USA Presidential Election 2008 [Daily News]

[anna111]

^who do you support?

 

 

Democratic party...though I'm still not sure whether I like Clinton or Obama... but I'm leaning towards Obama. whatabout you?

[winigwl]

same here:). I actually like biden and i still hope he gets involved as either a vp. or cabinet member. But i'll support any democrat. Preferably obama though, he's more electable

[chuck kottke]

Obama's better in the honesty department than Clinton. Check it out at http://www.opensecrets.org, and get a better perspective on what the candidates will really do if chosen.

[anna111]

Yeah...I think he would be a good leader for our nation.

[GazeboflossUK]

Yeah...I think he would be a good leader for our nation.

 

:dozey:

[winigwl]

:dozey:

:dozey:

[GazeboflossUK]

Yeah. This could go on all day.

[grids]

i saw on fox about temporarily votes between Ron Paul and Obama this morning. well Obama won from votes(for a while)

[winigwl]

obama sweeps Washington, Louisiana, Nebraska...

Huckabee wins Kansas, ahead in washington and Louisiana

[bart]

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/americas/7230301.stm

 

Intresting read, I agree the world is looking for a different stance from the US, its not the peopes fault of the U S though. I just hope its not to late.. personally I think it maybee to turn its image as its seen around the world

 

 

The world is sitting up to take notice of an intriguing US presidential election campaign as the Bush era of US foreign policy draws to an end.

 

 

The importance of who is in the White House is illustrated best by President George W Bush himself. If Al Gore had won the election in 2000, it is unlikely that the US would have invaded Iraq.

 

In a speech in September 2002, Mr Gore predicted one of the consequences that might flow from an invasion, one which many in the US and around the world are now looking to this election to resolve. It had, he said, "the potential to seriously damage our ability to win the war against terrorism and to weaken our ability to lead the world in this new century".

 

 

There is a sense now that the rest of the world has an opportunity to re-engage with the United States.

 

 

Where candidates stand on key issues

"They feel there's a real chance to work with the US," said Julianne Smith, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies in Washington. "America's image in the world is really on the line."

 

Non-Americans, she said, were looking for someone who could "restore faith in the United States."

 

 

 

'Unquestionably, a change'

 

Dr Dana Allin, senior fellow for Transatlantic Affairs at the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London, commented: "Unquestionably there is going to be a change in American presentation to the world on a number of key issues.

 

 

...and Democrats Hillary Clinton...

 

"In all three cases (McCain, Clinton and Obama) there will be a much more unequivocal renunciation of torture.

 

"On broader international issues (such as climate change), there is a commitment from all three to take a different US approach.

 

"There will be less of a dramatic change in strategic foreign policy, largely because change has already come.

 

""The salience of an aggressive or assertive policy of pre-emptive war has been lowered anyway because of Iraq.

 

"But Barack Obama for one wants to end not only the war in Iraq but what he calls the mindset that led to the war."

 

 

The Iraq factor

 

Iraq highlights the major differences between the front-runners. Senator Obama is talking about the US pulling out by the end of 2009. Senator Clinton speaks of starting to withdraw within the first 60 days of her administration but has no end date.

 

 

..and Barack Obama

 

However, Senator McCain, whose career as a naval officer and a politician has been based on the security of the United States, has said he does not mind if US troops are in Iraq "for a hundred years".

 

He was in favour of the US reinforcement into Iraq last year and his prediction that it would have an effect has stood him in good stead during the election campaign.

 

Talking to a town meeting in Derry, New Hampshire on 3 January, he remarked that US troops had been in Japan and South Korea for about 60 years and it would be "fine" with him if they stayed in Iraq "so long as Americans are not being injured or harmed or wounded or killed."

 

A McCain presidency could be something quite volatile, given his commitments on US security.

[chuck kottke]

change

 

#1. Al Gore won in 2000! (and our Supreme Court made the decision for Bush, which is a breach of the intent of the US Constitution.)

#2. Unless a meteor strikes the US, a Democrat will win the Presidency in 2008!

#3. There will be quite a lot of change as soon as we get a new President (and some turn-over in Congress), which is in the cards, as the economy has slowed, signaling a desire for change.

