West Virginia Blue
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Sen. Hillary Clinton's campaign is now $31 million in debt. Even if her wish of being the Democratic nominee was granted - and she'd need a magic genie to make that come true at this point - her campaign would start in a huge financial hole. When she discusses electability issues, that is something that has to come up.
UPDATE. LA Times issues correction. The campaign debt is $20.88 million, not $31 million as they initially reported. Still a big hole.
Here's an open thread for anything on your mind... plus some stuff I've run across today.
Matt Stoller declares the Democratic nomination over. Who would have guessed those 8 delegates Obama picked up in West Virginia were enough to seal the deal? ;-)
Poblano reports today is the first day ever in his models that both Obama and Clinton are ahead of McCain in the general election.
Kevin Drum remarks that Republicans are sounding a lot like Democrats these days. True 'dat. We noticed the same thing months ago when the W.Va. Republican party threw values voters under the bus.
Over the last two weeks we've attended countless political events all around the state. Collectively, we've communicated with hundreds of people actively involved in West Virginia politics. In the process, a clearer picture is emerging about the status of the undeclared West Virginia super-delegates.
Elected Officials
Obama leaning
All indications are Sen. Robert Byrd is heavily leaning toward Obama. Sen. Clinton's hawkish tendencies are a major tie-breaker between two Senators he respects. We expect her recent statements about bombing Iran did her no benefit with Sen. Byrd.
We have no sense on the timing of an endorsement. It could be any day now... or any week now... or, even, at the convention itself.
All along, we've felt Sen. Byrd was trying not to inject his presidential preferences as an issue in the WV-02 race. Now that Anne Barth has the Dem. nomination sewed up and the primary is behind us, the coast is clear for Sen. Byrd to endorse Obama.
Clinton leaning
All indications are that Gov. Joe Manchin prefers Sen. Hillary Clinton to Sen. Obama. Manchin shadowed Hillary in her final days of campaigning in the state. He's been rumored as a possible VP candidate for Clinton. (Although we find the idea of Manchin as a VP candidate extremely unlikely--his anti-choice position alone knocks him off any serious Democratic Party VP shortlist--it does speak to his potential motivations.) Manchin's governing style fits well with Clinton's DLC roots. Even more lately, we've heard the Manchin's called "West Virginia's Clinton's."
On the other hand, people also see Gov. Manchin as a savvy enough politician to "do the math." He's said he's waiting until at least June 3rd to make an endorsement. It looks more and more like Obama will have the nomination wrapped up by then. So, maybe Joe's just running out the clock to have his cake and eat it too.
Unknown
No one we talked with could indicate how Rep. Mollohan (WV-01) leans. The only conjecture we heard was, he's waiting until his vote is the most valuable to "cut the best deal possible." (For what it's worth, the two people who said this did so as a compliment to his political skills.) Of the undeclared W.Va. super-delegates, he's the biggest mystery.
Party Officials - Obama leaning
W.Va. Democratic Party Chair Nick Casey appears to have a personal preference for Obama. If you read the post-primary interviews carefully, you get the sense he's trying to figure out how other party Chairs have handled endorsing a candidate who did not win the state.
Now that the primary is over he can endorse the candidate of his choice without appearing to influence the primary. One big issue, however, is how a Clinton-leaning Gov. Manchin (for all intents and purposes, his boss) would feel about Casey endorsing Obama. Manchin is not known for sharing the limelight... it'll take a lot of personal fortitude for Nick Casey to come out for Obama before Manchin makes an endorsement.
DNC official Alice Germond holds multiple party positions critical to the nomination process (including Party Secretary). In a recent interview she talked about balancing her personal preferences with her obligation to remain neutral during a contested nomination.
The limited sense we get is she's also Obama-leaning and will only formally endorse him after Clinton drops out. As long as the nomination is contested she will remain neutral.
Your Mileage May Vary
The endorsement process is fickle. We've already seen super-delegates in other states change their mind even after making formal endorsements. We've been able to get multiple opinions about all of the super-delegates and often found strong agreement among far-flung sources. Still, this is but one snapshot of an ever-changing process as the super-delegates struggle with difficult decisions about how and when to make an endorsement.
What do you think? Who and when will the next W.Va. super delegate endorsement happen? Now that Obama has the nomination sewed up, will these influential W.Va. Democrats be eager to show their support for our likely next president? Or, will their eye be on W.Va. public opinion and Clinton's resounding victory last Tuesday?
