %u2013 www.searingtruth.com

[mikee812]

COME ON AND LIE HILLARY LIE! WHOO HOO, ARKANSAS HARDBALL POLITICS! GET BILL TO LIE SOME TOO: HE''S THE MASTER LIER AND HARDBALL POLITIC PLAYER WHO LIED TO THE BLACKS TO GET ELECTED!

YOU HAVE THE REPUBLICANS BEHIND YOU. JUST LIE UNTIL YOU CAN''T LIE NO MORE!!

[mikee812]

COME ON AND LIE HILLARY LIE! WHOO HOO, ARKANSAS HARDBALL POLITICS! GET BILL TO LIE SOME TOO: HE''S THE MASTER LIER AND HARDBALL POLITIC PLAYER WHO LIED TO THE BLACKS TO GET ELECTED!

YOU HAVE THE REPUBLICANS BEHIND YOU. JUST LIE UNTIL YOU CAN''T LIE NO MORE!!

[mikee812]

COME ON AND LIE HILLARY LIE! WHOO HOO, ARKANSAS HARDBALL POLITICS! GET BILL TO LIE SOME TOO: HE''S THE MASTER LIER AND HARDBALL POLITIC PLAYER WHO LIED TO THE BLACKS TO GET ELECTED!

YOU HAVE THE REPUBLICANS BEHIND YOU. JUST LIE UNTIL YOU CAN''T LIE NO MORE!!

[irliberal]

What do you get if you add one part limbaugh rhetoric, two parts hate, a little chewing tobacco, a pinch of spite and a pick-up truck?

Answer: MikeE812

[byeneocons]

Isn''t it great to know that people like MikeE812 are walking around loose?

[pvperson]

Mike try to get your palsied hand off the publish button, OK. Or, are you just too stupid to realized that your repeating yourself?

[hypnotoad72]

vivaviva80 - When I read your message, I thought you meant American votes going to the benefit of other countries.

America has always been a land of immigrants and if people want to come here to live here and contribute here, that''s cool.

But with the potential demise of our economy, we can help free trade for only so long before we have to make it fair again.

And as I paid $200 for a piece of software, made in India (not a Microsoft product), it''s not realistic to say that moving programming jobs offshore equates to lower costs. Amongst other things.

[andersenme]

Hillary''s camp is now asking for more debates, as if we didn''t know her and her husband well enough already, and how they will use any opportunity to distort and defame. ...

However, if Obama agrees to another debate, I hope someone will ask Hillary the following question:

"Ma''am, your husband''s presidency was marked by scandals running from the salacious to national security, you''ve run a campaign based on race coding, and both you and your husband have scant regard for the truth.

"Personal responsibility is the key to government accountability.

"What could you--or your husband--say to young people, what could you possibly bring to the table, for those who need to hear a message of honesty and integrity?"

Martin Edwin Andersen
Churchton, Maryland

[andersenme]

THE FORCES OF GOOD GOVERNMENT ARE ABOUT TO TAKE THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY BACK ...

THE HUFFINGTON POST IS REPORTING ...

Democrats
CT: Clinton - 45, Obama - 52.2
IL: Clinton - 29.1, Obama - 69.6
AL: Clinton - 37, Obama - 59.6
DE: Clinton - 41.9, Obama - 55.6
MA: Clinton - 47.3, Obama - 49.8
MO: Clinton - 45.1, Obama - 49.8
TN: Clinton - 51.6, Obama - 41.1
NY: Clinton - 55.6, Obama - 42.2
NJ: Clinton - 47, Obama - 52.2
AR: Clinton - 71.2, Obama - 25.5
OK: Clinton - 60.5, Obama - 30.4
AZ: Clinton - 44.8, Obama - 50.5

1st wave:
NM: Clinton - 45.6, Obama - 51.8
UT: Clinton - 39.9, Obama - 60.1
CA: Clinton - 49.6, Obama - 46.3

Republicans
CA: McCain 40, Romney 35
MA: Romney 54, McCain 32
NJ: McCain 50, Romney 32
NY: McCain 50, Romney 31

MARTIN EDWIN ANDERSEN

[j-whitman]

Howdy folks,,, Wow, this is the biggest turnout yet for democrat voters yet,,, 4 times today in my precint in North Highlands, Ca. had to order more dem ballots & the polls don''''t close for awhile yet.

[jumkey]

Hey Martin?

The Clinton "scandals" were created by the Republican Party.

If you want scandal look to Bush and his illegal wiretapping, illegal war of aggression, colluding with the oil companies to rob you blind at the pump and his treasonous outing of a covert CIA agent, to only name a few of his crimes.

I didn''t vote for Hillary in the primary and I don''t support her for President but saying she is scandalous while ignoring the crimes committed against freedom and democracy and America by the Republican Party is just ridiculous to the extreme.

[sgtrds]

Posted by andersenme at 08:30 PM : Feb 05, 2008


(yawn) No one cares about that BS any longer. Give it up.

[approvedcbs]

THIS JUST IN!

Hillary loses California!

