No Drama. Vote Obama?

This is so true. Whenever I stop writing about Hillary, things really tone down over here. Writing about John McCain is standard political fare, pretty ho hum. Lobbyists, Iraq, the economy, whatever. There's no fun in it.

But HILLARY, now that's an interesting campaign, filled with twists and turns. My mother calls me up every day and asks, "What did that Hillary do today?" What a worthy opponent. The unbridled ambition is almost admirable.

Americans say that we want to focus on the issues, but it seems to me that what we really want to focus on are flag pins, pastor eruptions, assassination innuendos, Geraldine Ferraro. You know, all the FUN stuff.

Are we as a country addicted to drama? What will we do to entertain ourselves when Hillary drops out?

Well, just for fun, here's a dramatic rendition of Young Hillary Clinton:



From The Politico:

Oh, the drama of it all. The drama that is the Hillary Clinton campaign.

What will she say next? What will she do next?

I do not know, but I do know this: There is a huge drama gap between the Clinton campaign and the Barack Obama campaign. In fact, it is more like a chasm.

Whenever things get dull, whenever things settle down and people begin to concentrate on how Clinton is a serious candidate with a serious message, championing serious issues, she manages to heat things up.

Why talk about health care or energy policy or the housing crisis when you can talk about ... the assassination of Robert Kennedy!

Read more here

Barack Obama on Veteran Suicide Rate

Barack spoke out about the Army report that stated suicide rates among veterans are on the rise...

Today’s news is a tragic reminder of the staggering and ongoing costs of the Iraq war, particularly on our troops and their families. We are more than five years into this war, and the Pentagon and VA are still unprepared to treat the unseen wounds of battle. We know that incidence of psychological injury increase with each additional tour of duty in Iraq, and that our troops are not getting the support they need. Too many are falling through the cracks because they need help but feel they can’t get it. When I am President, we’ll hire more mental health professionals, increase training to recognize the signs and to reject the stigma of seeking care, and enhance mental health screening and treatment from enlistment, to deployment, to reentry into civilian life. It’s time to serve our troops as well as they have served us.

For more on Obama's support for our veterans, visit Veterans.BarackObama.com.

Pelosi Prepared to Step in to Stop Convention Fight

From the San Francisco Chronicle:

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi says she will step in if necessary to make sure the presidential nomination fight between Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama does not reach the Democratic National Convention - though she believes it could be resolved as early as next week.

Pelosi predicted Wednesday that a presidential nominee will emerge in the week after the final Democratic primaries on June 3, but she said "I will step in" if there is no resolution by late June regarding the seating of delegates from Florida and Michigan, the two states that defied party rules by holding early primaries.

"Because we cannot take this fight to the convention," she said. "It must be over before then."

Read more here

Barack Wonks It up on Education

Barack spoke at the MESA campus in Thornton, Colorado.

From The Washington Post:

For more than 20 minutes, the Illinois Democrat laced the language of uplift and challenge with the acronyms of education and reform: GEAR UP and TRIO, a proposed Service Scholarship program to replace retiring teachers, a Teacher Residency Program to recruit them at mid-career from other professions, and the Career Ladder Initiative to reward teachers who mentor others.

In a snug auditorium packed with education professionals, the loudest cheers greeted his critique of President Bush's No Child Left Behind initiative, which Obama blasted for forcing teachers and students to spend most of the year preparing for a single, high-stakes standardized test without offering sufficient resources.

But in the end, the message from the stage really did seem to be that it's about one person making a difference.

Read more here

Here's the full video of his speech:

Is It True about Barack Obama?

I suppose since we still have 10% of the American population thinking Barack is a Muslim, this is necessary... sigh.

Vote for Change

A Los Angeles voter registration event.

One of the most exciting things about this campaign is its ability to energize voters and bring in those who previously felt shut out of the political process.



Click here to get involved and help register voters in your own city.

Barack's Plan for the Housing Crisis

Here's Barack in North Las Vegas, speaking on the housing crisis and the need to protect home ownership.



Here are the details of the plan:

As president, Obama will:

* Support the Dodd/Frank proposal to create a new FHA Housing Security Program to provide incentives for lenders to buy or refinance existing mortgages and make them stable 30-year fixed mortgages;

* Make an additional $10 billion in bonds available to help middle class families buy their first home or avoid foreclosure;

* Give a tax credit to middle class homeowners that would cover 10 percent of the interest on their mortgages every year;

* Mandate accurate loan disclosure to ensure consumers fully understand their loan agreements;

* Penalize predatory lenders and use those fines to help families stay in their homes;

* Eliminate income tax for seniors making less than $50,000 per year;

* And implement a “Making Work Pay” tax credit of $1,000 per family or $500 per worker.

The full transcript of the speech as well as more information about his plan can be read here

Obama: Mensaje a Puerto Rico

Obama speaks in Spanish in this ad currently running in Puerto Rico.

Meeting Michelle Obama Today

Going to a luncheon. Very excited. I've met her before. She is a beautiful, sensitive and compassionate woman.

Barack Speaks at B'nai Torah Congregation in Boca Raton, FL

Barack en Puerto Rico!

The front page of Puerto Rican newspaper El Nuevo Dia

Veteran's Townhall in Puerto Rico

Obama's Wesleyan Commencement Speech

Barack spoke for Senator Ted Kennedy at the commencement address at Wesleyan University.

He encouraged graduates to follow the example of the Kennedy family and work towards a more just society.

I was born the year that his brother John called a generation of Americans to ask their country what they could do. And I came of age at a time when they did it. They were the Peace Corps volunteers who won a generation of goodwill toward America at a time when America’s ideals were challenged. They were the teenagers and college students, not much older than you, who watched the Civil Rights Movement unfold on their television sets; who saw the dogs and the fire hoses and the footage of marchers beaten within an inch or their lives; who knew it was probably smarter and safer to stay at home, but still decided to take those Freedom Rides down south – who still decided to march. And because they did, they changed the world.

I bring this up because today, you are about to enter a world that makes it easy to get caught up in the notion that there are actually two different stories at work in our lives.

The first is the story of our everyday cares and concerns – the responsibilities we have to our jobs and our families – the bustle and busyness of what happens in our own life. And the second is the story of what happens in the life of our country – of what happens in the wider world. It’s the story you see when you catch a glimpse of the day’s headlines or turn on the news at night – a story of big challenges like war and recession; hunger and climate change; injustice and inequality. It’s a story that can sometimes seem distant and separate from our own – a destiny to be shaped by forces beyond our control.

And yet, the history of this nation tells us this isn’t so. It tells us that we are a people whose destiny has never been written for us, but by us – by generations of men and women, young and old, who have always believed that their story and the American story are not separate, but shared. And for more than two centuries, they have served this country in ways that have forever enriched both.

I say this to you as someone who couldn’t be standing here today if not for the service of others, and wouldn’t be standing here today if not for the purpose that service gave my own life.

Read the full text of the speech here

Honoring Our Veterans

Barack's Memorial Day speech in Las Cruces, New Mexico.



Here's the full text to the speech.

1968

Truth be told, I was too young to remember Bobby Kennedy's campaign or MLK or Malcolm or JFK.