If you have any additional information about matters super delegate, post in the comments or email us at wvablue@gmail.com
Poblana has some good breakouts on Sen. Hillary Clinton's win in West Virginia that "throws cold water" on those claiming race was at the heart of Obama's problem by showing Clinton kicked John Edwards' ass in WV's main demographic, too:
This is not to disparage John Edwards. He had the misfortune of running against two All-Star level candidates who would probably have had the stage to themselves in any other year. To the extent he had a strength, it was among rural voters, and that could be helpful to Barack Obama in Kentucky, which among other things is quite rural.
But it sort of throws cold water on the notion that there's something about Barack Obama -- and particularly something about Barack Obama's race -- that makes working-class whites loathe to support him. (True, Obama performs poorly among certain types of working-class whites, like those in Appalachia and in much of the South. But he's doing just fine in Oregon, which is also full of working-class whites.) Rather, it's more likely that there's something about Hillary Clinton that makes these voters want to support her.
Which is what I've said all along. None of this is to deny the state has a problem with racists. One is too many. But for those who claimed, "...voters in Appalachia aren't ready to vote for a Black candidate," should look at the realities behind the reasons Clinton did well here instead of focusing on bigoted stereotypes that smears the entire region. (It also ignores the reality that voters have elected African Americans to statehouse and local offices and an Arab American to Congress.)
West Virginia very much is an electoral advantage to Clinton. Although the general election matchups in the state have not been polled in a long time, we have Clinton winning the state against McCain whereas Obama is way behind. It along with Arkansas are the two states where Clinton has the largest inherent advantage against Barack Obama.
The irony is that Dukakis -- the nerdy, Willie Horton-releasing technocrat from Massachusetts -- actually carried West Virginia by 5 points. And lost the election by 315 electoral votes.
Arguably the fundamental change in American partisan politics over the past 30 years is that the Democrats have gone from being the party of the working class to the party of the bourgeoisie. Jimmy Carter's coalition was built on folks who did not attend college -- but Ford beat him by 10 points among college graduates, and Reagan beat him by 16 four years later. The same pattens largely held for Michael Dukakis.
Clinton -- Bill Clinton -- captured the best of both worlds. He performed well among those voters who hadn't attended college as well as among those with postgraduate educations. But by the time we got through the rabbit hole to John Kerry in 2004, the coalitions had flipped. Kerry was still carrying the postgraduate crowd, but had lost the "no college" voters.
These effects are particularly noticeable in West Virginia, which is among the least-educated states in the country. Indeed, Thomas Frank's book should really be entitled "What's the Matter with West Virginia?"
I still think the Obama campaign made a mistake by not making more of a pretense of competing in West Virginia. It's not like we're talking about his having to ride a bicycle from Wheeling to Bluefield. Simply bookending his Monday appearances with a Thursday rally at UWV in Morgantown might have made a lot of difference from a perception standpoint. Obama lost a net of about 6 points in his overall margin based on voters who made up their minds in the last week, and while most of those folks would probably have gravitated toward Clinton in the end, Obama could perhaps have cut 10,000 votes or so off Clinton's margin. There's also the issue that looking as though you're giving up on a state simply doesn't look very presidential.
UPDATE: I had thought Obama had done the smart ploy in not campaigning more here after Indiana and North Carolina pretty much shut down the media narrative that Clinton had a chance. But in looking at what Sen. Jim Webb (D-Va.) wrote about Appalachia (via Notes from under a fig nut tree), if Obama had contested the primary hard with multiple campaign stops, it could have paid off in the general election.
Virginia Senator Jim Webb, is also the author of "Born Fighting: How the Scots-Irish Shaped America." He grew up in a military family, descended from Scots Irish immigrants from Ulster (northern Ireland) who emigrated in the 18th century to the British North American colonies.
Obama got himself in trouble saying that rural folks cling to their guns and religion. Tilove writes: "They don't cling to guns; they proudly pass them on to their young sons as a rite of passage Webb likens to a 'Redneck Bar Mitzvah.' Webb's father gave him his first rifle when he was 8 and his first pair of boxing gloves when he was 6."
Webb's daddy also passed this advice along to him: "Never start a fight, but never run away, even if you know you are going to lose. ... And whomever you fight, you must make them pay. You must always mark them, so that the next day they have to face the world with a black eye or a cut lip or a bruised cheek, and remember where they got it."
