There has been a big debate over whether the Democrats’ long hard slog to the convention would actually be good for the party. The prophecy goes, one, the Dems will dominate news coverage while McCain disappears; and two, Hillary and Barack will air each others laundry now, and take the wind out of the Republican clothesline come Fall.
Weeks after McCain clenched the Republican nomination, we can see that the first prophecy has come true: McCain has only been newsworthy for the simple fact that he’s no longer newsworthy. And with the Reverend Wright story scaring the hell out of white people, I’m beginning to think the second prophecy has come true.
This morning on ABC George Will dirtied his diaper when they showed a clip of Rev. Wright. He went on to assert that Obama was in attendance when Wright gave those sermons, even though Obama says he wasn’t and there’s no evidence that he was. How does Will know? Because he knows in his heart that all black men are trying to steal his medication, duh!
So after I stewed for a while about the whole situation, I realized that all Obama has to do is come out and remind people that everything he’s said on this campaign (and his books, and before this campaign) has been in direct opposition to what Wright was saying. Then all the white folks who might vote for him (the same white folks who are deathly afraid of being racist) will swing back to his side. So when the Swift Boat Veterans come back with Wright tapes in the Fall, everyone will groan with annoyance that those idiots have been digging in the garbage and pulling out things we’ve all gotten over. By that time of course, McCain will be approving SBV commercials, as his senility continues to reverse his principles at an accelerated pace.
So for now, I think the long campaign looks good for Obama, even while it’s at its worst. The trick will be for the Dems to know when to call it a day. And that means taming the Clintons. Good luck with that!
The Globe and Mail and the CBC (big Canadian media) have both reported that the PM aide who started the whole Obama-is-soft-on-NAFTA story actually said “that someone from Ms. Clinton’s campaign had even contacted Canadian diplomats to tell them not to worry because the NAFTA threats were mostly political posturing.”
Either way it was apparently very wrong for many reasons for the PM aide to say anything, but nevertheless it hurt the Obama campaign in Ohio when the US media took off with the story.
The US media has yet to pick up on what the Canadians are saying now.
OMFG! Comeback?! Two weeks ago Clinton lead Ohio and Texas by 20 points. Last night she won Ohio by 10 and Texas by 4. NOT A COMEBACK! We are a nation of retards apparently.
Even before last night, it was being reported that it would be close to impossible for Clinton to catch up with Obama. Now, after winning by tiny margins in states where she was supposed to cleanup, it’s become even less possible for her to–ahem–comeback.
Let’s look at the delegate winnings (from DailyKos):
Vermont (15 delegates)
Obama 9
Clinton 6
Rhode Island (21 delegates)
Clinton 12
Obama 8
Texas
Primary (126 delegates)
Clinton 64
Obama 62
Caucuses (67 delegates; tentative results based on a straight percentage from 34% reporting)
Obama ~37
Clinton ~30
Total Texas (Nowhere near final)
Obama ~99
Clinton ~94
Ohio (141 delegates, punching in results with 97% reporting here)
Clinton 73
Obama 68
And the grand total is Clinton 185 to Obama’s measly, disappointing 184. WOW! What a coup for Clinton! Clearly this country has spoken. Way to go national media…
UPDATE: From DailyKos–
“…for now, the current results, before the Texas caucuses are fully tallied, are Clinton 191, Obama 178 — a better showing than last night’s single delegate lead.
So the stark reality remains — even in this best-case scenario, Clinton only chipped Obama’s pledged delegate lead from 159 to 148. Yet last night offered more than 1/3rd of remaining delegates, 370. Only about 560 remain in the contest.”
I was watching the Pussycat Dolls reality game show thing (not really) and I came up with a great idea for another reality game show thing: The Next Ghostbusters. This is a solid gold idea! Contestants will have to live together in a decrepit firehouse, drive around in an old ambulance, make toasters dance, and each week they’ll get sent on real ghostbusting missions. One by one they’ll be eliminated, or “slimed,” until we’re left with four new Ghostbusters! The winners of course would go on to star in Ghostbusters 3, which will be a horrible disappointment. Harold Ramis, give me a call.
