Posted on 03/14/2007 5:38:14 AM PDT by libstripper
WASHINGTON - Late last year, Hillary Rodham Clinton's inner circle hoped she might do as well among African-American primary voters as Bill Clinton did in 1992, when he won 70 percent of their votes in Southern states.
But along came Barack Obama.
These days, the most sanguine Clinton insiders say their candidate can capture 40 to 50 percent of the black vote against the Illinois senator. Outsiders are less optimistic - and say she'd better be trying to make up for the lost African-American support elsewhere.
"It's a matter of keeping Obama below 75 to 80 percent," said Michael Fauntroy, a public policy professor at George Mason University who studies race and politics. "He'll end up with somewhere between two-thirds and three-quarters of the [black] Democratic primary vote. If she can hold him to the lower range, she's OK. If she can't, that's real trouble."
(Excerpt) Read more at newsday.com ...
I don't think the Democrats can alienate the black vote. In the general election, won't they all just line up like zombies to pull the "D" regardless of who it is?
I guess I am dense,I simply cant see what it is that is making Obama into the Democrats Knight in Shining Armor.
It'd have to get very nasty between them for that to happen. Still even a slight downturn in black turnout during the general election would doom Hillary.
He's clean and articulate.
That's why she's having Al Sharpton attack Obama for not being black enough.
A couple of things contribute in my opinion. He is a Rorschach test, a blank slate thrown up to the public to put whatever kinds of qualities they want onto him. This can only carry him so far as the election cycle progresses. He is also a potential water carrier for the liberal agenda and the media wants more than anyone to have a politicial that will do that. Finally, Hiliary carries so many negatives that he looks good compared to her for a substantial number of liberals.
Even if she gets battered and bruised, if and when she wins the primary, she KNOWS all the blacks will forgive her and vote democrat, regardless the nominee.
Unfortunately this is probably true.
Liberals care very little about the issues, I doubt they even know what they're doing.
Vote D, that's all to it.
Everyone is forgetting that Hillary has never been battled tested..that's she's never had to face a tough campaign..personally, I don't think she can hack it..
The Clintons know they cant win the south (large black pop.), but states like New Mexico and Arizona and even Colorado, with the high hispanic populations could even out the loss of the black vote.
Obama is going to force the Clintons to abandon the black voter altogether as far as someone to pander to. Republicans need to seriously look at a strong black candidate for VP, preferably male. We could see a large shift in black voting.
I believe most blacks have similar values as whites but the Dems have effectively demonized the Republicans for 40 years and pitted white against black by dredging up issues like the Confederate flag. This could be our shot.
Obama is her worst nightmare. The guy is a political natural, a far leftie, but a natural.
Everything she does is scripted and forced. It's all too painfully obvious how artificial her public persona actually is.
Watch Obama catch her.
The Audacity of Hype to even think of challenging "Let's Have a Conversation"
Too true. Bill Clinton was/is despicable, but he was a good campaigner. Hillary isn't, but she might not have to be. At the moment, the GOP doesn't look like it has any real competition. This could be Yet Another Easy Race.
Fingers crossed!!! :o)
The "Clinton strategy" that Obama needs to be the most focused on is the one that involves trips to Fort Marcy Park.
They will; however, if she puts a really good smear on Obama, a number might be discouraged enough not to vote.
He's pretty much of a blank screen onto which leftists project thier most vile Marxist political wet dreams and hope for them to become reality.
Well stated.
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