#4. Election funding remains a big problem, as large "stakeholders" continue to affect our nation in negative ways. However, they may be well aware by now that the Bush admin. and Co. have wrought some economic havoc, and may now be siding more with enlightened Democrats.

Our foreign policy had been one of "what's in it for me economically", and "how do I get the best return on the investments" - which is very narrow minded, to say the least. So, the enlightened Democrats and some Republicans have now realized the folly of this type of thinking, and I predict there will be a more sane foreign policy coming from the US. Preventing terrorism means reducing overall global poverty and injustice, and this is something our current administration has ignored, or at best given lip service to. I think Barack Obama, being the wise graduate of the University of Chicago, will undoubtedly see things in the right light, and work to correct our errors. And he has a much saner energy policy, which given the economic power the US has, should help change the direction of the energy sector of the global economy, and shift things towards efficiency and renewable energy, like wind, solar, geothermal, and biomass. So, hopefully we will regain our standing in the world, and get over the "virus" of isolationist 'bunker mentality' that had gripped much of our citizens here.

I liken it to the land of Oz, and while the curtain hasn't been pulled back for all to see, broad swaths of the electorate are now aware of the hood-winking we've gone through, and the economic pinch wakes people up - especially with something like 2 million home owners suddenly in a credit crunch, with all the ripple effects..

So, yes, I would predict a major turn-around here, and better times ahead..:)

[chuck kottke]

McCain is an enigma, because for someone who was held prisoner in a hole in the ground during the war with Korea, and who supported campaign finance reform (authored it in part!), he's lost a lot of his credibility with regards to funding and with regards to foreign policy.

Maybe power really does do odd things to people, and they forget what conditions made them better aware of the need for both preventing wars and getting a better system for elections? I suppose, as the Eagles song goes, "it isn't such a bitter world, now that I've got mine.." So the old saying goes too - "a full belly never feels for an empty one" - people loose empathy over time, when their lives are pretty good..

Well, that's my 2 cents on McCain.

[winigwl]

obama and mccain with DC Virginia and Maryland

[anna111]

:dozey:

 

Oh and where is Mr. Ron Paul? :dozey:

 

 

We really shouldn't be using this thread to attack each others' political views though.

[Maldini]

Clean sweep for Obama

 

Presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-IL) greets supporters at the Eastern Market Metro station in Washington, D.C.

 

 

Sen. Barack Obama dominated yesterday's Potomac primaries by easily winning the Democratic contests in the District, Maryland and Virginia — running his victory streak to eight in a row — as Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton looked to tamp down her rival's rising momentum in the delegate-rich states to come.

 

 

Mr. Obama of Illinois bypassed Mrs. Clinton in the race for delegates, but the senator from New York won enough votes in Virginia and Maryland to keep the presidential nomination contest in a virtual dead heat.

 

 

"Today, the change we seek swept through the Chesapeake and over the Potomac," Mr. Obama said at a rally in Madison, Wis., which will vote next week.

 

 

"We know our road will not be easy, but we also know that, at this moment, the cynics can no longer say that our hope is false," he said, a reference to one of Mrs. Clinton's talking points. "We have now won east and west, north and south, and across the heartland of this country we love."

 

 

In the key swing state of Virginia, Mr. Obama defeated Mrs. Clinton 64 percent to 35 percent with 99 percent of precincts reporting.

 

 

In Maryland, where the polls were held open an extra 90 minutes because of a winter storm, Democrats backed Mr. Obama 60 percent to Mrs. Clinton"s 36 percent with 59 percent of precincts reporting. He also easily won in the District 75 percent to 24 percent with 98 percent of precincts reporting.

 

 

Mrs. Clinton, who was in El Paso, Texas, last night campaigning, delivered a stump speech that made one passing reference to Mr. Obama or his campaign wins.

 

 

"And we're going to sweep across Texas in the next three weeks, bringing our message about what we need in America, the kind of president that will be required on day one to be commander in chief to turn the economy around," Mrs. Clinton said at rally at the University of Texas at El Paso.

