Clinton’s Indiana squeaker
Andrew Cain
May 07, 2008 12:19 AM
At 1:10 a.m. the Associated Press made it official and declared Hillary Clinton the winner in Indiana, 5 hours and 40 minutes after it called North Carolina for Barack Obama.
Exit polls indicated that seniors made the difference for Clinton in Indiana. CNN reported that Clinton captured the votes of 69 percent of voters ages 65 and older.
All of which means that Clinton and Obama will be back at it Tuesday, May 13, fighting over 39 delegates in West Virginia.
A “game changer” for Obama?
Andrew Cain
May 06, 2008 11:17 PM
Heading into Tuesday’s primaries, Hillary Clinton said North Carolina could be a “game changer,” meaning she could shake up the race by scoring an upset win over Barack Obama there.
But as Tuesday night turned to Wednesday morning, long after Clinton declared victory in Indiana, her lead in the Hoosier State continued to dwindle and Obama was on the verge of his own “game changer.”
Clinton’s victory speech included a new pitch for donations and she said she’ll continue to fight—“full speed on to the White House.” Meantime, Obama said he’s drawn within about 200 delegates of securing the nomination.
Neither Obama, nor Clinton can lock up the nomination on pledged delegates alone. If Clinton stays in the race, superdelegates eventually will have to make the call.
This morning you can bet a lot of superdelegates are watching the returns trickle in from Gary, Indiana—and wondering whether the results will change the game.
Virginia’s superdelegate to watch
Andrew Cain
May 06, 2008 9:23 PM
The woman who might be Virginia’s most important superdelegate will have a big say in the Democrats’ nomination fight before she commits to either Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton.
Among Virginia’s 16 Democratic superdelegates, Alexis Herman is one of six who remain uncommitted to either Obama or Clinton. That might seem odd, cosidering that Herman served as Secretary of Labor in President Bill Clinton’s second term from 1997 to 2001.
But Herman has a good reason to stay neutral, for now.
She is a co-chairman of the Democratic National Committee’s Rules and Bylaws Committee. That’s the group that on May 31 will take up a critical question—what to do about Michigan and Florida.
Months ago, the DNC took away each state’s delegates to the Democratic National Convention because they jumped the gun and held early primaries without permission. Clinton won primaries in both states, although she and Obama did not campaign in either and his name wasn’t even on Michigan’s ballot.
If the committee votes to restore even half of Florida’s delegate votes—a proposal the panel will hear May 31, according to the Associated Press—Clinton would gain important ground on Obama.
So, Herman is in a delicate situation. Don’t expect her to endorse either candidate anytime soon.
Kaine and Bayh
Andrew Cain
May 06, 2008 7:29 PM
A win in Indiana tonight wouldn’t just help Hillary Clinton. It might boost the vice presidential hopes of one of her chief surrogates, Indiana Sen. Evan Bayh.
Like Virginia’s Tim Kaine, an early backer of Barack Obama, Bayh made up his mind quickly. He endorsed Clinton in early 2007, after briefly entertaining his own run for president.
Bayh has made plenty of campaign appearances and television appearances for Clinton, as Kaine has for Obama. As a result, both show up on pundits’ short lists of potential running mates—Bayh for Clinton and Kaine for Obama.
The boyish Bayh can tout his two terms in the U.S. Senate, his two terms as Indiana’s governor and his stint as head of the centrist Democratic Leadership Council.
But his vice presidential prospects face the same big question as Kaine’s—whether he could bring home his state’s electoral votes. No Democratic presidential candidate has carried Indiana or Virginia since 1964.
A split decision?
Andrew Cain
May 06, 2008 6:52 PM
Tonight’s apparent split decision—North Carolina to Obama and Indiana to Clinton—is good news for John McCain, but settles nothing for the Democratic rivals.
In an interview with MSNBC, Clinton campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe, one of Clinton’s four Virginia superdelegates, uttered the words that might strike fear into the hearts of Democrats who want this race wrapped up.
“On to West Virginia,” he said.
The long march of Obama and Clinton is likely to continue through West Virginia on May 13, Kentucky and Oregon on May 20, and Puerto Rico on June 1 before Montana and South Dakota close out the voting on June 3.
At that point it’s still unlikely that Obama or Clinton will have 2,025 delegates—the magic number they need to gain the Democratic nomination.
Can Obama repeat his Va. win in N.C.?
Andrew Cain
May 06, 2008 5:29 PM
As the Democratic primary vote comes in tonight from North Carolina, it will be interesting to see whether Barack Obama can repeat his feat in Virginia’s Feb. 12 Democratic primary.
You’ll recall that in Virginia, a state that is 19.9 percent black, Obama trounced Hillary Rodham Clinton, winning 63.7 percent of the vote to Clinton’s 35 percent. North Carolina, in which 21.7 percent of residents are black, would appear to set up nicely for Obama. In Indiana, tonight’s other prize, 8.9 percent of the residents are black, according to census figures.