But a lot of people older than me who I have worked with on the Obama campaign have talked to me about 1968 and what Bobby Kennedy's candidacy meant to them.

One Obama supporter told me that was the year she shut down from politics, deciding that she could not handle the heartache. It was then that a cynicism about the political process took root in her and she "turned her face to the wall" and vowed never to care so much again.

Another fellow told me about the hope and inspiration he felt working on the Obama campaign, and his experience as a young volunteer on Bobby Kennedy's campaign.

It was then that he broke into tears and described the moment he saw Bobby riding by in his campaign convertible, touring through a crowded Los Angeles street.

He couldn't finish his sentence.

What I've learned from them is that something got lost in the 1960s. Something new and fresh and idealistic.

And for these people, who are now in their 50s and 60s, the Obama campaign symbolizes the opportunity to finish what got truncated. To close the circle, so to speak.

So, in remembrance of 1968, here is a slideshow of Bobby Kennedy's campaign from Vanity Fair, called "The Heartbreak Campaign" and an interview with the busboy Juan Romero, who was with RFK in his last moments.

Obama: Limbaugh and Dobbs Responsible for Increase in Hate Crimes Against Latinos

Obama spoke at a fundraiser in Florida.

From the Huffington Post:

"A certain segment has basically been feeding a kind of xenophobia. There's a reason why hate crimes against Hispanic people doubled last year," Obama said. "If you have people like Lou Dobbs and Rush Limbaugh ginning things up, it's not surprising that would happen."

Needless to say, Rush didn't take to kindly to the "xenophobic" label. They're like the schoolyard thugs to whom everybody is scared "just stop... stop bullying other people around."


Go Obama! Somebody has to take these blowhard hate-mongers to task!

Read more here

New LA Times Poll Results: Hillary Stands Good Chance of Losing CA to McCain

Breaking news from the Los Angeles Times:

Latest polling shows that California wouldn't necessarily stay a blue state were Hillary Clinton to become the Democatic nominee! A Clinton nomination puts her within the margin of error to lose to McCain.

I'm a native Californian... and all I have to say is HELL NO!

Clinton's negative campaigning has been pissing people off here, and if the California Democratic primary were held today, polls show Hillary would lose to Barack Obama.

California is the jewel in the Democratic Party's crown. We can't let this happen.

Hillary Clinton may have scored a solid win over Barack Obama in California's presidential primary on Feb. 5 (as she frequently likes to remind folks these days), but a new L.A. Times/KTLA poll finds he would fare better than she in the battle with John McCain for the state in November (a result the Clinton camp won't be touting).

Obama led McCain in the poll, 47-40%; in a Clinton matchup with the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, she got 43%, he held steady at 40%.

The margin of error is +/-4.

Read more here

Clinton Raises Spectre of Bobby Kennedy Assassination

Wow. First "hard working white people" and now Hillary Clinton is on the record as having raised the issue of political assassination as reason for her to stay in the race.

"My husband did not wrap up the nomination in 1992 until he won the California primary somewhere in the middle of June, right? We all remember Bobby Kennedy was assassinated in June in California. I don't understand it."

She later apologized for the remark, saying:

"Earlier today I was discussing the Democratic primary history and in the course of that discussion mentioned the campaigns that both my husband and Senator Kennedy waged in California in June 1992 and 1968 and I was referencing those to make the point that we have had nomination primary contests that go into June. That's a historic fact.


The Kennedys have been much on my mind the last days because of Senator Kennedy and I regret that if my referencing that moment of trauma for our entire nation, and particularly for the Kennedy family was in any way offensive. I certainly had no intention of that, whatsoever. My view is that we have to look to the past and to our leaders who have inspired us and give us a lot to live up to, and I'm honored to hold Senator Kennedy's seat in the United States Senate from the state of New York and have the highest regard for the entire Kennedy family."

I don't think that Hillary Clinton was trying to say that should Barack get assassinated, she would be waiting in the wings...

I believe that she was talking about the length of the primaries.

What I don't like, however, is the fact that Hillary has not apologized to the Obama family. Barack is the father of two young children... this kind of talk must be very hurtful.

It was only recently that Hillary would congratulate Obama on his primary wins.

I think this shows a lack of class.

Read more about assassination concerns about Barack Obama here.

Clinton to Wage Convention Battle?

Rachel Maddow brilliantly described the Clinton campaign as "post-rational" in that there's no mathematical way in which Hillary can secure the nomination.

Maddow's take on it is that those who think that Hillary Clinton has any intention of bowing out from this contest gracefully, should think again, because Hillary has made no signs that she intends to stop campaigning.

From Maddow's column in the Huffington Post:

Listen: you don't need a vivid political imagination to recognize that if what you really want is to be President of the United States -- a slim chance of becoming President (a fight at the convention) is better than no chance of becoming President (because you dropped out).

The Clinton strategy, as best as I can tell, is to stay in the race. You can't win if you don't play -- conceding the nomination is sure defeat, not conceding means there's still a chance.

The way for her to avoid conceding is for her to avoid conceding that the race is resolved.

As long as the Florida and Michigan dispute is alive, and it is being used as the basis of Clinton's claim that the nomination is unresolved, we should expect that Senator Clinton will stay in the race.

We should also expect that if the Democratic Party's committee system takes up the Florida and Michigan dispute through its rules as they stand now, Clinton's campaign will be able to keep the Michigan and Florida dispute alive until the convention. If there's a secret Democratic-insider plan to keep that from happening, it's time for that plan to become un-secret.

Read more here

Many Kentucky Voters Think Obama Is Muslim

Key Clinton Constituencies Moving Toward Obama

From the latest Gallup poll:

Gallup Poll Daily tracking has documented a surge in Democratic voters' support for Barack Obama over Hillary Clinton in recent days, swelling from a four percentage-point lead for Obama during the first part of May to a record 16-point lead for him in polling from May 16-18.

...The broadening of Obama's appeal for the nomination seen in Gallup's May 16-18 polling is fairly widespread, with the percentage favoring him increasing among most demographic categories of Democratic voters. However, as a result, certain groups that were already highly supportive of Obama for the nomination -- men, 18- to 29-year-olds, postgrads, and upper-income Democrats -- are now overwhelmingly in his camp. Obama is currently favored among these groups by a 2-to-1 margin, or better, over Clinton.

...At the same time, support for Clinton among some of her traditionally stalwart support groups -- women, Easterners, whites, adults with no college education, and Hispanics -- has fallen below 50%.

Obama in Negotiations to Run DNC

From Associated Press:

Barack Obama is quietly planning to take over the Democratic National Committee and assemble a multistate team for the general election, the latest sign that he is putting rival Hillary Rodham Clinton and the nomination fight behind him.

Top Obama organizer Paul Tewes is in discussions to run the party, several Democratic officials said Tuesday.

Read more here

Obama Hits McCain on Lobbyists

Obama spoke in Tampa, Florida, about lobbyists' influence and John McCain.

Obama in Kissimmee, Florida

Obama spoke in Kissimmee, Florida, yesterday.

