Clinton Campaign pushes for Florida and Michigan

Howard Wolfson of Sen. Hillary Clinton’s (D-N.Y.) presidential campaign held a conference call along with one of Clinton’s senior advisers, Harold Ickes, to discuss what should be done about the currently unseated delegates from the Michigan and Florida Democratic primaries.

Ickes said that the campaign believes that all delegates from both states should be seated and have a full vote. Of the 55 uncommitted delegates from Michigan, Ickes said that all should be seated as uncommitted delegates. He said he is hopeful that this will be resolved in the Clinton Campaign’s favor at the Democratic National Committee Rules and Bylaws meeting on May 31.

Wolfson said that Clinton has a “winning map” in the general election against Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.), despite recent portrayals of Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) as the inevitable Democratic presidential nominee. He said this does not mean that Obama could not win the general election if he became the nominee, but that he believes superdelegates should choose Clinton as the stronger candidate.

When asked why Clinton’s position seemed to be that states could “break the rules” of the party with no real consequences, Ickes replied that the intention in excluding Florida and Michigan was to “send a message” to other states that there would be “severe consequences” if they did not comply with party mandates. He said that goal was accomplished since no other states broke the rules, and the states did suffer by being denied a full-fledged campaign.

Wolfson said voters turned out in unprecedented numbers and due to the high level of voting, every measure should be taken to make sure their opinions are honored and respected. When asked if he would still think the votes should be counted if the turnout was much lower, Wolfson said that there was “every expectation” before the primaries that the Florida and Michigan votes “would not be consequential.” He said people in states like West Virginia and Kentucky have turned out despite being told their votes would not matter, and that this means every vote should count.

Wolfson said that contrary to rumors, there has been no discussion between the campaigns about a possible joint ticket between the two leading candidates. He also said that Obama’s search for a vice presidential candidate was premature in light of the fact that he is not yet the nominee, but said it is not the Clinton Campaign’s position to judge how the Obama Campaign operates. He said that to his knowledge, Clinton was not currently looking for a vice president to run on her potential ticket.

New polls gage likely outcome of Election 2008

George Washington University held a conference call to release the findings of a new Battleground Poll that tested national attitudes on race, the economy, and the Iraq War in relation to the candidates involved in the 2008 presidential election.

Brian Nienaber, vice president of the Republican polling firm the Tarrance Group, said that with three out of four voters disapproving of the direction the country is headed, “you’d certainly be well-positioned to think that the Republican Party and its presidential nominee would be in a nearly hopeless position, even at this early stage in the electoral process.” He went on to enumerate what he believed to be presumed presidential nominee Sen. John McCain’s (R-Ariz.) strengths on issues like Iraq and national security, saying that he has his own “brand of change” to sell that will distance him from anti-incumbent sentiment without “repudiating” the Republican Party. Citing statistics from the poll analysis that support this, Nienaber said that 40 percent of Americans still believe the U.S. should maintain a presence in Iraq until military officials say it is safe to leave. He said that 56 percent of voters still like President Bush as a person, even if they do not approve of his Administration. Nienaber also cited the Democratic Party’s weaknesses, saying that 1 in 5 supporters of each major nominee did not plan to vote for the other if their candidate was not elected. Nienaber said that “as bad as things are right now,” the Republican Party can still look forward to “successes” in November.

Celinda Lake, president of the Democratic polling firm Lake Research Partners, said “there’s no question that there are enormous challenges to the Republican brand,” but that McCain is a “formidable candidate” that Democrats should not underestimate. However, she said that Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Barack Obama (D-Ill.) is “overwhelmingly” winning over independent voters compared to McCain. Lake said that 87 percent of Democratic voters say that the Iraq war was not worth the cost, while 75 percent of Republicans still think it was. Lake also said that Republicans in Congress have even lower approval ratings than Bush, emphasizing the strength of voters motivated by a desire for a change of the party in power. While she said that the general presidential election “bodes well for the Obama ticket,” Lake maintained that “it’s not over until the fall.” She also said she thinks Obama can “bring home” Hillary supporters to the Democratic Party if he is the nominee.

Don't baby Obama

By Ellen Ratner
Talk Radio News Service Bureau Chief

After last week's Pennsylvania debate between Sens. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, my very good friends on the left were screaming.

ABC moderators George Stephanopoulos and Charlie Gibson were being denounced as traitors, knaves and, in a few instances, things that cannot be mentioned in a family news website. The complaint was that for the first 45 minutes of the debate, the questions were mostly issue-free and centered on Obama's negatives and such matters as his relationships with the incendiary Rev. Wright and ex-SDS weathermen Bill Ayres.

Some on the left say that it was unfair, unbalanced, tilted against Obama and favoring his opponent.

I agree.

I disagree.

Yes, it was unfair; yes it favored Hillary and indirectly, McCain. Yes, it was a radical departure from previous debates.

And yes, it was in Barack Obama's long-term interest that he be subjected to an onslaught of unfair and unbalanced questions, bias and a strong tilt against him.