 

"I'm tested. I'm ready. Let's make it happen," she said.

 

 

Mr. Obama continued to gain support among both men and women, in nearly every age group and from across racial lines.

 

 

Exit polls in Maryland and Virginia showed Mr. Obama even winning among white men, the latter being only the second time he won that segment of the vote in a Southern state. He split the overall white vote with Mrs. Clinton. She won her base, white women, and he won 90 percent of the black vote.

 

 

Mrs. Clinton's campaign downplayed yesterday's defeats ahead of time, saying it expected Mr. Obama to do well in the Potomac-Chesapeake region.

 

 

"I hope we win all three of them, but he is spending a lot of money and time in this region, and we are going to fight hard in all three places," said Bob Nash, Mrs. Clinton's deputy campaign manager. "I would say that he will probably do pretty good in D.C., and I am hopeful that we will do well in Maryland and Virginia."

 

 

Shortly after the results were called, news broke that another of Mrs. Clinton's deputy campaign managers, Mike Henry, had resigned. In a note to the staff, Mr. Henry said his departure came out of respect for the new leadership team.

 

 

Patti Solis Doyle, the campaign's former manager, stepped down over the weekend for personal reasons and was replaced by longtime Clinton family confidante Maggie Williams.

 

 

Yesterday's results pushed the Illinois Democrat's win total to 23 states, nearly double the number of states that Mrs. Clinton has won. But among her 12 wins were such more populous delegate-rich states as California, New York and New Jersey.

 

 

Heading into the Potomac primaries, Mrs. Clinton held about a 20-delegate lead, including superdelegates, with 1,151 to Mr. Obama's 1,131, but by the end of the night Mr. Obama led 1,223 to her 1,198 and delegate counts continued to shift throughout the night.

 

 

The Democratic Party requires a candidate to win 2,025 delegates to secure the nomination outright. If neither candidate reaches the 2,025 mark, the nomination would be left up to the party's 796 superdelegates, about 20 percent of total, to decide who the party's nominee will be.

 

 

Both campaigns are courting superdelegates, an array of members of Congress, governors, state party leaders and Democratic National Committee (DNC) members, who are free to support who they like at the party's nominating convention, unlike pledged delegates, who are allocated based on nominating contests.

 

 

The Clinton campaign, which holds a lead with the superdelegates, says they should support who they think will be the best president.

 

 

Initially, Mr. Obama hinted in the morning after the Feb. 5 primaries that the superdelegates should follow the lead of the voters, saying that they "would have to think long and hard about how they approach the nomination if the people they represent have said that Obama is our guy."

 

 

But on Monday, the campaign's media strategist David Axelrod said superdelegates should decide what's best for the party.

 

 

"I think that the role of the superdelegate is to act as, sort of, a party elder," said Mr. Axelrod this week on the "Today" show. "I think they and all the superdelegates should vote according to what they think is best for the party and the country. And I think that we need the strongest possible candidate against John McCain."

 

 

One of those superdelegates, Rep. Robert C. Scott, Virginia Democrat, said after Mr. Obama's performance in his state that the superdelegates will have no choice but to support him.

 

 

"He has shown that he will be competitive in Virginia in the general election ... We know that if the Republicans lose one or two Southern states, they cannot win," Mr. Scott said. "I believe with former Governor Mark Warner on the ballot for Senate in addition to Mr. Obama's own strength, Virginia could go Democratic for the first time since 1964."

 

 

Mr. Obama heads into Tuesday's Wisconsin primary with a healthy lead in that state, according to one poll done Monday. Both campaigns expect him to win that day in Hawaii, where he grew up and where Democrats hold a caucus on Tuesday.

 

 

Texas will hold its hybrid half-caucus/half-primary vote on March 4, along with the Ohio primary. Mrs. Clinton will rely heavily on the Hispanic vote in Texas to carry her to victory in that state and hopes to steal a victory in Ohio, but first she must do well in Wisconsin.

 

 

The campaign announced that it would begin airing its first television ad in the Badger State highlighting Mrs. Clinton's commitment to a universal health care system and her belief that it is America's moral obligation.