United Mine Workers Endorses Obama

The United Mine Workers of America have endorsed Barack Obama for President. Here's UMWA International President Cecil E. Roberts...

We are extremely proud to make this endorsement today. Sen. Obama shares the values of UMWA members and our families. He understands and will fight for the needs our members have today and the hopes our members have for a secure future for themselves and their families.

Most of all, Sen. Obama will implement the clear change in direction UMWA members–indeed, all American working people–must have if they are to once again move forward and have a true opportunity to realize the American dream. After eight years of being pushed aside by an administration which neither respects nor values the contributions American working families make to our society, we are looking forward with great anticipation to a new era in our nation starting with the inauguration of President Barack Obama on January 20, 2009...

For more on Senator Obama's support from unions, check out Labor for Obama.

Goofy: Parrot Loves Barack Obama

Time for a little humor break.

McCain Backer Hagee Says Hitler Was "Fulfilling God's Will"

So if conservative Pat Buchanan thinks that African-Americans should "get down on their knees" and thank America for being brought out from Africa through the slave trade... should Jews be thankful for the creation of Israel and "get down on their knees" and be grateful for the Holocaust?

Hillary Supporters Willing to Cut off Their Noses to Spite Barack Obama

A vocal number of Hillary Clinton supporters are threatening to either vote for John McCain or to even actively campaign against Barack Obama if he were to win the nomination.

They base their reasons on claims of sexism... they feel like something was "stolen" from Hillary (regardless of the fact that Barack has followed the rules set out by the DNC). They are blind to the fact that Hillary's campaign strategists were incompetent (Mark Penn reportedly didn't know that the California primary was proportional and not winner-take-all) and didn't have a plan for after Super Tuesday.

They hate Barack Obama for winning. And somehow they have conflated all of the sexism they ever experienced in their lives with this presidential campaign.

If you want to see some of the out-of-control vitriol being spewed toward him, go to Hillary supporter site Hillaryis44.org, where they even use sexist tactics against Michelle Obama by calling her "lantern jawed." (Plug your nose before you go in. This has become a hate site.)

Some misguided Hillary supporters have thought it appropriate to play the race card against Obama in Puerto Rico.

So, for those Hillary supporters who think that John McCain would better serve their interests, I urge them to read the following post written by commentator Paul Rogat Loeb.

From Polstate.com:

Dear Hillary,

Remember when John McCain slimed your daughter?

Reasons abound why you should do all you can to defeat John McCain--but for you, it should be personal. Maybe you've forgotten in the heat of the Democratic contest. But remember McCain's cruel joke about your daughter, when Chelsea was 18 and vulnerable? This alone should give you every reason to stand against McCain -- and nothing to boost his chances:
McCain made the joke at a 1998 Republican Senate fundraiser. "Why is Chelsea Clinton so ugly?" he asked. "Because her father is Janet Reno." Chelsea was a lovely young woman then, and is even lovelier now. But when you're 18, an attack like that can be deeply wounding. It's outrageous for McCain to slime an innocent young woman who'd done nothing to offend him -- just to throw red meat to a Republican crowd.

Sure, McCain apologized after a flurry of media coverage, but talk of that sort is cheap. It's like his using the excuse that he'd had a long day, after telling his own wife at a 1992 campaign event: "At least I don't plaster on the makeup like a trollop, you c$%t." That was his public response to her teasing him about his thinning hair. But the Chelsea "joke" was from a prepared text, not accidental. It's a window into McCain's cruel side. Your lovely daughter was the target of his abuse.

Read more here

Barack's Victory Speech in Iowa

From Barack: What We Have Just Achieved

The polls are closed in Kentucky and votes are being counted in Oregon, and it's clear that tonight we have reached a major milestone on this journey.

We have won an absolute majority of all the delegates chosen by the people in this Democratic primary process.

From the beginning, this journey wasn't about me or the other candidates. It was about a simple choice -- will we continue down the same road with the same leadership that has failed us for so long, or will we take a different path?

Too many of us have been disappointed by politics and politicians more times than you can count. We've seen promises broken and good ideas drowned in a sea of influence, point-scoring, and petty bickering that has consumed Washington.

Yet, in spite of all the doubt and disappointment -- or perhaps because of it -- people have stood for change.

Unfortunately, our opponents in the other party continue to embrace yesterday's policies and they will continue to employ yesterday's tactics -- they will try to change the subject, and they will play on fears and divisions to distract us from what matters to you and your future.

But those tactics will not work in this election.

They won't work because you won't let them.

Not this time. Not this year.

We still have work to do to in the remaining states, where we will compete for every delegate available.

But tonight, I want to thank you for everything you have done to take us this far -- farther than anyone predicted, expected, or even believed possible.

And I want to remind you that you will make all the difference in the epic challenge ahead.

Thank you,

Barack Obama

Please click here to donate.

Barack's Statement on Sen Ted Kennedy

Michelle and I were saddened to hear the news about Senator Kennedy’s condition today, and we plan on doing whatever we can to support him, Vicki, and the entire Kennedy family during this time. Senator Kennedy has been a fighter for his entire life, and I have no doubt that he will fight as hard as he can to get through this. He has been there for the American people during some of our country’s most trying moments, and now that he’s facing his own, I ask all Americans to keep him in our thoughts and prayer.

Barack Takes Oregon!

Here's an interactive video and transcript of his victory speech in Iowa.

GOP Fails to Attract Minorities

Really?

I wrote about how the lack of minority (and women) candidates will be a huge problem for the GOP, particularly with the upcoming Millennial generation.

From Politico:

Just a few years after the Republican Party launched a highly publicized diversity effort, the GOP is heading into the 2008 election without a single minority candidate with a plausible chance of winning a campaign for the House, the Senate or governor.

At a time when Democrats are poised to knock down a historic racial barrier with their presidential nominee, the GOP is fielding only a handful of minority candidates for Congress or statehouses — none of whom seem to have a prayer of victory.

At the start of the Bush years, the Republican National Committee — in tandem with the White House — vowed to usher in a new era of GOP minority outreach. As George W. Bush winds down his presidency, Republicans are now on the verge of going six — and probably more — years without an African-American governor, senator or House member.

Read more here

Barack Adopted into the Crow Nation

Wow. Wow. Wow.

This is powerful.

I'm a little dumbfounded that he's the first presidential candidate to EVER visit the Crow Nation! What the?

At any rate, it's a great moment in American history.

From the Washington Post:

Sen. Barack Obama became the first American presidential candidate to visit the reservation of the Crow Nation, and in doing so was adopted into the nation under the Crow name "One Who Helps People Throughout the Land."

...For all the symbolism -- members of the tribe wore colorful traditional clothing and feathered head-dresses -- Obama addressed some issues of serious concern not only to the 12,100-member Crow Nation but to many Native American tribes around the country.

Obama told those gathered that he intended to acknowledge the "tragic history" of Native Americans over the past three centuries. They "never asked for much, only what was promised by the treaty obligations of their forebears," he said, promising to honor those treaties.

Here is Barack with his newly adopted "parents" Hartford and Mary Black Eagle.

Barack said he liked the sound of "Barack Black Eagle."