People not from here don't understand that while Obama may have better policies for the working class, the working class knows Clinton is a fighter. She fought the rightwing and was battered and bruised by it. But she kept fighting back. And fighting back. And fighting back. And they want a fighter in their corner.
John Kerry's campaign was lost in West Virginia when he didn't fight back hard and fast against the Swiftboat smears.
Obama offers hope, but people here have been offered hope so many times before it's just another four letter word. They want to know he'll fight for them. Obama showed a remarkable understanding of many of us working class voters with his "bitter" remarks. That it is about class and economic issues as to why people cling to their faith and guns because people have offered them promises before without delivering. To seal the deal, he's got to show he not only understands many of them in a way they might not even understand themselves, but that he'll fight for them.
In the 23rd House of Delegates District entirely located entirely within McDowell County's border incumbent Clif Moore who happens to be African-American defeated Emily Yeager 56 percent to 44 percent to win the Democratic nomination. He will be running unopposed in the November general election with no Republican opponent at the present time and is lock to be re-elected for another term in office.
In the race for Circuit Court Judge for the 8th Circuit District incumbent Booker T. Stephens easily defeated his opponent Ted White by a 2 to 1 margin to win the Democratic nomination. Like Del. Moore he has no Republican opponent at the present time and is a lock to be re-elected for another term.
Both Del. Moore and Judge Stephens are great people as well as great servants for McDowell County. I know that both of them are the real deal.
This won't alleviate most of the criticism about W. Virginians' reluctance to support African-American candidates, but I'm hoping and praying the so-called experts will at least take a look at McDowell County voters and West Virginians as a whole both white and African-American before criticizing us West Virginians again.
Also Hillary Clinton is loved to death by the people here in McDowell County and West Virginia as a whole. To me this was more of a pro-Hillary Clinton vote than an anti-Barack Obama vote.
I also believe that a part of Obama's struggles here in W. Virginia were much more so because of the false perception of his church, his "Muslim-sounding" name, Rev. Wright's "GD America" comments, and Obama's "small-town" comments than race.
And McDowell County's population is 87 percent white and just 12 percent black, for those whom use the "McDowell County has a larger African-American percentage than any other West Virginia county" argument.
Sen. Hillary Clinton's landslide victory Tuesday in West Virginia gave her 20 committed delegates to the Democratic National Convention, but did not prompt any more of the state's superdelegates to declare they'll vote for her.
snip
West Virginia has 10 superdelegates who can support anyone, regardless of the state's election results. Before the primary, Clinton had the support of three West Virginia superdelegates to Obama's two.
Gov. Joe Manchin and state Democratic Chairman Nick Casey will wait until all the primary elections are over in early June before pledging their support.
Manchin spokeswoman Lara Ramsburg said the governor enjoyed the attention West Virginia received from its primary election and wants the process to continue uninterrupted. She said Manchin, who is chairman of the national Democratic Governors Association, doesn't want to interfere with other states' elections.
"He really is a fan of the process," Ramsburg said. "He thinks it's helpful to the party to continue."
So far, 22 of the 28 Democratic governors - all of whom are superdelegates - have pledged their votes to a candidate.
While Obama has not clinched the number of delegates needed to win, he is leading in the popular vote total and the delegate count. According to kos, Obama has 1,893 delegates and needs 132 to win the nomination. Clinton has 1,716 and needs 309.
What I think would make for great symbolism would be for Sen. Robert C. Byrd, a former Klansman now with a 100 percent civil rights rating from the NAACP, to be the superdelegate whose vote cinches the nomination for Sen. Barack Obama's historic presidential bid. It would be indicative of a passing of the torch from an old era to a new, particularly since Obama has called Byrd a "mentor" in the Senate.
While Byrd is said to be a friend of both Obama and Clinton, he's not declared his intentions yet and I don't know who he is going to support.
Obama has Rep. Nick Rahall (WV03) and Sen. Jay Rockefeller commit to him. Clinton has Marie Prezioso, Pat Maroney and Belinda Biafore.
Besides Byrd and Manchin, the other undeclared supers in West Virginia are Harpers Ferry resident Alice Germond, secretary of the DNC, Rep. Alan Mollohan (WV 01), and state party chairman Nick Casey, who'll vote after Manchin most likely.
