American 2008 Election

[belfastuniguy 18]

Obama wouldn't be about to invite them over for tea either.quote>

So why doesn't he come out and say what he would do. Its all very well for him to sit on his pedestal and preach, but would be nice to seem him actually address the issue.

[Easy Bakes 253]

Originally posted by: belfastuniguy

Obama wouldn't be about to invite them over for tea either.quote>

So why doesn't he come out and say what he would do. Its all very well for him to sit on his pedestal and preach, but would be nice to seem him actually address the issue.quote>

 

Cause hes a politician?

[JanYpe 17]

Why should every possible hypothetical be chewed out into a soundbite? Does he need to rehash America's decades old commitment to Israel? No. Should he pretend as if he, or anyone else, can give a complete battle plan for every sordid conflict in a matter of seconds? No. What's so preachy and wrong about pointing out the obvious and saying that there would be a forceful response if that happened.

Hillary didn't actually address the issue. She didn't pull out her very own Von Schlieffen plan. She just went "rawr Hillary smash!"

[krbe 193]

Obama might not have spelled it out that he's a supporter of some new Hiroshimas, but he has said what's going to happen before they need to dispatch the military.

So: Obama might attempt to drink tea with them before, but certainly not after. Though war for war's sake is not what he's after:

Next time you want to know a particular canditates stance on an issue, I suggest "<candidates name> <issue>" entered into the search field of a respectable search engine.

[Frankie_Grove 32]

Obama is very similar to Jimmy Carter in a sense that he thinks he can talk his way out of any problem. Unfortunately that does not always work, and we could end up with a president who doesn't have a clue what he's doing. I'll admit Obama has some impressive public speaking skills, but he always avoids talking directly about particular issues; even when he does, he rarely stays on topic long. Obama is also a bit of an extremist, he's proposing radical change in just a few short months, and I honestly doubt that things will go as well as he hopes.

I'm still interested to see the turnout on this one - Hillary has a lot of catching up to do. Then again, everything in this election that can happen, has happened. We've seen a lot of twists and turns and surprises.

[BurroDiablo 222]

Obama's stance against Iran is worrying. Openly calling them a 'threat to all of us' isn't going to go down well on the diplomatic side, Iran is just going to become more and more prevocative. By all means, keep the military on standby just incase, but don't say idiotic things that will drag relations with the country down even further... its amost like he wants a war.

Originally posted by: Frankie_GroveObama is also a bit of an extremist, he's proposing radical change in just a few short monthsquote>

What kind of changes?

[blade2k5 1,523]

Originally posted by: El Burro  By all means, keep the military on standby just incase, but don't say idiotic things that will drag relations with the country down even further... its amost like he wants a war.quote>

What relations with Iran?  We haven't had 'relations' with them for decades.

[BurroDiablo 222]

Originally posted by: blade2k5

Originally posted by: El Burro  By all means, keep the military on standby just incase, but don't say idiotic things that will drag relations with the country down even further... its amost like he wants a war.quote>

What relations with Iran?  We haven't had 'relations' with them for decades.quote>

All countries have relations with each other no matter how good or bad they may be. You may not have 'good' relations with Iran, it doesn't mean you have none whatsoever. Theirs certainly room for improvement, and i'd expect America to lead by example and start improving relations instead of talking about bombing Tehran to buggery.

[blade2k5 1,523]

Well, don't get your hopes up with this useless Gov't fixing that anytime soon, especially with the three useless candidates we have to choose from this election year. McCain is an old fool, Hillary is an idiot, Obama is all talk with no substance and all three have their heads stuck in the sand. Oh, and as far as I'm concerned, this country needs to quit trying to take care of everyone else when it can't even take care of it's own. And as for our 'image' 'round the world, you people need to get off your high horse and take a good long hard look in the mirror because you're no better than we are.

[belfastuniguy 18]

this country needs to quit trying to take care of everyone else when it can't even take care of it's own.quote>

I think you'll find that America or to be more precise its government has placed it in that position. I'm sure many countries round the world would like America to stop impeding progress and interfering. I personally believe America as the only superpower should lead the world in productive diplomacy in partnership with its allies which it has neglected in recent years.

And as for our 'image' 'round the world, you people need to get off your high horse and take a good long hard look in the mirror because you're no better than we are.quote>

I think you fail to understand what a 'bad image' could and has done for America. It can lead to political isolation, boycott, rejection of American goods and brands and taints the people of the country which have had nothing to do with creating this bad image. America does need to address its image and to reject that is total and utter ignorance on your part. I am educated enough to see the bigger picture and not just dismiss America based on recent activities of its government but some are not and some have much narrower minds than me and others.