 

 

In Virginia, exit polls also showed that Mr. Obama dominated the youth vote, winning three-quarters of Virginia Democrats younger than 30. He beat Mrs. Clinton in every age group except for the elderly vote, which he split with Mrs. Clinton.

 

 

• S.A. Miller contributed to this report.

[Maldini]

Obama is gaining momentum- also among Jews

 

AlEXANDRIA, VIRGINIA- There is no way to estimate in exact numbers former Jewish Congressman Tom Lantos' contributions to Israel's prosperity and safety. He was 16 when the Nazis conquered Hungary, and sent him to a concentration camp. Afterwards, he escaped and found refuge with the Swedish Righteous Gentile Raoul Wallenberg. In 1947 he came to the United States to study, and stayed.

 

In 1980, Lantos, an economics professor, was elected to Congress as a representative for his San Francisco hometown, and has been there since. The only Holocaust survivor in Congress- smart, authoritative, knowledgeable. Head of the Foreign Affairs Committee. On his office walls hangs Jerusalem lithography. In all these years, he was one of the greatest supporters of Israel and promoted human rights worldwide. He died Monday at age 80. A loss of this kind has no replacement. President Shimon Peres, described Lantos on Tuesday as "a fearless fighter for democracy, freedom, and human rights, a true and close friend of the State of Israel."

 

Lantos fell ill many months ago, but was able to announce that as a "superdelegate"- a term for some of the Congressman belonging to the Democratic National Committee- he would support Hillary Clinton's candidacy. Similar to many other Jewish lawmakers and voters, but not to all. As the days pass, as Senator Barack Obama's momentum increases, it seems as though the majority of Jewish Democrats will support him. Last weekend, when California's votes were recounted, it became clear that Obama won the majority of the Jewish votes- the state where Lantos was from.

 

Last weekend, a substantial group of Jewish lawmakers from Maryland joined Obama's band of supporters. They announced that Obama supports Israel and will continue to support it. Even Jewish Congressman John Yarmuth joined the supporters camp.

 

The "Potomac primaries" which will be held Tuesday in Maryland, Virginia, and the District of Columbia, are important for Obama, who wants to maintain his momentum after four consecutive victories last week- in Nebraska, Washington state, Louisiana, and Monday's win in Maine. They are important for Clinton too, who wants to steal Virginia at least from Obama. That way she can claim she had a nice achievement, for all in all, everyone assumed ahead of time that Obama's chances of winning those areas are greater.

 

The last time Virginia voted for a Democratic president was a long time ago. Not Kerry, Gore, Clinton, Dukakis, Mondale, Carter, McGovern, or Humphrey. The year was 1964, and the winning candidate was Lyndon B. Johnson. Since then, only Republicans. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton think and believe that this is about to change. And they are thinking, each of them by separately: I am the candidate who can change this.

 

What the two candidates attempted to do in their appearances in past days was to convince voters that they are the candidate who can beat Republican John McCain in Virginia. Obama emphasized the fact that independents are supporting him- that is to say, he is the candidate who can break the left-right tradition and bring new populations and countries to the Democratic line. Clinton claimed that only an experienced candidate who knows how to withstand attack and return fire can stand against McCain.

 

This is an interesting turning point in the campaign, which is credited to the Republican opponent. Because the candidate from the right is already known, the voters have to not only make an ideological ruling- who they prefer- but also view the race pragmatically: Which candidate standing before us has the better chance of stopping McCain's train? Not that they didn't speak of this before, but now the selection is much more precise.

 

The polls are speaking for Obama. He is leading McCain in a two-way race, while Clinton is close, sometimes in a small delay against McCain. All this is not important, Clinton headquarters say, since the attack on Obama from the right hasn't begun. If he is the elected candidate, the support for him will lessen and erode. To Clinton, they say, that can't happen. The voters already know everything possible about her. Anything bad that can be said about her has already been said. Whoever supports her anyhow, won't change his/her mind negatively- only positvely.

[Nicko84]

coome on Obama!

