D
Dr. Jai Maharaj
Guest
Obama Poised to Sweep Into Delegate Lead Over Clinton
By Lorraine Woellert
Bloomberg
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Feb. 12 (Bloomberg) - Barack Obama is poised to chalk up
three more wins over Hillary Clinton today in Maryland,
Virginia and Washington D.C. that would give him a clear
delegate lead in the Democratic nomination race.
Obama packed arenas in Baltimore and College Park,
Maryland, yesterday while Clinton pursued voters in smaller
settings. Polls in all three jurisdictions show Obama the
favorite to win a majority of the 168 delegates at stake.
''You're looking at a groundswell,'' said Keith Haller,
president of Potomac Inc., a Bethesda, Maryland-based
political consulting company not affiliated with any
campaign. The Illinois senator will win the capital
overwhelmingly, and in Virginia and Maryland, the ''yield
for Obama is likely to be more significant than just
splitting the delegates.''
Obama will be building on the momentum he gained after
winning in four states over the weekend -- Maine, Nebraska,
Louisiana and Washington -- and having battled Clinton to a
draw in 22 states on Feb. 5.
His campaign claimed a narrow edge in pledged delegates to
the Democratic National Convention after his Feb. 9
victories. An unofficial estimate by the independent non-
partisan Web site thegreenpapers.com shows Obama ahead of
Clinton, a senator from New York, 925 delegates to 896.
Delegate Counts
An Associated Press projection shows Clinton ahead with
1,136 delegates to 1,108 for Obama, counting Democratic
office holders and party officials known as super delegates
who aren't bound by results in primaries and caucuses.
Obama holds a lead counting only pledged delegates.
A candidate needs 2,025 delegates to win the nomination.
Republicans also will be voting today, and Arizona Senator
John McCain, 71, has a lead in polls over former Arkansas
Governor Mike Huckabee, 52. McCain has the backing of top
party leaders in both states. He also was endorsed
yesterday by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the brother
of President George W. Bush, who called him a ''devoted
conservative leader.''
Obama, 46, has broad support in Washington, the nation's
capital, where the majority of voters are black and he is
backed by Mayor Adrian Fenty. Obama and Fenty visited a
Dunkin Donuts on Capitol Hill this morning and took two
boxes of donuts to a nearby subway station where a crowd of
supporters cheered.
Obama also did drive-time interviews with five radio
stations in Washington, Virginia and Maryland in a last
pitch for votes.
Clinton, 60, hasn't conceded the city. She visited
supporters at the National Council of Negro Women Building
yesterday, and former President Bill Clinton spoke to
Sunday services at predominantly black churches on Feb. 10.
Maryland Contest
Obama also has a lead in Maryland, which has two of the
constituencies -- wealthy suburbanites and a large African-
American community -- that polls show have favored him. A
Feb. 7- 8 survey by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc.
conducted for MSNBC and McClatchy newspapers showed him
leading Clinton by 18 percentage points.
Obama supporters packed the 17,500-seat Comcast Center at
the University of Maryland's College Park campus yesterday.
''We need to do something new,'' he told the crowd. ''We
need to go in a new direction.''
In the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, he
sought support from Hispanic voters, who have gravitated
toward Clinton in earlier contests.
Clinton is relying on Democratic Party institutional
support in the state, including campaigning by Senator
Barbara Mikulski and Governor Martin O'Malley to generate
enthusiasm from women and the party establishment. She also
is focusing on next month's primaries.
Looking Ahead
''If you look at the states that are upcoming, I am very
confident,'' Clinton said in White Marsh, Maryland, naming
Ohio and Texas. ''They represent the kind of voters that
are going to have to be convinced and won over in the
general election.''
Virginia's primary is open, meaning voters can choose
either party's primary ballot. Independents are part of the
strategies of both Obama and McCain.
Clinton's aides say they expect her positions on health
care and the economy to resonate with rural voters in the
southern Virginia, African-Americans and military personnel
in the central Chesapeake region, and women and government
employees in Washington suburbs.
The campaign expects to ''win our fair share of delegates''
in Virginia, spokesman Mo Elleithee said.
'Score Well'
Democrats award delegates proportionally based on voting.
''You really have to score extremely well in order to score
a significant advance in the number of delegates,'' said F.