As for other countries looking in mirror, can you be more specific then maybe I can address that issue in more detail.

[belfastuniguy 18]

Clinton 'wins key Democrat vote'

Hillary Clinton has tried to play down the need to win by a large margin

Hillary Clinton has beaten Democratic rival Barack Obama in a critical vote in the US state of Pennsylvania, according to early results.

However, it is not yet clear how large her margin of victory will be. Analysts say she needs a big win to keep her campaign alive, but she disputes that.

Mr Obama had predicted he would lose but said he had made big progress in reducing Mrs Clinton's initial lead.

Based on 10% of returns counted, Mrs Clinton led Mr Obama by 55% to 45%.

Preliminary exit polls for the Associated Press and US television networks suggested a high turnout among voters over 60 and that six in 10 voters were women - both groups which have favoured Mrs Clinton.

Hillary Clinton's threat to Iran

About a quarter of those surveyed said they had a postgraduate education and about the same said they had a household income of more than $100,000 last year. Such groups have tended to prefer Mr Obama.

In the final hours of campaigning, Mrs Clinton tried to play down the idea she needed a large margin of victory, saying: "I think a win under any circumstances is a terrific achievement."

And she highlighted Mr Obama's significant edge in terms of spending, asking: "Maybe the question ought to be, why can't he close the deal with his extraordinary financial advantage, why can't he win in a state like this, if

[JanYpe 17]

Hillary wins by a whisker. A ten percent margin between them means she's not nearly making a serious enough dent in his delegate count.

[Meg 368]

So we get to listen to these two wrangle some more. 

I agree with those who say that the longer these two go at each other, the more likely it is McCain will win.

Can't we be done with this whole process already?

Here's an idea:   let's have all of the states hold the primary on the same day.   That way everyone gets to vote on all of the candidates.

I never was a fan of marathons.

[Barbarossa 51]

.

  Edited September 7, 2012 by Barbarossa  

[fern244 1]

I think Clinton is a bit too full of herself. Obama looks good but McCain looks like a man who knows what he's doing.

[belfastuniguy 18]

McCain looks like a man who knows what he's doing.quote>

Debatable. He may know how to fight a war and invade countries but lacks international awareness and desperately lacks any economic knowledge or background and that is what is going to be the focus of many American minds for the coming years.

I also agree it would be much better holding all primaries in a shorter period, maybe within a week or sooner..I also don't think you can just throw away the fact that Clinton has won almost every large state. Can you really be certain that they would vote Obama over McCain come November? Already about 20% of Clinton supporters will defect.

[hym 358]

The same could be asked of Clinton, considering she isn't getting big wins like she needs, and approximately 20% would defect to McCain if Clinton was nominated.

[screamingman12 30]

even though Clinton did get this one, this is probably her last main victory, as Obama has halfway closed the 20% lead that she had over him at last count, and that she has mostly persuaded all of the super delagates to her side that she can. She really needs to be smart enough to learn when to call it quits, or else she will seriously screw up the pary wit division between the two candidates. Whoever wins the nomination should make a unity speech, and try to rid the Dems of that Obama/Clinton split.

[belfastuniguy 18]

this is probably her last main victoryquote>

Well there are no more 'big' states really. Obama is likely to win North Carolina while Clinton taking Kentucky and Indiana

Clinton 'best to take on McCain'

Hillary Clinton says she has run a positive campaign

Hillary Clinton says she is the best placed candidate for the Democrats to beat Republican John McCain when it comes to the US presidential elections.

She says her win over Barack Obama in the Pennsylvania primary showed she could gather a broad base of support.

She cannot match him in elected delegates, but the super-delegates could give her the nomination if they think she can win against John McCain.

Mrs Clinton says an appeal launched after Tuesday's win raised $3m (£1.5m).

The internet fundraising is a much-needed boost to her debt-laden campaign - in Pennsylvania, Mr Obama outspent her three-to-one.

She has said securing more donations was the only way she could continue to compete with a rival who was outspending her "massively".

Blue-collar appeal

The results in Pennsylvania, which Mrs Clinton claimed to be an "overwhelming victory", showed 54.3% for Mrs Clinton to 45.7% for Mr Obama, with a little over 99% of returns counted.