[Maldini]

McCain finds a tool to woo conservatives: Israel

By Shmuel Rosner

 

There's been a lot of talk lately about John McCain's problem with the more conservative (and religious) right wing of the Republican Party. In Super Tuesday McCain won among self-identified conservatives in only three of the nine states that were covered by the exit polls I saw. His real strength is among moderates.

 

The dominant narrative for the rest of the Republican race could be McCain's uneasy relationship with the right, writes Michael Grunwald in Time.

 

The candidate is making an effort to win over this important constituency: "I promise you," McCain assured conservatives in his victory speech, "if I am so fortunate to win your nomination, I will work hard to ensure that the conservative philosophy and principles of our great party ... will again win the votes of a majority of the American people."

 

The problem he has is clear: How does one win over the more radical wing of his party without alienating the more centrist voters on which one relies to help him win not just the nomination but also the general election. McCain is using a couple of tools as to achieve this goal. One of them, and not a marginal one, is the State of Israel.

 

Senator Joe Lieberman is playing a role here. The staunchest Jewish supporter McCain has, Lieberman can promise both Jews and Evangelical voters that McCain is the candidate who will not abandon Israel (no wonder some people still think Lieberman is McCain's top pick for vice president).

 

Lieberman also says that McCain understands how significant the establishment of the state of Israel was. He is an avid reader of history and also has "a sense of history." He is familiar with the story of the country. He will not do anything that will "compromise Israel's security." Lieberman has real confidence in McCain, a "total comfort level" because "I know this man."

 

"In his potential outreach to Evangelical Christians, Lieberman could trade on a relationship rooted in a shared concern for the safety of Israel, as well the respect many Evangelicals have for Lieberman's Orthodox Jewish background and for his activism on values issues like violence in the media," wrote Jennifer Siegel of the Forward, and rightly so.

 

But who needs Lieberman when it is so clear that the candidate himself is using the Israel tool with his most problematic constituency? Two weeks ago I reported that "it is not only the Jews who McCain is courting" with gestures and statements concerning Israel: Asked about his chances of winning the Republican nomination despite his poor relations with Evangelical Christians, he noted that an influential segment of this community is very committed to Israel, and "obviously I have been a very strong proponent to the State of Israel."

 

And here is a statement he made earlier, in the summer: "The State of Israel has never needed your support and your hopes and your prayers they way they need it today," McCain said. "And God bless you for your commitment." The occasion: the annual Christians United for Israel Summit in Washington.

 

McCain's speech Thursday, at the Conservative Political Action Conference here in Washington, was designed to hammer this point home in an even more forceful way: "Those [Democratic] senators won't recognize and seriously address the threat posed by an Iran with nuclear ambitions to our ally Israel in the region," McCain said. He meant: If you conservatives really care about Israel as you often say you do, I'm your man. Here's some more: "I intend to make unmistakably clear to Iran we will not permit a government that espouses the destruction of the State of Israel as its fondest wish and pledges undying enmity to the United States to possess the weapons to advance their malevolent ambitions."

 

His speech, wrote Stephen Hayes "was surprisingly well-received". After the speech, Hayes reports: [Tom] DeLay told a few reporters that a speech at CPAC could not make up for McCain's record, but he would not rule out voting for him. That might not seem like a big deal unless we recall that DeLay had previously said that McCain "has done more to hurt the Republican Party than any elected official I know of." And he'd still consider voting for him?

 

DeLay is definitely one of those people to which a positive message concerning Israel is of great importance, and might help McCain do the trick.

[grids]

he ever schooled in Indonesia when he was elementary isn't it?

[Maldini]

Obama Learning in Islamic school for two years then he turned to a Catholic school.

[Maldini]

Obama Wins Hawaii Caucuses After Wisconsin Victory

 

By Kim Chipman

 

Feb. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama won the party's caucuses in Hawaii, his second victory of the day after Wisconsin.

The Illinois senator took 76 percent of the vote, according to the preliminary final result. Hillary Clinton, a New York senator, received 24 percent.

 

Although Obama was born and raised in Honolulu, his victory in Hawaii was not certain. Clinton had the backing of Daniel Inouye, Hawaii's senior senator, as well as the state's largest union. Earlier yesterday, Obama defeated Clinton in Wisconsin's presidential primary, 58 percent to 41 percent.