Christopher Arterton, dean of George Washington
University's Graduate School of Political Management. The
result is that some of Obama's wins ''are not as earth-
shattering'' as they appear.
Clinton has the backing of Mame Reiley, chairwoman of the
Democratic National Committee's Women's Caucus and a
veteran Virginia grass-roots organizer. She also is
supported by state party powerhouse Lionel Spruill, an
African-American member of the state House of Delegates. On
Feb. 9, Spruill made the rounds with Bill Clinton.
Clinton also won an endorsement from the Democratic
Committee in Wise County, a rural coal-mining area where
the poverty rate is more than twice the national average.
''Health care is very important to this region,'' said Wise
County Democratic Chairwoman Melanie Salyer.
Still, Obama holds the lead in state polls and he has
collected endorsements from some of the state's top elected
officials, including Governor Tim Kaine and U.S.
Representative Jim Moran.
The Mason-Dixon poll showed Obama's support at 53 percent
in Virginia with Clinton's at 37 percent.
The same survey showed McCain ahead among Republicans in
Maryland and Virginia.
More at:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ab39rPsXfIv4&refer=home
Jai Maharaj
http://tinyurl.com/24fq83
http://www.mantra.com/jai
http://www.mantra.com/jyotish
Om Shanti
Hindu Holocaust Museum
http://www.mantra.com/holocaust
Hindu life, principles, spirituality and philosophy
http://www.hindu.org
http://www.hindunet.org
The truth about Islam and Muslims
http://www.flex.com/~jai/satyamevajayate
DISCLAIMER AND CONDITIONS
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
fair use of copyrighted works.
o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
By Lorraine Woellert
Bloomberg
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Feb. 12 (Bloomberg) - Barack Obama is poised to chalk up
three more wins over Hillary Clinton today in Maryland,
Virginia and Washington D.C. that would give him a clear
delegate lead in the Democratic nomination race.
Obama packed arenas in Baltimore and College Park,
Maryland, yesterday while Clinton pursued voters in smaller
settings. Polls in all three jurisdictions show Obama the
favorite to win a majority of the 168 delegates at stake.
''You're looking at a groundswell,'' said Keith Haller,
president of Potomac Inc., a Bethesda, Maryland-based
political consulting company not affiliated with any
campaign. The Illinois senator will win the capital
overwhelmingly, and in Virginia and Maryland, the ''yield
for Obama is likely to be more significant than just
splitting the delegates.''
Obama will be building on the momentum he gained after
winning in four states over the weekend -- Maine, Nebraska,
Louisiana and Washington -- and having battled Clinton to a
draw in 22 states on Feb. 5.
His campaign claimed a narrow edge in pledged delegates to
the Democratic National Convention after his Feb. 9
victories. An unofficial estimate by the independent non-
partisan Web site thegreenpapers.com shows Obama ahead of
Clinton, a senator from New York, 925 delegates to 896.
Delegate Counts
An Associated Press projection shows Clinton ahead with
1,136 delegates to 1,108 for Obama, counting Democratic
office holders and party officials known as super delegates
who aren't bound by results in primaries and caucuses.
Obama holds a lead counting only pledged delegates.
A candidate needs 2,025 delegates to win the nomination.
Republicans also will be voting today, and Arizona Senator
John McCain, 71, has a lead in polls over former Arkansas
Governor Mike Huckabee, 52. McCain has the backing of top
party leaders in both states. He also was endorsed
yesterday by former Florida Governor Jeb Bush, the brother
of President George W. Bush, who called him a ''devoted
conservative leader.''
Obama, 46, has broad support in Washington, the nation's
capital, where the majority of voters are black and he is
backed by Mayor Adrian Fenty. Obama and Fenty visited a
Dunkin Donuts on Capitol Hill this morning and took two
boxes of donuts to a nearby subway station where a crowd of
supporters cheered.
Obama also did drive-time interviews with five radio
stations in Washington, Virginia and Maryland in a last
pitch for votes.
Clinton, 60, hasn't conceded the city. She visited
supporters at the National Council of Negro Women Building
yesterday, and former President Bill Clinton spoke to
Sunday services at predominantly black churches on Feb. 10.
Maryland Contest
Obama also has a lead in Maryland, which has two of the
constituencies -- wealthy suburbanites and a large African-
American community -- that polls show have favored him. A
Feb. 7- 8 survey by Mason-Dixon Polling & Research Inc.
conducted for MSNBC and McClatchy newspapers showed him
leading Clinton by 18 percentage points.
