Barack Obama won Wisconsin and Hawaii, making it 10 straight victories over the formerly-inevitable Hillary Clinton. The last 24 hours have made it clear that Clinton's situation is now desperate, and the Texas/Ohio primaries are her last hope to salvage things. I think this is funny:
In a clear sign of their relative standing in the race, most cable television networks abruptly cut away from coverage of Clinton's rally when Obama began to speak in Texas.
I'd love to see the reaction of Bill Clinton if someone would ask him how it feels to be fighting the same MSM that has so sheltered them for the past decade and a half. Can you imagine the explosion that would prompt? I have to admit, I'm enjoying this immensely! :)
Anyway, back to the news. Hillary faces an uphill battle even in the next two key states: a caller on a recent Rush Limbaugh program said that Republicans should 'pimp' themselves and vote for Barack Obama in the primary, and given Limbaugh's audience, this idea reached millions of people. This is perfectly legal, since Texas has an open primary. On a personal note, I think this is a great idea because this is a tactic frequently used by Democrats to influence the Republican contests. I have no idea why any state has an open primary at all, but that's another issue. Anyway, this suggestion makes a lot of sense, especially given that McCain has the Rep nomination locked up. There's nothing better for Reps to do than mess with the Dem contest, and both of these states have lots of Reps. I think it's safe to say that Hillary is in trouble despite her deep connections in Texas. And, around the country, she continues to lose support from two of her biggest constituencies: blacks and feminists.
Still, all is not rosy for Obama, as a prominent Cuban-born author blasts him for the Che Guevara flags being displayed in his campaign offices.
Speaking of Obama, Michelle Malkin writes a great piece in response to Michelle Obama' recent comments that she is just now, in this campaign, proud of being an American. Read the whole thing - it's worth a moment of your time. Here are some excerpts:
Like Michelle Obama, I am a "woman of color." Like Michelle Obama, I am a working mother of two young children. Like Michelle Obama, I am a member of the 13th Generation of Americans born since the founding of our great nation.
Unlike Michelle Obama, I can't keep track of the number of times I've been proud—really proud—of my country since I was born and privileged to live in it.
I'm just seven years younger than Mrs. Obama. We've grown up and lived in the same era. And yet, her self-absorbed attitude is completely foreign to me. What planet is she living on? Since when was now the only time the American people have ever been "hungry for change?" Michelle, ma belle, Barack is not the center of the universe. Newsflash: The Obamas did not invent "change" any more than Hillary invented "leadership" or John McCain invented "straight talk."
We were both adults when the Berlin Wall fell, Michelle. That was earth-shattering change.
If the fall of communism, American ingenuity, and a robust constitutional republic don't do it for you, hon, then how about American heroism and sacrifice?
How about every Memorial Day? Every Veteran's Day? Every Independence Day? Every Medal of Honor ceremony? Has she never attended a welcome home ceremony for the troops?
For me, there's the thrill of the Blue Angels roaring over cloudless skies. And the somber awe felt amid the hallowed waters that surround the sunken U.S.S. Arizona at the Pearl Harbor memorial.
Every naturalization ceremony I've attended, where hundreds of new Americans have raised their hands to swear an oath of allegiance to this land of liberty, has been a moment of pride for me. So have the awesome displays of American compassion at home and around the world. When millions of Americans rallied to help the victims of the 2005 tsunami in southern Asia—including members of the U.S.S. Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group that sped from Hong Kong to assist survivors—my heart filled with pride. It did again when the citizens of Houston opened their arms to Hurricane Katrina victims and folks across the country rushed to their churches, Salvation Army, and Red Cross offices to volunteer.
Michelle Obama has achieved enormous professional success, political influence, and personal acclaim in America. Ivy League-educated, she's been lauded by Essence magazine as one of the 25 World's Most Inspiring Women; by Vanity Fair as one of the "10 World's Best Dressed People"; and named one of "The Harvard 100"
top influencers. She has had an amazingly blessed life. But you wouldn't know it from her campaign rhetoric and her griping over her and her husband's student loans.
