Posted on 05/05/2008 10:05:21 AM PDT by SmithL
HICKORY, N.C. --It spans the spectrum from moderate to militant, but it's not difficult to tap into a potential backlash among African-American supporters of Barack Obama if superdelegates give the Democratic presidential nomination to Hillary Clinton.
Some in North Carolina, site of a crucial primary on Tuesday, fear it will happen. Some expect it to happen. Some think it could cause a rift in black voters' long-standing allegiance to the Democratic Party.
And some, like Sharon Crosby of Lawndale, N.C., say they'd stay home rather than vote for Clinton in November.
"How would I feel? I would feel cheated, cheated, because it's happened before when the Republicans were winning. Enough of that. There's been just enough of that. We need to do it right," said Crosby, 51, who is self-employed.
And what of forfeiting a basic right black Americans fought many years to get?
"I wouldn't feel good about it because I have always voted," she said. "But sometimes you just have to stand for what you believe in, and, no, I wouldn't (vote)."
For Democrats eager to recapture the White House, that's not good news. In a year when close races in a handful of swing states could determine the outcome, neither party can afford erosion in its core.
"We're talking about quite a few swing states in terms of the kinds of states that Democrats would be looking to win," David Bositis of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies said in analyzing the potential situation.
In the end, Bositis believes black voters, in large numbers, would fall in line with Clinton, whose candidacy could end if she doesn't win in either North Carolina or Indiana on Tuesday.
Bositis could be right, but, for now, it's not hard to find black supporters of Obama who say there's no way they'd back Clinton.
"I'd feel dissatisfied, really dissatisfied, because I think in other words if (Obama) is leading in all categories and if something like that comes by I know he has been shafted," said Jack Corpening of Valdese, N.C., a retired military man and postal worker. "I'm pretty well seeing that's what's going to happen."
And that would make Corpening a non-voter because he could not bring himself to back Clinton and wouldn't back probable GOP nominee John McCain. It's a scenario he believes could do damage to the black-Democratic alliance.
"When you separate the party it's going to cause a lot of problems, " he said.
Delores Littlejohn of Gastonia is more to the moderate side, excited enough about Obama to hobble on an injured ankle -- with members of three other generations of her family --- to the Illinois senator's recent appearance at Hickory High School.
Upset though she'd be if Obama is not nominated, Littlejohn, 68, said she'd back Clinton if she prevails.
"I probably wouldn't like it but I still would support her," she said.
Retired telephone company worker Jimmy Jenkins of Lenoir, N.C., 60, is an Obama man who could reluctantly become a Clinton man if she gets the nomination. But he wants her to drop out now.
"I think there are some ego things going on. It's almost like she feels she is anointed to have the presidency," said Jenkins.
In Charlotte, retired educator Althea Rudrow, 74, said she is not sure she could vote for Clinton and is upset with her "because of her negativity."
Clinton spokesman Phil Singer went generic when asked about black voters' concerns about his candidate.
"Both candidates have strong and passionate supporters who we believe will come together to send a Democrat to the White House," Singer said.
Maybe, if you listen to Obama supporters such as Edith Childs, a Greenwood, S.C., councilwoman credited with bringing Obama's signature "Fired up" chant to the campaign.
An optimistic woman by nature, Childs three times refused to even speculate about the possibility of Obama not winning the nomination.
A fourth try -- phrased in terms of whether she can guarantee she will in November continue her lifelong record of voting for Democratic presidential nominees -- produced this: "Well, kind of, sort of, probably. That's the best I can do."
Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, an Obama backer and unsuccessful 2002 candidate to become the first black Texan in the U.S. Senate, cautions against reading too much into the rhetoric du jour.
"Asking people (now) what they think is not at all going to be indicative of how they're going to behave in November," Kirk said. "I'm as guilty as anyone of parroting some of that," he added of anti-Clinton talk.
"Senator Clinton, if you believe her rhetoric that she's uniquely suited to lead the country ... she ought to be good enough based on her background and experience to win without having to kneecap Barack Obama," Kirk said. "The tenor and tone of her campaign speaks for itself."
Black population in probable swing states. (The United States is 12.4 percent black):
Florida: 15.4 percent
Michigan: 14.1 percent
Ohio: 11.8 percent
Missouri: 11.3 percent
Pennsylvania: 10.4 percent
Nevada: 7.3 percent
Minnesota: 4.4 percent
Colorado: 3.7 percent
W. Virginia: 3.2 percent
Iowa: 2.3 percent
New Mexico:2.0 percent
Oregon: 1.7 percent
New Hampshire: 1.1 percent
One of the hopes of Operation Chaos. Bwahahahahaha.
Never really happen since most Blacks enjoy the abuse they suffer at the hands of the Democrats. She could run Obama over with a bus and most would jump on and still vote for her before his feet stopped switching.
A thinly veiled threat in the form of an article? The tenor of the article makes it apparent to me that the author has an agenda. Whatever happened to the idea of journalists at least trying to hide their biases?
In the end, Bositis believes black voters, in large numbers, would fall in line with Clinton,....
^^
That is exactly how it will be. They will be miffed at first, but they will come around. And if Hitlery gets it, I will hate Rush forever.
"To the last, I will grapple with thee. From hell's heart, I stab at thee. For hate's sake, I spit my last breath at thee!"
THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH - BLACK LIBERATION THEOLOGY AND OBAMA'S CHURCH
THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH - OBAMA'S CIRCLE OF FRIENDS AND SUPPORT
THE AUDACITY OF TRUTH - BARACK HUSSEIN OBAMA
There is no way that Florida will go Obama.
no way at all.
Obama, however, represents something sinister in its own right, and the main theme of my article are the parallels between the Obama phenomenon and the Nazi phenomenon in Germany, in the 1930s.
Anyone interested can read it at Coming Home To Roost.
If I find a little time, later today, I may post it at Free Republic.
William Flax
President Obama, Vice-President Clinton.
Think of it:
• Two years and one day into her term the first slotter gets arkincided
• Under Article XXII, she can still run for two full terms as the incumbent
• The Glorious Hillary!™ Decade begins
• Hillary uses the Patriot Act to it's fullest extent, and beyond
• At the end of the Glorious Hillary!™ Decade there is a National Emergency "temporarily" delaying the elections
• Under the pressure of the National Emergency, the 2nd and 22nd amendments are repealed
• By the time the National Emergency is over all the 'improved' source code for the touch screen electronic balloting will be in place......
Just as an aside, with the Clinton's well known love of 'ethnics', Obama is very expendable, isn't he?
Rush just said that Mrs. Clinton got internal polling showing she is in trouble in Indiana.
I wouldn’t put much stock in this.
A while back I said I would never vote for McCain, but I will.
OH, MI, and PA are the only states they could swing. They can cause Hildabeast to lose but there is no way they can cause Osama Obama to win!
IMHO the down ticket races would be what suffers if blacks stay home. The blacks seldom split their ticket but white RATS that wont vote for Osama will.
Kerry won 20 states in 2004, despite losing the white vote in 9 of them (CA, DE, IL, MD, MI, NJ, NY, PA, and WI). Excluding CA, in which the Latino and Asian are more important, and NY, which is Clinton’s home state, and she could be in danger in Delaware, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and even Wisconsin if enough of the black vote stay home or votes Republican. Those states are worth 97 EVs combined.
I posted that they can cause clinton to lose, but they can’t cause osama obama to win.
They either stay home or vote straight RAT.
The RATS will lose with either one in Nov.
Operation Chaos!
Both Dems look like damaged goods. This is McCain’s election to lose.
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