I don't know how the rest of you are feeling, but the Berkeley County Democrats were in a great mood at the party headquarters. The Obama supporters feel they held off Clinton enough that it helps seal the deal even though I just heard Clinton say she'll continue. Unfortuantely that's going to hurt her - and that's what I heard from Clinton supporters - if she continues to run.
We're delighted about Anne Barth leading in WV-02.
We're also ecstatic about Spike Maynard in last place in the Supreme Court race.
It does look like all the negative campaigning hurt Ketchum.
Kos has a prediction diary up for the W.Va. primary. I'm not so interested in the % of votes (or actual number, for that matter). I'm more focused on the # of delegates. Here's my prediction:
I estimate that Edwards will get up to 5% of the vote statewide. As the non-woman, non-black candidate, Edwards will pick up some of the votes from eventual McCain supporters. (There are lots of DINOs still registered as Dems. in W.Va. and Independents may also vote Dem. to have a say in some other competitive Dem. down-ticket races.)
My prediction: Obama's superior field organization and the potential drop in Clinton enthusiasm will be enough to bring Obama's totals just inside the "magic numbers." As such, I predict a 4-2, 4-2, and 4-2 split in the 3 CDs and a 2-1 and 4-3 split at the state level for a 18-10 overall delegate advantage for Clinton.
What to watch: CD2 offers some upside for Obama, as he could possibly move it to a 3-3 split. CD3 offers the most challenge for Obama as it could end up a 5-1 split.
I do want to write a little bit more about the notion that West Virginians are racist. The longer version will have to wait until later today or tomorrow. But the short version is: yes, there are racist voters in West Virginia, but there are racist voters in every state. The primary determinant of the extent to which racism tends to be more manifest is education levels, and so the effects may be more noticeable in West Virgnia, a state with poor academic achievement. But there is no reason to believe that West Virgnians are particularly racist, relative to their education levels.
An expected victory for New York Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton in Tuesday's primary in West Virginia might have the anticlimactic feel of a badly defeated football team scoring a meaningless late game touchdown that the winning team didn't try very hard to contest.
Good breakout on the demographics and projected delegates, which echoes what our own Clem has been saying for a long time.
A collection of thoughts as we head into the West Virginia presidential primary on Tuesday.
The caller ID Saturday night showed an 877 number, but I answered it anyway. "I'm a local volunteer for Sen. Hillary Clinton," the caller said. He was polite and asked me if I intended to vote for Senator Clinton in West Virginia's primary on Tuesday.
I told him I liked Senator Clinton a lot, but I liked Senator Obama more. I said we had early voting in West Virginia and I had already voted for him, but wished him luck in his calling.
I meant it.
Whether you want Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton to be our Democratic nominee, go volunteer for your candidate.
As I've mentioned for months, the Obama supporters have been much more active on the ground even though polls have shown Clinton with an insurmountable lead in the state. As Clem has pointed out so well, this state's demographics are perfectly suited for Clinton. But even more than the demographics, this state's personality is suited for her to win. West Virginians love politicians they're familiar with. We had Bill Clinton as our president and Hillary Clinton as our First Lady for eight years.
So for months Obama's supporters here have heard that Obama does not have a chance in West Virginia. That just made his supporters, and there are many of us, work even harder. Damn the overwhelming odds and full speed ahead has been the attitude of many of them. In Berkeley County, 50 of the 52 county delegates elected to attend the state convention were Obama supporters. Similiar efforts have taken place across the state.
The Clinton campaign effort got a late start in West Virginia. And national pundits and experts are calling the race over for her. To Senator Clinton's West Virginia volunteers, as an Obama supporter I urge you not to listen to them. Go out and give it your all for Senator Clinton.
In 2004, many of us worked very hard here in the Eastern Panhandle to GOTV for Sen. John Kerry. We increased his vote by 30 percent over Vice President Al Gore's total here in 2000. And we still had our asses handed to us.
But you know what? I look back in pride to the fact that I did everything I could to make a difference. I've said it before and I'll say it again: every door knocked, every mile walked, every letter sent, every dime spent, I'd do it all over again.
Now go do that for your candidate, whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton or even if you're a Republican supporter of Ron Paul. (And someone has planted more Ron Paul signs in this county than for any other candidate - with the exception of Democratic sheriff's candidate Kenny LeMaster.)
We've got plenty of time to come back together as Democrats before the convention in Denver. Primary wounds will heal. But what will be harder to get over is regret. If you want your candidate to win, go do everything you can to make it happen.