Obama supporters packed the 17,500-seat Comcast Center at
the University of Maryland's College Park campus yesterday.
''We need to do something new,'' he told the crowd. ''We
need to go in a new direction.''
In the Washington suburb of Silver Spring, Maryland, he
sought support from Hispanic voters, who have gravitated
toward Clinton in earlier contests.
Clinton is relying on Democratic Party institutional
support in the state, including campaigning by Senator
Barbara Mikulski and Governor Martin O'Malley to generate
enthusiasm from women and the party establishment. She also
is focusing on next month's primaries.
Looking Ahead
''If you look at the states that are upcoming, I am very
confident,'' Clinton said in White Marsh, Maryland, naming
Ohio and Texas. ''They represent the kind of voters that
are going to have to be convinced and won over in the
general election.''
Virginia's primary is open, meaning voters can choose
either party's primary ballot. Independents are part of the
strategies of both Obama and McCain.
Clinton's aides say they expect her positions on health
care and the economy to resonate with rural voters in the
southern Virginia, African-Americans and military personnel
in the central Chesapeake region, and women and government
employees in Washington suburbs.
The campaign expects to ''win our fair share of delegates''
in Virginia, spokesman Mo Elleithee said.
'Score Well'
Democrats award delegates proportionally based on voting.
''You really have to score extremely well in order to score
a significant advance in the number of delegates,'' said F.
Christopher Arterton, dean of George Washington
University's Graduate School of Political Management. The
result is that some of Obama's wins ''are not as earth-
shattering'' as they appear.
Clinton has the backing of Mame Reiley, chairwoman of the
Democratic National Committee's Women's Caucus and a
veteran Virginia grass-roots organizer. She also is
supported by state party powerhouse Lionel Spruill, an
African-American member of the state House of Delegates. On
Feb. 9, Spruill made the rounds with Bill Clinton.
Clinton also won an endorsement from the Democratic
Committee in Wise County, a rural coal-mining area where
the poverty rate is more than twice the national average.
''Health care is very important to this region,'' said Wise
County Democratic Chairwoman Melanie Salyer.
Still, Obama holds the lead in state polls and he has
collected endorsements from some of the state's top elected
officials, including Governor Tim Kaine and U.S.
Representative Jim Moran.
The Mason-Dixon poll showed Obama's support at 53 percent
in Virginia with Clinton's at 37 percent.
The same survey showed McCain ahead among Republicans in
Maryland and Virginia.
More at:
http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=ab39rPsXfIv4&refer=home
Jai Maharaj
http://tinyurl.com/24fq83
http://www.mantra.com/jai
http://www.mantra.com/jyotish
Om Shanti
Hindu Holocaust Museum
http://www.mantra.com/holocaust
Hindu life, principles, spirituality and philosophy
http://www.hindu.org
http://www.hindunet.org
The truth about Islam and Muslims
http://www.flex.com/~jai/satyamevajayate
DISCLAIMER AND CONDITIONS
o Not for commercial use. Solely to be fairly used for the educational
purposes of research and open discussion. The contents of this post may not
have been authored by, and do not necessarily represent the opinion of the
poster. The contents are protected by copyright law and the exemption for
fair use of copyrighted works.
o If you send private e-mail to me, it will likely not be read,
considered or answered if it does not contain your full legal name, current
e-mail and postal addresses, and live-voice telephone number.
o Posted for information and discussion. Views expressed by others are
not necessarily those of the poster who may or may not have read the article.
FAIR USE NOTICE: This article may contain copyrighted material the use of
which may or may not have been specifically authorized by the copyright
owner. This material is being made available in efforts to advance the
understanding of environmental, political, human rights, economic,
democratic, scientific, social, and cultural, etc., issues. It is believed
that this constitutes a 'fair use' of any such copyrighted material as
provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. In accordance with Title
17 U.S.C. Section 107, the material on this site is distributed without
profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included
information for research, comment, discussion and educational purposes by
subscribing to USENET newsgroups or visiting web sites. For more information
go to: http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml
If you wish to use copyrighted material from this article for purposes of
your own that go beyond 'fair use', you must obtain permission from the
copyright owner.