Here's a great slideshow of the event.



There are more pictures here.


Read more about First Americans for Barack Obama.

Obama Tells GOP to Leave His Wife Alone

Barack Obama called the Tennessee GOP attack on his wife, Michelle, "low class."

I believe this kind of in-the-gutter campaigning by the GOP will backfire on them, particularly in the South where it will just motivate white and black Obama supporters to show up to the polls in record numbers.

Obama to Challenge Murdochization of Media

From The Nation:

In a speech Sunday, Barack Obama said he would pursue a vigorous antitrust policy if he becomes U.S. president and singled out the media industry as one area where government regulators would need to be watchful as consolidation increases.

...Obama is tapping into the powerful and passionate view shared by millions of Americans that our current hyper-consolidated media landscape--with 90% of it controlled by some six corporations- is a disservice to a democracy which demands diverse voices and views.

Read more here

Barack's Plan for Social Security

Barack spoke at a townhall for senior citizens in Oregon. You can read more about his plan for Social Security here.

15 Whitest States in America

by population, and by who won the primary...

Maine BARACK

Vermont BARACK

West Virginia HILLARY

New Hampshire HILLARY (BARACK lost by 2.6%)

Iowa BARACK

North Dakota BARACK

Montana

Kentucky

Wyoming BARACK

Idaho BARACK

South Dakota

Minnesota BARACK

Wisconsin BARACK

Nebraska BARACK

Indiana HILLARY (BARACK lost by 1.1% to 2%)

75,000 at Portland Rally

They even had boats in the river lined up to listen to him.

You can read about it in the Washington Post and New York Times.

From the Washington Post:

The sea of heads stretches for half a mile along the grassy embankment, while others watch from kayaks and power boats bobbing on the Willamette River. More hug the rails of the steel bridge that stretches across the water and crowds are even watching from jetties on the opposite shore.

For the record, these people are not all African Americans... and I would assume they're hard working.

So much for this notion that Obama can't turn out the "White vote." (See my listing of the whitest states in America by primary results.)

UPDATE: Partial video footage of the rally below. The entire speech is now online here.



And lastly...

Michelle Obama en Puerto Rico!

A great slideshow. Michelle Obama is visiting the beautiful island of Puerto Rico.

Wish I could go!

SNL: There Can Only Be One

The Death Rattle of the Republican Party

What we will be witnessing in the upcoming months will be the end of the Republican Party as we know it.

Time and demographics are not on their side.

As Peggy Noonan wrote in the Wall Street Journal:

What happens to the Republicans in 2008 will likely be dictated by what didn't happen in 2005, and '06, and '07. The moment when the party could have broken, on principle, with the administration – over the thinking behind and the carrying out of the war, over immigration, spending and the size of government – has passed. What two years ago would have been honorable and wise will now look craven. They're stuck.

The Bush/Cheney war has made sure that college-age youth, aka "The Millennials" have been pushed to the Democratic party (that, along with the Internet and its values of freedom of expression and color-blind online communities).

And note that when I refer to the Republican Party, I do not mean conservatism.

As Noonan wrote:

"This was a real wakeup call for us," someone named Robert M. Duncan, who is chairman of the Republican National Committee, told the New York Times. This was after Mississippi. "We can't let the Democrats take our issues." And those issues would be? "We can't let them pretend to be conservatives," he continued. Why not? Republicans pretend to be conservative every day.

Racial demogaphics are such that the Republican strategy of demonizing Latinos in the illegal immigration debate means that the majority of this electorate leans Democratic as well. And we all know that the browning of America is what the future holds.

The sad part for the Republicans, is that a lot of these black/brown voters would self-identify as socially conservative. A sizable number of black voters are churchgoing Christians, many Latinos are pro-life. However, the race based tactics of the Southern strategy and the nasty anti-immigrant tone have pushed these voters over to the Democratic side. (Really, the Republicans have majorly blown it with the Latino vote by choosing to pander to anti-immigrant fears. They might have been able to make greater inroads had it not been for that.)

The Republican Party has played the card of being the party of the white majority for a long time now. That hand depends on an disinterested, apathetic electorate with low black voter turnout in the South, along with a youth vote that doesn't show up to the polls.

However, that is not the case in this election. Black voters are excited and enthused. And a Southern strategy based on race-baiting and attacking either Barack Obama or his wife, Michelle, will only serve to piss black people off and make them even more determined to get to kick out the racists.

And we've all seen the bright, shining, hopeful faces of those young college-aged voters. These are voters who will have the time and energy to canvass, who will have the passion to sway their undecided family members. They will be educated and articulate about the issues, and will be an attractive face for the Democratic Party.

The main reason the Republicans are doomed, however, is because they have neglected to reach across the aisle into other ethnic groups. They've been playing their white race card so long, they don't have a credible Latino, African-American or Asian (or even a woman candidate!) and until they can grow a few (it has to be more than one) in their ranks, they will be at a disadvantage for many years to come.

Basically, the Republicans are screwed...and they know it.

Obama Effect: Energized Black Voters Could Overturn GOP in South

From New York Times:

The sharp surge in black turnout that Senator Barack Obama has helped to generate in recent primaries and Congressional races could signal a threat this fall to the longtime Republican dominance of the South, according to politicians and voting experts.

...[I]n Southern states with large black populations, like Alabama, Mississippi and Virginia, an energized black electorate could create a countervailing force, particularly if conservative white voters choose not to flock to Senator John McCain, the presumptive Republican nominee. Merle Black, a political scientist at Emory University in Atlanta, predicts “the largest black turnout in the history of the United States” this fall if Mr. Obama is the nominee.

To hold these states, Republicans may have to work harder than ever. Already, turnout in Democratic primaries this year has substantially exceeded Republican turnout in states like Arkansas, Louisiana, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia.

Some analysts suggest that North Carolina and Virginia may even be within reach for the Democratic nominee, and they point to the surprising result in a Congressional special election in Mississippi this week as an indicator of things to come.

With the strong support of black voters, a conservative white Democrat, Travis W. Childers, scored an upset victory in that race, in a district held by Republicans since 1995. Kelvin Buck, a black state representative who helped the Childers campaign, said he saw a “level of enthusiasm and energy” that he had not seen before from black voters — significantly motivated, he said, by a recent Republican anti-Obama campaign.

Read more here

Postmortem: What Went Wrong in Hillaryland?

Why did Hillary Clinton lose, with all the money, connections, and power she had coming into this primary?

Michelle Cottle of The New Republic interviews those who should know -- Clinton campaign staffers and volunteers:

Endings are rarely as joyous as beginnings--and in the case of a long, wearing, and ultimately disappointing campaign, they can be downright brutal. But they also have the potential to be educational, for participants and gawkers alike. So it is that we asked (begged, really) a range of Hillarylanders for their up-close and personal lists of "What Went Wrong?" Not everyone wanted to play. Many stubbornly pointed out that their candidate is not yet dead. But, on the condition of total anonymity, a fairly broad enough cross-section of her staff responded--more than a dozen members all told, from high-level advisors to grunt-level assistants, from money men to on-the-ground organizers.