Well said! The Obamas are relying on the tactics of class warfare, identity politics, and general negativity to whip their support base into a mindless frenzy of 'hope'. If you're wondering why they have developed a bit of a cult following, it's because he's running his campaign like a religious experience. He offers little if any substance in his speeches (and what he does say is classic socialist liberalism), but a whole boatload of feel-good hope-change-rah-rah that people want to hear. It doesn't apparently matter that he isn't saying anything - his supporters just want him to keep saying nothing over and over and over. I don't recall where I saw it, but I read one article recently that suggested part of the reason Obama is sweeping through the Democrat ranks with such fervent support is that his speeches deliver the kind of emotional impact that normally comes in church. The author of this article said that the religious right and the bulk of the Republican party is used to that sort of thing, but it's a new experience for the far-left and they're loving it. I'll let you make up your own mind about that, but it's at least an interesting theory.
Anyway, Michelle Malkin also offers one caution on using the 'name one thing Obama has done' tactic (I've seen it numerous times, and to date I've seen no one able to come up with anything), suggesting that getting things done via legislation isn't necessarily a good thing:
"Get things done" is mindless liberal code for passing legislation and expanding government.
And as McCain's ample legislative record demonstrates, "reaching across the political aisle" never entails pulling opponents to the right. It always entails selling out the right.
How about defending our side of the political aisle?
How about standing up to the regulatory and legislative encroachment of those on the other side of the political aisle?
How about limiting the damage done by Democrat meddlers trying to get their "things done?"
When the pundits play the "Name One" game with John McCain, his supporters can breezily reel off a list that starts with McCain-Feingold and McCain-Kennedy. When they play with Hillary Clinton, she'll bring up universal health care and and every other attempt at expanding government and limiting freedom.
Given those "accomplishments," less would be better, no?
A very good point. The tactic is sound, but don't take it too far. Moving on, it looks like Obama and McCain are beginning to take shots at each other. Obama:
"John McCain's remarks tonight shows why he's offering nothing more than a third term of George Bush's policies -– more fear-mongering, more than a century of war in Iraq, and more budget-busting tax cuts for the wealthiest few at the expense of hardworking Americans," said Obama campaign spokesperson Bill Burton.
McCain:
"I will work hard to make sure Americans aren't deceived by an eloquent but empty call for change," said McCain.
"I have never lived a day, in good times or bad, that I haven't been proud of the privilege" of being an American, said McCain. "Don't tell me what we can't do. Don't tell me we can't make our country stronger and the world safer. We can. We must. And when I'm President we will."
Touche! Let the fireworks begin! Something that McCain needs to watch very closely is the tactics Hillary is using, and which ones aren't working. In a lot of ways, Clinton and McCain have a similar platform (experience, blah blah) from which to attack Obama, and McCain can learn from her mistakes to make a more effective case against Obama. One advantage McCain will have that causes some concern to Democrats is that they were planning on the Rep nominee suffering a backlash from illegal immigration in the southwestern states. Given McCain's positions and home state of Arizona, that backlash is unlikely to materialize.
On a side note, Mike Huckabee says he is staying in the race because of his convictions:
"Let me assure you that if it were about ego, my ego doesn't enjoy getting these kinds of evenings where we don't win the primary elections," Huckabee told reporters at a Little Rock hotel. "So it's got to be about something more than that, and it is. It's about convictions."
"There are millions of Republicans across this country who have yet to be heard from," Huckabee said. "Ending this race prematurely means they don't get a voice and they don't have a choice. I know there are those who say 'let's just get this over with,' but folks, elections can be a messy thing."
Good points. You kind of have to respect him for that.
By the way, McCain has promised no new taxes. Is anyone else cringing and thinking of George H. W. Bush's pledge back in the early '90's?
Now you're up to date!
There's my two cents.
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