Why? Because George and Gibson offered Obama a mere light appetizer of what he can expect in the general election. Because Obama had better get used to the big time of opposition research and negative ads, of Republican 527s, of whisper campaigns and anonymous Internet "mail" campaigns. Obama and his people better get used to the fact that once inside the big tent of national politics, he won't be able to declare, as he did at a recent press conference, that "eight questions" about Chicago sleaze ball Ton Rezco are "enough" and just walk off the stage. Taking umbrage doesn't work in a national debate, any more than staring at his watch did for George Bush No. 41.

The old line that, "Life is short, and then you die" is truer about presidential politics than any other endeavor. Just ask Jimmy Carter, Walter Mondale, Mike Dukakis, Al Gore or John Kerry.

I plan to fight like hell for any Democratic nominee. But hell is a notoriously hot place, and all George and Gibson did for the Democrats was raise the temperature to general election levels.

My fellow Democrats take note: We are doing our candidate no favors by babying him now.

Clinton, Obama Duke it Out

The much awaited debate between Senator Hillary Clinton (D-NY) and Senator Barack Obama (D-IL) took place at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, PA. Enormous crowds of supporters lined the street in anticipation of the event, holding signs, chanting slogans, and trying to out-shout each other. The debate was referred to almost as if it were a boxing match, with Moderator Charlie Gibson saying it was like the fifteenth round in a scheduled ten rounder.

In his brief opening statement, Obama said everywhere he goes, he is struck by the frustration that he sees. It’s typical for people to be frustrated and not feel as if they are being heard. In her opening statement, Clinton said the “promise” is alive and well, but the people feel as if the government is not solving problems. Make our education the true passport to opportunity. “We the people, can have the kind of future” that our children and grandchildren so richly deserve, she said.

ABC moderator Charlie Gibson asked both candidates why they would not choose each other as a running mate, and both of them grinned at the camera but didn’t say a word, causing the audience to burst into laughter.

During the lengthy question and answer period, it seemed that the rules were not being followed. The rules were ninety seconds for an answer, and sixty seconds for a rebuttal. However, Senator Obama ended up speaking quite a bit more than Senator Clinton, but whether or not it was to his advantage will not be known until April 22. When asked about this air time difference, Clinton Campaign Communications Director Howard Wolfson said, “That, I did not notice.”

In response to a question about making a comment about bitter small town Pennsylvanians, Obama said, “It's not the first time that I've made a statement that was mangled up.  It's not going to be the last.” He pointed out that when people feel that Washington is not listening, and their situation doesn’t change, they focus on things that are constant.

In her sparring move response, Clinton said that she didn’t think people cling to religion when Washington isn’t listening to them. What’s important, she said, is that we all listen to each other and we respect one another, and we understand the different 
decisions that people make in life, because we're a stronger country 
because of that. People want to be summoned to something greater than themselves.

Each of the candidates agreed that the other could win against McCain, but they each said that they, themselves, were the better candidate. We’re going to have a Democratic president, either him or me, Clinton said, and we’re going to make that happen.

Clinton addresses the Building and Construction Trades Department

Presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton spoke today at the Building and Construction Trades Department (BCTD) 2008 Legislative Conference, where the BCTD celebrated a "century of leadership." She told the participants to think of the election as a hiring decision, and the primary as a long job interview.

She said unions build the middle class, and that the American labor movement is under assault, which is shrinking the middle class. She said she co-sponsored the Employee Free Choice Act (EFCA) to stand up for the right to organization. She also said she would stand up for the Davis-Bacon Act and fair wages, and that her plan is to raise minimum wage, and to tie minimum wage to congressional salaries. She said that when the economy is faltering, the country needs unions to "stand strong" for workers' rights, wages, and a right to affordable health care.

Clinton said that if she becomes president, she will end the war in Iraq and bring the troops home, and when the veterans come home she will take care of them with programs such as Helmets to Hardhats to get them jobs. She said she also has ideas for a program called the Rebuild America Plan to create three million more jobs, and will appoint a Secretary of Labor that is pro-labor. She also said she plans to keep defense jobs in America, create a strategic energy fund, and work on trade that is good for families.


Clinton said she thinks this is the most anti-union and anti-labor administration this country has ever had. She also thinks Sen. John McCain is "dead wrong" on important issues facing America, and that he does not understand the economy. She said right now the U.S. has lost jobs, costs are up, and there is a home and credit crisis, and that what this country needs is a labor movement like it had in the 20th century.

Other speakers at the conference were Charlie Cook of the National Journal's Cook Political Report, and Rep. John Murtha (D-Pa.), Rep. John Tierney (D-Mass.), and Joint Economic Committee Chairman Charles Schumer (D-N.Y.). Cook said he expects the presidential election to be very close, like the last two elections in 2000 and 2004. Schumer said he also supports EFCA, and wants to "go back to the days" where laborers had bargaining power, and to "bring back the middle class."