Read more here

Huckabee Makes "Joke" about Obama Getting Shot

How very Christian of him (sarcasm implied)...

From CNN:

During a speech before the National Rifle Association convention Friday afternoon in Louisville, Kentucky, former Republican presidential candidate Mike Huckabee — who has endorsed presumptive GOP nominee John McCain — joked that an unexpected offstage noise was Democrat Barack Obama looking to avoid a gunman.

“That was Barack Obama, he just tripped off a chair, he's getting ready to speak,” said the former Arkansas governor, to audience laughter. “Somebody aimed a gun at him and he dove for the floor.”

Read more here

UPDATE: Here's the "hilarious" video footage.



You won't believe this ironic twist.

Back in 1980, Huckabee wrote a book called Kids Who Kill, which attempted to unravel the issue of violence among young people and understand its roots.

This is the same man who thinks it's funny to quip about pointing a gun at Barack Obama?

Note to Huck:

First rule in raising children... no jokes about pointing a gun at someone just to make your friends laugh. Resist negative peer pressure.

Obama Responds to Bush McCain Attacks

John McCain's Flipflop on NRA

John McCain is scheduled to address 60,000 members of the NRA today.

Do they know that back in 2000, McCain said:

The NRA is entitled to their advocacy. I don’t think they help the Republican Party at all, but I don’t think they should in any way play a major role in the Republican Party’s policy making. [CNN, 5/12/00]

Is some consistency too much to ask for?

Watch the video here

You Know You Want To

For those who just love watching political ads, here's a site that has every one aired so far in this election.

(Check out the Fred Thompson one just for s$%@s and giggles!)

John McCain's Murderers' Row

Speaking of McCain's posse of lobbyists, three of them -- Charlie Black, Tom Loeffler, and Peter Madaigan -- have unsavory ties to brutal dictatorships.

Business as usual.

Time for McCain's Free Ride to End

Read all about the myriad of lobbyists McCain has working for him.

O what tangled webs we weave...

McCain in Favor of Negotiating with Hamas

McCain has flipflopped on the issue of whether he would talk directly with Hamas.

Here's the old McCain (old, as in before the "Straight Talk Express" derailed) stating that he would, in fact, talk with Hamas.

Who's the appeaser now?

Tennessee GOP Attacks Michelle Obama

Evidently, the Republicans are so freaked out over the fact that they have a doomed party, that they have stooped to the lowest of the low...attacking Barack's wife, Michelle.

The Tennessee GOP is currently running this attack ad on television to try to drum up support for their flagging base.

And the really sad part about it is, that they have resorted to misrepresenting what Michelle actually said.

In her speech, Michelle said that for the first time she was *really* proud of her country.

This clip has edited out the *really* and made it appear to say that for the first time she is proud.

Pathetic.

Watch this, and then contact the Tennessee GOP and tell them what you think of their sleazy tactics.

Hillary As Ex-Candidate

From Dana Milbank of the Washington Post:

11:45 a.m., Melrose Hotel, Foggy Bottom: It's Day 7 of the Clinton Campaign Death Watch -- a full week since the official arbiter of the Democratic primary, Tim Russert, declared the campaign over and Barack Obama the nominee. Hillary Clinton's advisers continue to insist that the candidate's prospects are very much alive, but the press isn't buying it. Exhibit A: There are two press buses waiting at the hotel here for Clinton's trip to her victory rally in West Virginia, but the entire press contingent doesn't quite fill one. It isn't until the entourage arrives at Dulles Airport that Clinton aides learn that the second bus is still idling, empty, at the hotel....

2:57 p.m., Yeager Airport, Charleston, W.Va.: A steep descent brings Clinton's plane to Charleston's hilltop airport. After an appropriate wait, she steps from the plane and pretends to wave to a crowd of supporters; in fact, she is waving to 10 photographers underneath the airplane's wing. She pretends to spot an old friend in the crowd, points and gives another wave; in fact, she is waving at an aide she had been talking with on the plane minutes earlier.

Read more here

Daily Show Riffs on West Virginia Primary

Hilarious.

Pat Buchanan in Racist, Paranoid Meltdown

Evidently the thought of a probable Barack Obama presidency is making Pat Buchanan lose his mind. I see the fear in his eyes.

I'm glad Pat is still on TV. Every day he exposes himself for the racial dinosaur that he is.

Let's label this one "Buchanosaurus."

Chris Matthews Stumps Right-Wing Radio Host

Right-wing radio host Kevin James proves he doesn't know what the hell he's talking about.

Racism in West Virginia

I just want to know what is this mysterious thing that the lady sitting in the cafe "just doesn't agree with..."?

GOP "Southern Strategy" Dying?

The South might go from red to purple.

From New York Times:

Across the South, Barack Obama’s smashing primary victory in North Carolina last week reflects a new reality — a half-century of rising Republican red tide has crested, with signs of receding.

A week ago yesterday, Democrats won a special Congressional election in a Louisiana district held by Republicans since 1974. That outcome might well be replicated Tuesday in Mississippi, where a biracial Democratic coalition is optimistic in the second round of another special Congressional election.

...In response to Mr. Obama’s energizing of black Southern voters, enlightened self-interest may well convince many of the region’s undecided superdelegates to endorse him. Over the last two years, there have been little-noticed Democratic gains in Congressional and state legislative elections across the South, as the solid black Democratic base has been joined by whites disenchanted with the Bush administration. New concern about the economy may be adding momentum.

Read more here

Bush Compares Obama to Nazi Appeasers

Hmmm... Will McCain denounce and reject?

From The Huffington Post:

President Bush has said repeatedly that he would not insert himself into the presidential race, but that stance changed dramatically today during his trip to Israel. After likening Iran's President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad to Osama bin Laden, Bush compared Barack Obama to Nazi appeasers:

"Some seem to believe we should negotiate with terrorists and radicals, as if some ingenious argument will persuade them they have been wrong all along," said Bush, in what White House aides privately acknowledged was a reference to calls by Obama and other Democrats for the U.S. president to sit down for talks with leaders like Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad.


"We have heard this foolish delusion before," Bush said in remarks to the Israeli Knesset. "As Nazi tanks crossed into Poland in 1939, an American Senator declared: 'Lord, if only I could have talked to Hitler, all of this might have been avoided.' We have an obligation to call this what it is -- the false comfort of appeasement, which has been repeatedly discredited by history."

Read more here

Barack Obama on Human Rights and Africa

Bloggers Unite and Amnesty International have called for today to be a national day of human rights recognition throughout the blogosphere.

So, with that in mind, below are Barack Obama's positions on some of the most pressing issues involving Africa.