[canyoutellme-2009]

Uh, is it just me? HOw in the WORLD can they show a "Projected winner" if only like 100 of the 5000 precincts have reported? That''s B*LLSH*T... why don''t they just wait until maybe 50% of the areas have reported and THEN project the winner?? right now they just have like 1% reporting and they are already declaring winners for each state? what a bunch of HOOEY... pathetic.

[l8c6]

right now they just have like 1% reporting and they are already declaring winners for each state? what a bunch of HOOEY... pathetic.

Posted by CANYOUTELLME


It is pathetic. Things could actually get worse after Bush. It wouldn''t be the first time in history that after the worst, the worst was yet to come. What a divided nation this is.

[spinster2]

This just it" Clinton smashes Kennedy''s, Kerry, The governor, and Obama in Mass.

[spinster2]

Democrats
CT: Clinton - 45, Obama - 52.2
IL: Clinton - 29.1, Obama - 69.6
AL: Clinton - 37, Obama - 59.6
DE: Clinton - 41.9, Obama - 55.6
MA: Clinton - 47.3, Obama - 49.8
MO: Clinton - 45.1, Obama - 49.8
TN: Clinton - 51.6, Obama - 41.1
NY: Clinton - 55.6, Obama - 42.2
NJ: Clinton - 47, Obama - 52.2
AR: Clinton - 71.2, Obama - 25.5
OK: Clinton - 60.5, Obama - 30.4
AZ: Clinton - 44.8, Obama - 50.5
Posted by andersenme




Keep on listening to those far left websites.

[maiingan]

I had hoped to see a rerun of "The Unit" at 8PM CST. But no, you had to do an election show. I can wait to learn more results on the late local news, and tomorrow. I have changed the channel. My TV Week from the Sunday paper doesn''t show you doing the election show until 9PM CST.

[obama1289]

Obama:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jPev5sEdTjg

[jerryinohio]

As I have previously predicted, it appears that the Clinton legacy has kicked the Kennedy legacy to the political curb. When Kennedy endorsed Obama, I predicted it would not result in a win in Mass., just as the Kerry endorsement did not help there either. Both Kennedy and Kerry were losers in their bids for the Presidency and Kennedy never even won the Democratic primary. It''s a bad move to surround yourself with prior losing candidates. After all the speculation about the demise of the Clinton legacy, I see now that it''s perhaps the Kennedys who need to retire from politics, particularly Ted and Caroline.

[ontheleft]

The projected winners they are announcing early are based on exit polls. There''s nothing new about this, it''s done every election. The real close races will have to wait until official results are in. Give the news agencies some credit. They''re pretty careful about announcing winners in elections.

[briannorwood]

Finally...

Stick a fork in Hillary/Billary/Bill! The imperial family will have a very hard time spinning this defeat.

Yes, I said defeat. The Clintons thought their backroom strategy of front-loading the primaries...all this happened when we weren''t looking...would smaah any opposition.

Surprise! Obama holds off the onslaught and is on a roll.

The more people see him, the more he wins over the hearts and minds of the Democrats.

Meanwhile, the more people see Hillary/Billary/Bill the more they reject them.

Change marches on!

[mrbrill]

canyoutellme, you obviously don''t know anything about the science of exit polls. While exit polls aren''t 100% accurate, they are pretty *** close. If you are not interested in knowing who the winners are as soon as they can predict, why don''t you just tune out until tomorrow.

[michelgugs]

I think reporters enjoy degrading and twisting the purpose of the presidential elections because it has nothing to do with black or white races. It has to do with who can run the country the best.
P.S. Get your head out of your a**.

William Gugel

[tbweb]

This just it" Clinton smashes Kennedy''''s, Kerry, The governor, and Obama in Mass.

Posted by Spinster2 at 08:59 PM : Feb 05, 2008,,,

Too bad for HillBilly its not winner takes all! The Delegates are split between them and she is winning, but can''t seem to put any significant distance between herself and Sen. Obama. Time is on Obama''s side, the longer no clear winner, it drags on. Many of HillBillys Votes came from early Voting back in January and the campaign has changed significantly since January! Time will tell, but this may be decided at the Convention.

[vcharette1]

Hillary, if you are wondering why it is close in Connecticut, it probably has to do with pre-recorded phone calls by a certain popular black state official reminding people to go out and vote - for Obama. This is not only illegal, but unethical. Plus, I have also received emails from black "personalities" that are calling you a racist. You really need to take the gloves off honey.Although there is room in the Democratic party for people with various beliefs on issues, there is no room for racists, or reverse-racists.

[grazinggoat]

Too bad for HillBilly its not winner takes all! The Delegates are split between them and she is winning, but can''''t seem to put any significant distance between herself and Sen. Obama. Time is on Obama''''s side, the longer no clear winner, it drags on. Many of HillBillys Votes came from early Voting back in January and the campaign has changed significantly since January! Time will tell, but this may be decided at the Convention.

Posted by tbweb at 10:12 PM : Feb 05, 2008

-Good observation tbweb. Obama had my vote today, and I''m hopeful, he''ll make it to the end.