DEMOCRATIC DELEGATES Barack Obama: Pledged delegates: 1,481

[baystatebill 2]

You need to remember the super delegates. They are not committed, they have the power to go to the convention and decide who they want to back. This race will go all the way to Denver and the Clinton Political Machine will attempt to convince the Super Delegates to side with her, that Obama doesn't have a shot against McCain and only she can win. This is going to get real ugly. I'm tired of hearing Democrats complain about not counting the votes in Florida and Michigan and how it's not right that the Super Delegates, only a few hundred people, could decide the Democratic Presidential Candidate. It was your party that decided not to accept the votes in Florida and Michigan, simply because they moved their primary dates, and it's your party that created the Super Delegate and the DNP rules that allow these few people to decide the nominee.

[screamingman12 30]

Well of course she would promote herself, she said it. You don't really expect politicians to be honest for once, do you?

[Frankie_Grove 32]

Obama is going to get a definite win in North Carolina, probably by a good 15-20%. North Carolina has quite a few people, so I think Clinton needs it bad, even though its more or less impossible for her to get it.

Indiana is Clinton's, but Kentucky will be a very close match, probably with Hillary winning it by a small margin.

Meanwhile, McCain is already campaigning, with little to nothing to stop him.

[hym 358]

Not that I can pull up the article, but I remember reading an article suggesting that Clinton had to get at least a 70% margin in all the remaining states to have any real chance of securing the nomination. If that is true, I have a hard time believing she'll hit that mark.

[Kiwi n Grapes 2]

I don't really think Clinton really has a chance, she's almost all out of money, and Obama is a fair amount ahead and hes he will definately will NC, so I think Obama and McCain are going to be the 2 people. If Obama got all of Clintons votes, he definately wins by a mile.

[baystatebill 2]

If you believe what the Clinton's say (and I have atough time believing anything they say), they raised over $10million in the last 2 days. I'm not sure money is an issue. The hole thing will come down to whether she can convince enough super delegates at the convention that Obama doesn't have a chance to beat mcCain, and many don't beleive he does, and that she can beat McCain. There are some seriously negative ad's running in NC.. A couple of Governor candiates have come out and supported Obama, and their opponents are running ad's feature the preachings of Reverand White at Obama's Chicago church. The ad is for the gubernatorial race, but obviously is out to hurt Obama and make this nasty race last longer and longer.

[Micah 16]

Even with the states remaining, she can't win. What's left now is up to the superdelegates, and yes, this will go on to June no matter how people hope this goes. What she needs to do is remind the superdelegates that if she were to have won Michigan and Florida like the exit polls suggested, she could be the winner with both the popular vote and delegate count. In that case, she would prove herself that she isn't winning solely on superdelegates and that the Democrats thought she would be a better nominee than Obama.

But if Hillary wins on superdelegates but looses in the actual delegate count & popular vote, expect a war.

[Barbarossa 51]

.

  Edited September 7, 2012 by Barbarossa  

[JanYpe 17]

This quote stood out to me:

Jennifer Rubin, humanevents.com

As she visited the Pennsylvania polls the morning of the election Hillary Clinton taunted her opponent, asking "Why can't he close the deal?"... Yes, Obama had narrowed the gap just a bit from several weeks ago when her lead neared 20 points in several polls, but there could be no concealing that Hillary's point was sounding more plausible: Obama is a candidate who seems unable to win over the broad base of Democratic voters.quote>

Anyone else think this is just the tiniest tad disingenuous? You couldn't point at a Democrat more at the forefront and more firmly entrenched than Clinton, yet her numbers have been pretty disappointing. What does it say about Clinton that her lead was still declining even after a headstart and a considerable amount of campaigning in this state?

Originally posted by: hym Not that I can pull up the article, but I remember reading an article suggesting that Clinton had to get at least a 70% margin in all the remaining states to have any real chance of securing the nomination. If that is true, I have a hard time believing she'll hit that mark.quote>

That's probably not far from the truth. At this point she's 125 delegates shy compared to Obama.

[hym 358]

Originally posted by: JanYpe

Originally posted by: hym Not that I can pull up the article, but I remember reading an article suggesting that Clinton had to get at least a 70% margin in all the remaining states to have any real chance of securing the nomination. If that is true, I have a hard time believing she'll hit that mark.quote>

That's probably not far from the truth. At this point she's 125 delegates shy compared to Obama.quote>

I should also mention that, at the time this article was written, Pennsylvania was one of the "gotta get at least a 70% margin" states.  Based on what I've heard, I don't think she did that...

[LarksTonguesInAspic 28]

Obama should bring up the multiple expletive-laced anti-Semitic rants heard from Hillary in the past. It may be negative, but would stop her in her tracks. Far be it from me to give aid to the other side of the aisle, but I would expect it would come up in the general campaign anyway, if she were to be the nominee.

Any candidate unwilling to use this type of information to avoid appearing too negative doesn't have the backbone or guts to be president IMHO.