Stop the Genocide in Darfur:
Barack Obama has been a leading voice urging the Bush Administration to take stronger steps to end the genocide in Sudan. He worked with Senator Sam Brownback (R-KS) to pass the Darfur Peace and Accountability Act. Obama has traveled to the United Nations to meet with Sudanese officials and visited refugee camps on the Chad-Sudan border to raise international awareness of the ongoing humanitarian disaster there. He also worked with Senator Harry Reid (D-NV) to secure $20 million for the African Union peacekeeping mission. Obama believes the United States needs to lead the world in ending this genocide, including by imposing much tougher sanctions that target Sudan?s oil revenue, implementing and helping to enforce a no-fly zone, and engaging in more intense, effective diplomacy to develop a political roadmap to peace. The international community must, over the Sudanese regime?s protests, deploy a large, capable UN-led and UN-funded force with a robust enforcement mandate to stop the killings.
End the Conflict in Congo:
An estimated 3.9 million people have died from war-related causes since the conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo began. Barack Obama wrote and passed legislation to promote stability in the Congo. Obama revamped U.S. policy in the Congo to include a commitment to help rebuild the country, develop lasting political structures, hold accountable destabilizing foreign governments, crack down on corrupt politicians, and professionalize the military. The bill also authorizes $52 million in U.S. assistance for the Congo.
Bring a Brutal Warlord to Justice:
Former Liberian President Charles Taylor has been accused of committing war crimes by international prosecutors. After taking the presidency following a brutal civil war that decimated Liberia's population, Taylor created a rebel group that fought in neighboring Sierra Leone's civil war. These rebels committed a range of atrocities including rape, murder and the use of child soldiers. On July 19, 2005, Obama passed a bipartisan amendment, along with Senators Chuck Hagel (R-NE), Patrick Leahy (D-VT) and Judd Gregg (R-NH) to provide $13 million for the Special Court for Sierra Leone. Signed into law in November 2005, the Obama amendment provides critical funding to keep the Court up and running and dramatically enhances efforts to bring Charles Taylor to justice. Taylor was arrested in 2006. His trial began in June 2007 and was postponed until January 2008.

Read more here

Racist Anti-Obama Gear

Marietta, Georgia, bar owner Mike Norman thought it was "cute" to sell T-shirts with Obama as a monkey eating a banana. Even though he is a southerner and would presumably be well-aware of the history of these types of images, he sees "nothing racist" about the T-shirts.

Just like George Allen "didn't mean it" when he called the Southeast Asian reporter "macaca," which is another kind of monkey.

What will those crazy southerners think of next?

How original. Black man... monkey... get it? Yuck. Yuck.

I would let this slide and categorize it as idiotic except for the fact that there are black children living in this town. And they have to see that T-shirt, and they know that old white man ain't talking about Curious George.

So, for that reason, please contact the publisher of Curious George. Here's the contact page for Houghton, Mifflan, Harcourt: http://hmlt.hmco.com/Contact.php

And while you're at it, PBS broadcasts Curious George. Contact them as well: http://www.pbs.org/ombudsman/

UPDATE: The publisher is considering legal action. So, keep sending those emails to let them know your thoughts.

(If you want more good ole' boy entertainment, check out Huckabee "joking" at the NRA about Obama getting shot.)

John Edwards Endorses Barack Obama

Let the Smear Campaign Begin!

I try to avoid going into the gutter when writing about this campaign. But I just want folks to know that there is a definite smear campaign out against Obama that attempts to scare people and preys on ignorance.

I believe the best way to fight it is to expose it.

So, while I won't post every single piece of misinformation that's out there, from time to time, I'll just let you in on a little bit of the anti-Obama underworld.

As they say, sunlight is the best disinfectant!

Here's a book that is listed on Amazon.com written by Webster Griffin Tarpley (let me guess... self published?) called Obama -- The Postmodern Coup: Making of a Manchurian Candidate.

The description:

Barack Obama is a deeply troubled personality, the megalomaniac front man for a postmodern coup by the intelligence agencies, using fake polls, mobs of swarming adolescents, super-rich contributors, and orchestrated media hysteria to short-circuit normal politics and seize power. Obama comes from the orbit of the Ford Foundation, and has never won public office in a contested election. His guru and controller is Zbigniew Brzezinski, the deranged revanchist and Russia-hater who dominated the catastrophic Carter presidency 30 years ago. All indications are that Brzezinski recruited Obama at Columbia University a quarter century ago. Trilateral Commission co-founder Brzezinski wants a global showdown with Russia and China far more dangerous for the United States than the Bush-Cheney Iraq adventure. Obama's economics are pure Skull & Bones/Chicago school austerity and sacrifice for American working families, all designed to bail out the bankrupt Wall Street elitist financiers who own Obama. Obama's lemming legions and Kool-Aid cult candidacy hearken back to Italy in 1919-1922, and raise the question of postmodern fascism in the United States today. Obama is a recipe for a world tragedy. No American voter can afford to ignore the lessons contained in this book.

I know it's crazy and doesn't make any sense. But these are the kinds of "facts" being emailed about Barack Obama. And, unfortunately, a good number of people believe them.

Obama Unveils Manufacturing Agenda

Barack spoke in Macomb County, Michigan, and unveiled his national manufacturing agenda. He urged a return to an economy driven not by foreign debt, but by American innovation:

Message from Barack on Edwards' Endorsement

From Barack Obama:

I have some very exciting news.

My good friend John Edwards is endorsing our campaign and joining our movement for change.

We're here in Grand Rapids, Michigan -- and if you receive this message in time, you can probably turn on your TV and be part of the moment.

I'm deeply honored by John's support. He is a true leader who dedicated his career to improving the lives of ordinary Americans.

John ran a strong, principled campaign for president, focusing on a number of important issues where we share common ground -- universal health care, bringing our troops home from Iraq, and eliminating poverty in America.

The way he ran his campaign was also important. He ran in a way that reflected our shared conviction that we need to fundamentally change politics.

Like our campaign, John's campaign never accepted donations from Washington lobbyists or special interest PACs.

Let's welcome John Edwards to the campaign with an outpouring of the kind of grassroots support that is bringing our political process back to the people.

Make a donation of whatever you can afford now, and if you choose, include your own note to Senator Edwards. I'll make sure he gets them:

https://donate.barackobama.com/edwards

Thank you for all that you're doing,

Barack

John Edwards to Endorse Barack Obama!

Breaking news: John Edwards is expected to give his endorsement of Barack Obama at a campaign rally in Michigan. You can watch it live here!

Bloggers Unite for Human Rights

Bloggers Unite is harnessing the power of the blogosphere and calling for a worldwide day of recognition of human rights.

If you're a blogger, please sign up and write a post about human rights issues on May 15.

West Virginia Turnout "Average"

Hillary Clinton won the West Virginia primary, but there was not the voting surge that the other states have seen. Obama barely campaigned there. From McClatchy:

Turnout in West Virginia appeared average, according to Sarah Bailey, West Virginia's deputy secretary of state. That would be a letdown from the surge of voting in earlier states, a reflection perhaps of the fact that Obama didn't compete heavily in the state or that voters sensed that the four-month campaign was nearing a conclusion.

Obama has the ability to excite and inspire people and get NEW voters to show up to the polls, thus expanding the Democratic Party's base.

Democrats Abroad Chair Endorses Obama

Democrats Abroad Chair and superdelegate Christine Schon Marques endorsed Barack Obama for president.