[hk94]

Doesn''t matter if Obama is close or even pulls ahead. Clinton bought the superdeligates and they will decide who wins. In the end it won''t matter what the voters think. The part insiders decide.

[cattlekate]

My Colorado wealthy/UMC/MC ex-urbia caucus went for Obama four times more than Hillary.

Give it in, Hillary! You are a corporate shill!

[irliberal]

Both candidates are running a great race. It doesn''t matter who wins really, both are wonderful candidates! It''s quite exciting to see this level of interest in the democratic candidates - it has been a while since we had anyone who was electable now we have two! Quite nice! Go Hillary! Go Obama! May the best...er... most popular person win!! 8-)

[tbweb]

Hillary, if you are wondering why it is close in Connecticut, it probably has to do with pre-recorded phone calls by a certain popular black state official reminding people to go out and vote - for Obama. This is not only illegal, but unethical. Plus, I have also received emails from black "personalities" that are calling you a racist. You really need to take the gloves off honey.Although there is room in the Democratic party for people with various beliefs on issues, there is no room for racists, or reverse-racists.

Posted by vcharette1 at 10:16 PM : Feb 05, 2008,,,

It''s interesting that you mention the "race" issue because on a 3 person news debate tonight 2 of the panelist claims it was the Clinton''s who introduced "race" and it backfired and blew up in their face, the third panelist disagreed but 2 claim is was done to win the Southern States and Bill did it in Southern code, but who knows, I don''t speak Southern code whatever that is! But any and everyone needs to quit, America looks primitive and continues to embarrass itself on the World Stage claiming Democracy and Freedoms many Americans don''t enjoy!

[hawksprings]

Hopefully Hillary will be home soon, baking cookies... and leaving us alone.

[rowdytexan2]

Go Hillary! Congratulations on the wins and will be rooting for you throughout the nite!

We need competence and the ability to reach across parties, and corporation, and people!

I think some people forget that we need corporations for our economy. We just need someone that will hold them to reasonableness, and stimulate them to create jobs.

[user168-2009]

When someone had the profound insight and wisdom to address a speech such as this one in 2002, you can trust his judgment in leading America and the world:

Senator Obama%u2019s speech, October 26, 2002, opposing the use of force in Iraq%u2026
%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2014%u2013

http://thegooddemocrat.wordpress.com/2007/02/06/barack-obamas-speech-on-iraq-2002/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EhpKmQCCwB8


"You have to believe in yourself."
"Kindness in thinking creates profoundness."
"From caring comes courage."

Obama ''08!

[republic1776]

Hillary make me want to vomit.
Her and Bill only care about themselves, how can America buy their BS?

[barbjc1]

I received a pre-recorded phone call from Michelle Obama, I was not impressed.I am a Kansas and was really upset the caucus went to Obama. I thought Kathleen Sebelius had better sense than to endorse some one like him.
I think the women under 30 are voting for Obama because they think he is cute. This sounds like the Independence Day movie where a bunch of airheads welcomed the alien invaders. The invaders blew them into outer space.
Obama is quite the talker until you start to "really listen" to him and his wife has the "class and graciousness of a slum loard".

[republic1776]

Hillary went after Bill''s rape victims, and character assassinated them.
That''s pure evil....

[briannorwood]

I just saw Hillary/Billary/Bill''s "victory" speech in New York. How pathetic. It was about as inspiring as her "concession" speech after her thumping in South Carolina.

You''d think she could have at least memorized it instead of reading it off cue cards. After all, this was "Super Tuesday".

Watch Obama''s speech later. You''ll see why he is clearly the future of the Democratic party.

[hungry1968]

Hillary make me want to vomit.
Her and Bill only care about themselves, how can America buy their BS?

Posted by republic1776 at 11:03 PM : Feb 05, 2008




Right. It''s competely different from the Cheney / Bush regime that care deeply about the middle and lower classes and don''t really care about themselves or their ultra wealthy friends, right?

[bookwerm314]

Just left my east Boulder County Colorado Caucus.
Was 4 to 1 for Obama. Huge interest, very crowded. Overall, they are saying 2/1 for Obama in colorado, but if my group is any indication, expect Obama to win very very big.

[roxy000]

So Happy that Hillary is winning this race. She deserves it. Well done. Obama is an arrogant rasict who divides this country to black and white. Look at the states he won tonight!!

[hawksprings]

"Obama is an arrogant rasict who divides this country to black and white. Look at the states he won tonight!!"
Posted by roxy000

What states are you looking at, roxy????

Obama is winning Lilly White states like Kansas, Idaho, North Dakota and Utah by big margins.


By the way, where were you the last couple of weeks when the Clintons and their slimeball campaign people hinted that people wouldn''t vote for a black man, and that LBJ, not MLK, was the one who got it done?

[hawksprings]

The nice thing about campaigning against Hillary is that when she goes somewhere to campaign, her poll numbers go down.

In Polling Language, she has the highest negatives of anyone who has ever run for president.

Her main experience in politics is destroying the women who have come forward about Bill Clinton raping/harrassing/doing them.