 

Turnout was heavy at caucus sites in Honolulu, with crowds creating traffic jams, said Representative Neil Abercrombie, a Democrat who represents the city in Congress and is backing Obama.

 

``It's the most enormous political event in Hawaii's history,'' Abercrombie said in a telephone interview as he waited to caucus.

 

Neither Clinton nor Obama personally campaigned in Hawaii.

 

Clinton's daughter, Chelsea, traveled to the state last week to campaign for her mother. Obama's half-sister, Honolulu resident Maya Soetoro-Ng, 37, and some of his former classmates and friends led a volunteer effort on the Illinois senator's behalf.

 

Hawaii has 20 pledged convention delegates at stake that will be awarded proportionally based on the final election results.

[winigwl]

keep it going barack!

[Maldini]

Obama increases delegate lead

 

By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer

 

WASHINGTON - Sen. Barack Obama captured most of the delegates in the Wisconsin and Hawaii contests, increasing his lead in the race for the Democratic nomination for president.

 

Sen. John McCain, meanwhile, moved closer to clinching the Republican nomination.

Obama won 56 delegates in the two states, with one still to be awarded in Hawaii. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won 37.

 

Obama also got a boost from new superdelegate endorsements, as well as newly released returns from several elections that were held on Super Tuesday. Election results have been slow in some states because of delays in assigning votes to the proper congressional district.

 

In the overall race for the nomination, Obama led with 1,351 delegates, including separately chosen party and elected officials known as superdelegates. Clinton had 1,262.

 

Obama has built the lead by winning 10 straight contests since Super Tuesday. Clinton has kept it closer with more endorsements from superdelegates, who can support whomever they choose at the convention, regardless of what happens in the primaries.

 

It takes 2,025 delegates to secure the Democratic nomination.

A breakdown of the race for Democratic delegates:

Pledged delegates won in primaries and caucuses: Obama, 1,178; Clinton, 1,024.

 

Superdelegates: Obama, 173; Clinton, 238.

 

On the Republican side, McCain won 34 delegates in Wisconsin and Washington state, while former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee won three. The race in one Wisconsin congressional district was too close to call Wednesday, and complete results in Washington state could take several days.

 

Overall, McCain had 957 delegates after picking up more endorsements from party leaders who automatically attend the convention. Huckabee had 254.

It takes 1,191 delegates to claim the Republican nomination at this summer's national convention.

 

With Tuesday's results, Huckabee needs help from Mitt Romney's former delegates just to remain a viable candidate. Romney has withdrawn from the race and endorsed McCain. But the former Massachusetts governor has little authority over his 256 delegates, most of whom will be free agents at the convention in St. Paul, Minn.

 

Romney actually picked up a few delegates Wednesday, based on newly released results from elections held before he quit the race.

 

The Associated Press tracks the delegate races by calculating the number of national convention delegates won by candidates in each presidential primary or caucus, based on state and national party rules, and by interviewing unpledged delegates to obtain their preferences.

 

Most primaries and some caucuses are binding, meaning delegates won by the candidates are pledged to support that candidate at the national conventions this summer.

 

Political parties in some states, however, use multistep procedures to award national delegates. Typically, such states use local caucuses to elect delegates to state or congressional district conventions, where national delegates are selected. In these states, the AP uses the results from local caucuses to calculate the number of national delegates each candidate will win, if the candidate's level of support at the caucus doesn't change.

[chuck kottke]

Bring your caulk - it's a caucus!:P

Good sign - Obama got Wisconsin's delegates, even though Hillary spent tons of cash here. Maybe his spending caught up to hers, but if not, it means the electorate is awake, and unwilling to be persuaded by BS issue ads on TV. Good - out with the cronies, and in with more honest representation!!

And yes, it's a mess of a system - they should do away with the so-called super-delegates, as well as the electoral college system. Thanks for the post, Maldini!!:)

[GazeboflossUK]

I feel Bloomberg (who I do not like) might have some involvement somewhere in this election.

 

Just a thought....