Year: 2008

Forget about pressure from the DNC, bad poll numbers, or her credibility gap. The real issue for Hillary Clinton is – money. The lack of money, that is. It could be the single factor that brings her campaign to a halt.

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2008 Election, Hillary Clinton

Hmmm…this is getting interesting. First Dr. Dean says the primary season has to be over by July 1st. Now, we have a little ditty from Sen. Patrick Leahy.

Sen. Patrick Leahy is suggesting that Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton abandon her White House run.

The chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and six-term Vermont lawmaker said there is no way that Clinton is going to win enough pledged delegates to get the nomination. Leahy told Vermont Public Radio, in a show that aired Thursday, that Clinton ought to withdraw and should be backing Sen. Barack Obama. But Leahy said that’s obviously a decision only Clinton can make.

“Senator Clinton has every right, but not a very good reason, to remain a candidate for as long as she wants to. As far as the delegate count and the interests of a Democratic victory in November go, there is not a very good reason for drawing this out. But as I have said before, that is a decision that only she can make,” Leahy said in the statement.

Are we witnessing the beginning of a multi-Senator line-up behind Obama? What with the Casey endorsement today, and now Leahy’s public statements, could this be the start of a landslide of Democrats who pressure Hillary to quit?

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Barack Obama, DNC, Hillary Clinton, Patrick Leahy

Pennsylvania Sen. Bob Casey endorsed Sen. Barack Obama today.

In a surprise move, Senator Bob Casey of Pennsylvania has endorsed Senator Barack Obama in advance of the April 22 Democratic primary. Mr. Casey had said he would remain neutral in the race in part because he wanted to help broker a reconciliation between Mr. Obama and Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton afterward.

“I believe in my heart that there is one person who’s uniquely qualified to lead us in that new direction and that is Barack Obama.” Mr. Casey said during a rally in Pittsburgh Friday.

Mr. Casey is going against the grain in his state, where polls show Mrs. Clinton ahead by at least 12 percentage points and where she has the endorsement of most of the state’s major Democratic figures.

Assuming she wins the primary in Pennsylvania, watch for Hillary to use Casey’s endorsement as proof that superdelegates can thwart the will of the people and line up behind the candidate of their choosing. This is the kind of endorsement she needs to give credence to her belief that she can stay in this til the convention.

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Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, Bob Casey, Pennsylvania

Everyone is buzzing about the statement today from DNC chairman Howard Dean who said on CBS’ “The Early Show” that he wants superdelegates to make a decision on the Democratic nomination by July 1.

Harry Smith asked if after the nominating contests end with the South Dakota and Montana primaries on June 3, “Do you want the superdelegates to have some sort of vote immediately so that you’ll know months in advance of the convention what the outcome is?”

Dean replied: “Well, I think the superdelegates have already been weighing in. I think that there’s 800 of them and 450 of them have already said who they’re for. I’d like the other 350 to say who they’re at some point between now and the first of July so we don’t have to take this into the convention.”

Remember, with Democrats, it’s not what they say that counts. It’s what they intend to say that matters. Shortly after Dr. Dean appeared on TV, an aide came forward with a “clarification”.

An aide explains that July 1 is not a drop-dead deadline: “The point is before the convention, ideally in June.”

Don’t believe any of this. Before the day is out, I expect a statement from the Clinton campaign clarifying even further that Chairman Howard Dean knows not of what he speaks. He’ll be discredited lickety-split. Clinton, as we heard yesterday, has no intention of quitting before the convention. My guess is someone told Dean he had to start taking a leadership role in this whole thing, and he decided to arbitrarily throw out the July 1 pseudo-deadline.

It ain’t gonna happen.

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2008 Election, DNC, Hillary Clinton, Howard Dean

Don’t think she’ll do it? Think again. Hillary spoke with Gretta Van Susteren from Fox and said the following about her fight to go all the way to the convention.

CLINTON: Well, you know, you can always go to the convention. That is what credential fights are for. You know, let’s have the Democratic Party go on record against seating the Michigan and Florida delegations three months before the general election? I don’t think that will happen. I think they will be seated. So that is where we are headed if we don’t get this worked out.

VAN SUSTEREN: What about the pledged delegates right now? Are they likely — do you have any position on them sort of moving over in one direction or the other?

CLINTON: Well, you know, delegates are free to exercise their judgment, all delegates, whether you are from a caucus or you are from a primary or your so-called appointed delegate.

It’s one thing to read the words she said, but you must watch the video to really see the anger and determination Clinton has in this. If she’s not the nominee, she’ll make sure everyone goes down. When you think about it, she’s pulling a suicide bomber move on the Democratic Party.

Video, via NewsBusters, here.

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2008 Election, DNC, Hillary Clinton

Oh, he’s the change candidate alright…as in…dollars and change.

Obama: “I think that we can have a capital gains rate that is higher than 15 percent. If it–and if it, you know–when I talk to people like Warren Buffet or others and I ask them, you know, what’s–how much of a difference is it going to be if it’s 20 or 25 percent, they say, look, if it’s within that range then it’s not going to distort, I think, economic decision making. On the other hand, what it will also do is first of all help out the federal treasury, which is running a credit card up with the bank of China and other countries. What it will also do, I think, is allow us to make investments in basic scientific research, in infrastructure, in broadband lines, in green energy and will allow us to give us–give some relief to middle class and working class families who have been driving this economy as consumers but have been doing it through credit cards and home equity loans. They’re not going to be able to do that. And if we want the economy to continue to go strong, then we’ve got to make sure that they’re getting a little relief as well”.

After paying for all the new programs and his multi-billion dollar mandated healthcare program, there won’t be any money left over for the (as yet undefined) middle class. This is change? How is this any different than the same tax increase proposals given by Democrat candidates of the past?

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2008 Election, Barack Obama, Liberalism, Tax

The school board of South Bend have rejected a request by Hillary Clinton to hold a presidential campaign rally in the Washington High School gym on Friday. South Bend Community School Corp. board President Sheila Bergerson says Clinton’s visit would have interfered with the school day. She says plans called for juniors and seniors to attend the public rally.

School board members denied the request Wednesday night.

Bergerson says she worried that the school corporation would give the impression it was endorsing Clinton.

Clinton will instead be at Mishawaka High School. Apparently they have no problem endorsing her.

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Hillary Clinton, Indiana