As a Democrat abroad, I've seen the repercussions of the Republican Administration every day, in the diminished reputation of the United States and in the lack of real leadership both at home and abroad, from the economy to the war in Iraq,” said Schon Marques. “I'm proud to be a Democrat, and proud of both our candidates. Today I pledge my support to Senator Barack Obama because I believe that he will take our country in the right direction, he will restore America's reputation, he will honor the men and women who are bravely serving our country, and he will reach out to Americans across the country and around the world. I hope that voters overseas join me in registering today at www.VoteFromAbroad.org so that all our voices are heard this November.

Native American Endorsements

From Native American Times:

The Obama campaign announced today the endorsements of the Crow Nation and the Assiniboine and Sioux Tribes of the Ft. Peck Reservation. Tribal leaders cited Sen. Obama's commitment to Indian Country and to the issues facing its residents.

"Sen. Obama's leadership qualities and commitment to issues of importance to Indian country distinguish him from his opponents" said Chairman A.T. Stafne of the Ft. Peck Tribes. "Our twelve voting members in the Tribal Council passed this endorsement resolution unanimously. I was personally impressed with his commitment to a true government-to-government relationship and his promise to appoint a Native American policy advisor in his White House. "

"Senator Obama understands the challenges facing Native Americans in Montana," said Crow Nation Chairman Carl Venne. "His record as a US Senator shows that he cares about Indian communities. He respects Indian sovereignty and is a strong advocate for Indian healthcare and education."

Read more here

Is West Virginia Welcome in the Democratic Party?

An insightful Daily Kos diary written by an Obama supporter on the importance of not writing off states like West Virginia.

It's gotten a lot of media play and was discussed on Air America this morning.

It will take more than hope for West Virginia. It will take hard work and understanding. It will take urban city liberals [edited because this hick didn't realize urban meant black, sorry!] getting off of their high horses and coming down to our level -- the level of ordinary folk who are ignorant, misinformed, maybe even, shall we say the word, bigoted. That's right I said our level. I'm an agnostic Democrat who votes on economic and social justice issues, but I'm still more like them than I am like you.

Over the last week or so, I've heard a lot of kossacks writing off West Virginia, making fun of West Virginia, and even saying West Virginia doesn't matter. Some have painted all of Appalachia as racist homophobes who will never change. Some even said that Obama is in mortal danger there. Some have suggested that we revert to Clinton-style "states that matter" campaigning, leaving West Virginia and Kentucky behind altogether.

Well, progress hasn't left us behind, and I hope that progressives won't either. If you think progress is impossible in my neck of the woods, follow me after the jump...

Read more here

Liveblogging the Convention

The Oblogger will definitely be at the Democratic National Convention in August. We'll have a team of bloggers and video journalists providing footage that gives you up-to-the-minute coverage that goes beyond the mainstream media.

We are looking for advertisers and sponsors. If you are interested, email us for more info.

Be an Obama Organizing Fellow

Take part in history. Get involved with this unprecedented grassroots movement. Sign up as an Obama Organizing Fellow.

This summer we are looking for students and recent graduates who want to be a part of a new generation of leadership that believes, like Senator Obama, that real change comes from the ground up.

Fellows will be trained on the basics of organizing & campaign fundamentals and then placed in a community to carry out grassroots activities. Fellows will be asked to commit to a minimum of 30 hours per week and will:

* participate in training on field organizing, messaging, and other activities
* organize in a community, working in conjunction with grassroots leaders and campaign staff
* continue to build the movement

Click here to apply. The deadline has been extended to Thursday, May 15.

Barack Obama on Serving Our Veterans

From a speech in Charleston, West Virginia:

Check out Veterans.BarackObama.com for more.

Vote for Change

From the campaign blog:

In March of 2007, only a couple months after Obama announced his candidacy, the campaign launched its first nationwide grassroots event -- Hope Action Change. Thousands of people from all across the country who had used online tools at My.BarackObama.com to organize locally, got together, discussed their concerns, and shared their hopes for a better America.

Over a year later, it's remarkable to see how far this movement has come and how much ordinary people from all across this country have accomplished. From the first national canvass in June of 2007 to the extraordinary work by our volunteers over the past 48 elections and caucuses -- this campaign has truly been powered by the grassroots.

This past Saturday, the Obama grassroots took its organization to the next level, kicking off a 50-State voter registration drive. Hardworking volunteers brought scores of new voters into the process and continued the process that began back in their living rooms in March of 2007 -- reinvigorating our democracy.

This is the story of Vote for Change...

SNL Skewers Clinton: "My Supporters Are Racist"

Obama Polling Well With Jewish Voters

From the Chicago Tribune:

Here's an interesting finding from Gallup's pollsters -- almost as many Jewish voters say they would vote for Sen. Barack Obama for president against Sen. John McCain, the all-but-official Republican presidential nominee, as say they would vote for Sen. Hillary Clinton against McCain.

According to Gallup, 61 percent of Jewish voters surveyed said they'd vote for Obama in the general election versus 32 percent who say they'd vote for McCain.

Read more here

Great McCain Source

This is a great site that really debunks the whole "Straight Talk Express" myth about John McCain.

Check it out http://www.mccainsource.com/index_html

Top Vice Presidential Choices

Will Thomas of the Huffington Post speculates who Obama's top v.p. choices might be. His top three are Jim Webb, Bill Richardson, and Hillary Clinton.

Barack Would Win California

Barack Obama on America's Relationship with Israel

Here's Obama's statement on Israel's 60th Independence Day...

This week marks the 60th anniversary of the fulfillment of a dream -- the independence of the State of Israel. Throughout many centuries, Jews held fast to the hope of returning as free people to the land of their ancestors. Blessed with visionary leaders like Theodore Herzl and David Ben-Gurion, in the 20th century they began to take the practical steps necessary to build a modern state. Against all odds, and overcoming obstacles from international indifference, to hostile opposition in the region, to the murderous crimes of the Nazis, the leaders of the Zionist movement declared the establishment of the State of Israel in May 1948. In their moment of triumph, they were immediately plunged into a war for their new nation's very survival. Because of the courage and commitment of its people, Israel did survive. While threats to its existence have endured, Israelis have built their nation into a strong, vibrant democracy, with a prosperous economy, a rich cultural life, and a deep friendship with the United States that benefits both our peoples in so many ways. Even in hard times, Israelis have so much to be proud of. As the Jewish State continues to grow and prosper, the United States will always stand with Israel to ensure it can defend itself against threat of terrorism and violence, from as close as Gaza and as far as Tehran. We must never waver in our unshakeable commitment help Israel achieve its goal of true security through lasting peace with its neighbors.

On this happy occasion, I send congratulations and warm wishes to President Peres, Prime Minister Olmert, and the Israeli people, and I join with Jews and friends of Israel everywhere in celebrating Israel's 60th Independence Day.

CA Superdelegate Wants $20 Million

Uncommitted superdelegate Steven Ybarra won't endorse until either Barack or Hillary commits to a $20 million voter registration drive aimed at Mexican American voters.

Clinton Campaign Didn't Understand Democratic Primaries

Evidently, Clinton's campaign manager, Mark Penn, thought that the Democratic primaries were winner-take-all, rather than proportional.