Tonight’s votes will give political junkies a lot to chew on. Did the Rev. Jeremiah Wright stall Obama’s momentum, or did the senator stop the bleeding? Is Clinton’s support for a summer gas tax holiday taking hold, or do voters agree with Obama that it’s pandering?
We shall soon see.
Pantele Almost Done Pondering
Jim Nolan
May 06, 2008 10:32 AM
Richmond City Council President Bill Pantele was walking, talking and acting like a candidate for Mayor yesterday.
Pantele showed up at the Richmond launch of former Gov. Mark Warner’s bid for U.S. Senate at the Virginia Biotech Center off Leigh Street, shaking hands and smiling broadly. After shaking one supporter’s hand, he made a mock gesture to the man’s suit coat pocket. Looking for a wallet, perhaps?
One elected official yesterday said Pantele has indicated that he will make a run for the roses. When asked directly by the TD if he was in the race, Pantele’s smile got even wider. Then he winked.
He said he would make a decision soon, but backed off confirming whether he was in. “A lot can happen in 30 days,” he said.
Also in the crowd was Del. Dwight Jones, who recently announced he would challenge for the top job.
Mayor Doug Wilder has yet to decide whether he will seek reelection. The deadline to file is June 10.
What’s Kaine Doing in Indiana? More Wright Stuff
Jim Nolan
May 02, 2008 12:08 PM
Tim Kaine heads to Indiana this weekend to campaign for Sen. Barack Obama. Kaine will participate in town hall events in Connersville, and Lawrenceburg, Indiana and make a stop in, of all places, RICHMOND, Indiana.
Still, you have to wonder why the Virginia governor was not dispatched to North Carolina—the battleground state just to the south of the Commonwealth. Reporters put the question to him this monring:
“I don’t know,” Kaine said. “I say to the campaign, ‘You tell me where you want me to go.’ I give them one day a month...and I go where they think I’m going to be helpful.”
Kaine did say a lot of the Obama staffers in Indiana are people he’s worked with before—and who worked for him during his campaign for governor. “They probably clambored for me to come there,” he said.
Kaine said the script for the weekend is going to be pretty much the same as it’s been on other swings:
“We’ve got to make fundamental changes in this country, and that what people are saying is they’re unhappy with the direction of the economy. They’re unhappy with the direction of where we are in Iraq and our policy. And they attribute their unhappiness to some of the way politics is done is in D.C. ...
Kaine said the incendiary rhetoric of Obama’s former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, did not come up when he campaigned for the senator in Pennsylvania, and shouldn’t this weekend, either.
“American voters are smart, they’re not stupid. They know what’s on their mind, and it is not what a pastor says… The issue is an issue of the economy and where where we stand in the world. That’s the issue that’s going to decide this primary, this nominating battle. And that’s what’s going to decide the election in November.”
A new “race” problem for Democrats
Andrew Cain
May 01, 2008 5:45 PM
A sign of trouble for Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton popped up today at Richmond International Raceway, Times-Dispatch business reporter Louis Llovio reports.
Bill Gingerich and John Lapp of Plain City, Ohio were walking around the campground of the track when the subject of presidential politics came up.
The men, both in their late 50s, describe themselves as independents who “don’t need politicians to tell us how to vote.” In November they could be swing voters in Ohio, a key swing state.
“When Bush took office the first time gas was $1.29. By the time he took office the second time it was $1.49. I have no idea how he got elected a second time,” Lapp said.
“It’s ‘cause the Democrats put up (Sen. John) Kerry,” in 2004, Gingerich said.
“I really didn’t want to vote for a Republican this year. But I just can’t see voting for this guy [Obama]. Or either of them now,” Gingerich said, referring to Clinton as well.
“I wanted to like him. I wanted to vote for him. But after the things I’ve seen, I don’t know if I can,” Lapp said of Obama.
“They both look bad. I hate to say it, but I’m leaning toward (Sen. John) McCain,” Gingerich said.
“If nobody can beat a Republican this year, we’re in bad shape,” Lapp said.
Va. GOP Closing Ranks
Tyler Whitley
April 30, 2008 4:03 PM
Today most of the Republican Party of Virginia’s leaders united behind a ticket of Bob McDonnell for governor and Bill Bolling for lieutenant governor.
The eight GOP members of Congress, the 11 Republican district chairs, and General Assembly’s Republican leadership and the leadership of the State Central Committee signed a letter supporting the McDonnell-Bolling ticket.
The two men have been trying to present a united front in the 2009 race for the state’s three top offices.
There is little sign of unanimity, however, on who will be the party’s candidate for attorney general. State Sen. Ken Cuccinelli of Fairfax is the only announced candidate, but former Del. Paul Harris and former U.S. Attorney John Brownlee are considering a run.
The ticket emerged a few weeks ago when Bolling, who had been considering challenging McDonnell for governor, deferred to McDonnell. McDonnell is the attorney general, Bolling the lieutenant governor.
Republicans, who have had several nomination battles in recent years, hope a united ticket will better able the party to end eight years of Democratic control in the Executive Mansion.
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