From Time Magazine:

Clinton picked people for her team primarily for their loyalty to her, instead of their mastery of the game. That became abundantly clear in a strategy session last year, according to two people who were there. As aides looked over the campaign calendar, chief strategist Mark Penn confidently predicted that an early win in California would put her over the top because she would pick up all the state's 370 delegates. It sounded smart, but as every high school civics student now knows, Penn was wrong: Democrats, unlike the Republicans, apportion their delegates according to vote totals, rather than allowing any state to award them winner-take-all. Sitting nearby, veteran Democratic insider Harold M. Ickes, who had helped write those rules, was horrified — and let Penn know it. "How can it possibly be," Ickes asked, "that the much vaunted chief strategist doesn't understand proportional allocation?"

Read more here

Cindy McCain Will Never Release Tax Returns

On Cindy McCain's interview with Ann Curry on NBC, Cindy says she will NEVER release her tax returns, even if she were First Lady...

According to Cindy, she is not the candidate and that info is "private."

Clinton Plays Race Card

It's the only card she has left. I guess the gender card didn't work.

How about we look at it this way, Hillary... white voters are the ONLY voters who will support you!

I'm not surprised that she's finally out in the open with her race card, it's been under the surface all along.

I really believe some Clinton supporters are just flabbergasted that the Democrats would run a biracial (black) candidate.

Despite all the pretension about the Democratic Party being the "big tent" party, their so-called common wisdom boils down to one factor... Obama can't win because he's black.

Hey, Hillary, I thought that by your playbook, that sexism trumped racism. That's what your supporters were telling the media.

I thought you might leave with some grace and dignity, but I see now that it's gonna get ugly.

From USA Today:

Hillary Rodham Clinton vowed Wednesday to continue her quest for the Democratic nomination, arguing she would be the stronger nominee because she appeals to a wider coalition of voters — including whites who have not supported Barack Obama in recent contests.

"I have a much broader base to build a winning coalition on," she said in an interview with USA TODAY. As evidence, Clinton cited an Associated Press article "that found how Sen. Obama's support among working, hard-working Americans, white Americans, is weakening again, and how whites in both states who had not completed college were supporting me."

"There's a pattern emerging here," she said.

Read more here

Tom Daschle Radio Ads to Air in South Dakota

The campaign begins airing a new radio ad today featuring former South Dakota Senator and U.S. Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle. In the ad, Daschle asks South Dakotans to join him in backing the candidate who will "put you first -- not the special interests."

Daschle also discusses Obama's background as a community organizer who worked in the churches to help those who lost their jobs when the steel plants closed, and adds, "it's no surprise Barack's plan invests in our economy. He'll stop sending billions to Iraq and end this war. And he'll end tax breaks for companies that ship jobs overseas."

You can listen to the ad here

Andrew Sullivan: Black Voters Did It

From Andrew Sullivan's blog The Daily Dish

Here's what now seems obvious: African-American voters killed the Clinton candidacy. It is a fitting end to the Clintons' campaign and an almost Shakespearean coda to their career. The Clintons were exposed in their long-running exploitation and reliance on minority votes. No group was more loyal to them than African-Americans; and in the end, like everyone else, African-Americans realized that the Clintons are frauds, disloyal to the core, cynical to their finger-tips, and finally, finally, returned the favor.

Read more here

Barack's North Carolina Speech

Memo from David Plouffe

Campaign manager David Plouffe sent out this memo to superdelegates...

There are only six contests remaining in the Democratic primary calendar and only 217 pledged delegates left to be awarded. Only 7 percent of the pledged delegates remain on the table. There are 260 remaining undeclared superdelegates, for a total of 477 delegates left to be awarded.

With North Carolina and Indiana complete, Barack Obama only needs 172 total delegates to capture the Democratic nomination. This is only 36% of the total remaining delegates.

Conversely, Senator Clinton needs 326 delegates to reach the Democratic nomination, which represents a startling 68% of the remaining delegates.

With the Clinton path to the nomination getting even narrower, we expect new and wildly creative scenarios to emerge in the coming days. While those scenarios may be entertaining, they are not legitimate and will not be considered legitimate by this campaign or its millions of supporters, volunteers, and donors.

We believe it is exceedingly unlikely Senator Clinton will overtake our lead in the popular vote and in fact lost ground on that measure last night. However, the popular vote is a deeply flawed and illegitimate metric for deciding the nominee – since each campaign based their strategy on the acquisition of delegates. More importantly, the rules of the nomination are predicated on delegates, not popular vote.

Just as the Presidential election in November will be decided by the electoral college, not popular vote, the Democratic nomination is decided by delegates.

If we believed the popular vote was somehow the key measurement, we would have campaigned much more intensively in our home state of Illinois and in all the other populous states, in the pursuit of larger raw vote totals. But it is not the key measurement. We played by the rules, set by you, the DNC members, and campaigned as hard as we could, in as many places as we could, to acquire delegates. Essentially, the popular vote is not much better as a metric than basing the nominee on which candidate raised more money, has more volunteers, contacted more voters, or is taller.

The Clinton campaign was very clear about their own strategy until the numbers become too ominous for them. They were like a broken record , repeating ad nauseum that this nomination race is about delegates. Now, the word delegate has disappeared from their vocabulary, in an attempt to change the rules and create an alternative reality.

We want to be clear – we believe that the winner of a majority of pledged delegates will and should be the nominee of our party. And we estimate that after the Oregon and Kentucky primaries on May 20, we will have won a majority of the overall pledged delegates According to a recent news report, by even their most optimistic estimates the Clinton Campaign expects to trail by more than 100 pledged delegates and will then ask the superdelegates to overturn the will of the voters.

But of course superdelegates are free to and have been utilizing their own criteria for deciding who our nominee should be. Many are deciding on the basis of electability, a favorite Clinton refrain. And if you look at the numbers, during a period where the Clinton campaign has been making an increasingly strident pitch on electability, it is clear their argument is failing miserably with superdelegates.

Since February 5, the Obama campaign has netted 107 superdelegates, and the Clinton campaign only 21. Since the Pennsylvania primary, much of it during the challenging Rev. Wright period, we have netted 24 and the Clinton campaign 17.

At some point – we would argue that time is now – this ceases to be a theoretical exercise about how superdelegates view electability. The reality of the preferences in the last several weeks offer a clear guide of how strongly superdelegates feel Senator Obama will perform in November, both in building a winning campaign for the presidency as well as providing the best electoral climate across the country for all Democratic candidates.

It is important to note that Senator Obama leads Senator Clinton in superdelegate endorsements among Governors, United States Senators and members of the House of Representatives. These elected officials all have a keen sense for who our strongest nominee will be in November.

It is only among DNC members where Senator Clinton holds a lead, which has been rapidly dwindling.

As we head into the final days of the campaign, we just wanted to be clear with you as a party leader, who will be instrumental in making the final decision of who our nominee will be, how we view the race at this point.

Senator Obama, our campaign and our supporters believe pledged delegates is the most legitimate metric for determining how this race has unfolded. It is simply the ratification of the DNC rules – your rules – which we built this campaign and our strategy around.

For more on Obama's delegate count, check out the Results Center.