It has been since 1960 that West Virginia's vote really mattered in the presidential primary. I do not agree with those calling for Senator Clinton to drop out of the race. While even her most loyal supports admit the odds aren't looking good for Senator Clinton to be the nominee, she has every right to stay in the race and West Virginia will be a high mark for her.
Her husband predicted she'll take the state with 80 percent of the vote and who am I to disagree with the benchmark he set? The best and most enthusiastic GOTV in the world is not going to overcome the state's demographics which are perfectly set up for her as Clem so well demonstrated in the post I link to above.
I've got my disagreements with Senator Clinton on some issues and some of her tactics, just as I do with any other candidate, including my absolute favorite in many election cycles. If - the biggest word in the English language - Senator Clinton had locked up the nomination in February as many had expected, I would have happily supported her in the general election. My initial pick was Sen. Chris Dodd. I've got a long history of voting for a candidate in November who was not the candidate I wanted to see there. But I've always voted for the Democrat and considering the Republicans we faced I have no regrets about that choice.
But at least this cycle, West Virginians have felt included in the primary process, which has raised voter registrations to record highs.
...
We had several volunteers from out of town on Saturday for the Obama campaign. I thought it was a bit confusing the way the setup was today with two "satellite" offices in different neighborhoods. So people who went to the main hq in Martinsburg were sent out to the other two offices to get canvassing materials. The usual people from the campaign we've dealt with were out in Morgan and Jefferson counties working and a new woman was in fresh from North Carolina as part of the reinforcements.
I canvassed Saturday with an older, African American woman. We partnered and did a predominantly African American neighborhood in Martinsburg. It was an interesting experience. I've done African American neighborhoods before for other races, but there was such a -- I can't really think of the right word. Not just a vibe or a sense of excitement. Like a sense of participating in something historic.
After canvassing last week in Precinct 21, a ballbreaker with lots of DINOs, it was good this week to have so many strong Obama supporters. We did have one woman who already voted for Hillary Clinton, but she said she expects Obama to be the nominee and will vote for him in November because she can't stand McCain. (We have early voting or No Excuses voting in West Virginia where you can vote at the court house prior to the election day. The last day for early voting was Saturday.)
Our area also included part of a predominantly white neighborhood as well and we had some Obamas there as well. But possibly more interestingly was a conversation with a man outside his house who was not on our list. I suspect he's an R, but he said he has big money bet on Obama winning the general election and he'll probably vote for him over McCain.
...
While I'm on the issue of race, let me bring up something that really pisses me off, this false notion that Senator Clinton's supporters are racists. They are not. I'm going to quote Clem extensively because he said it well and I agree with him completely:
It pains me, I feel the need to write this diary... but after reading the coverage of the West Virginia primary around the blogosphere this needs to be said.
When I voted for Barack Obama last week, I was voting for Barack Obama, not against Hillary Clinton and not against John Edwards (also on the W.Va. ballot).
I happen to think Barack Obama will make an even better president than Hillary Clinton. Just because I prefer Obama over Clinton doesn't make make me anti-woman, anti-white people, or anti-anything else. I voted for Obama, it's as simple as that.
So, for the love of God, why do some people insist a West Virginia vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote against Barack Obama? Further, why do so many insist it's a vote against Obama just because of the color of his skin?
Yes, there are some West Virginia Democrats and Independents who will vote in the Democratic primary next week who will vote for McCain in November.
snip
Indeed, the vast percentage of Clinton voters will turn out in November for Obama -- right now they prefer Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama. That doesn't make them racist, misandrist, or prejudiced against people from Illinois.
You know, that vote for Hillary Clinton is probably just that: a vote for Hillary Clinton.
...
The Obama campaign has a new commercial airing in the state, the final one before the May 13 primary. Some of you might not like it, but I think it's really good for its intended West Virginia audience. See it here.
...
Whatever Senator Clinton decides to do about ending her campaign or continuing - and it is her decision, not the media pundits - West Virginia as one of the last primaries this cycle is going to give her a high note for the finale of her historic presidential bid. Whether she wins by 60 percent or 80 percent and just because it won't matter either way to the overall delegate count, the race continuing has been positive for West Virginia Democrats by increasing our regististration rolls and by preparation for the necessary volunteer effort that will be needed in the summer and fall again Sen. John McCain.
As much as many like to dismiss Senator Clinton, she's a hell of a lot better candidate than Senator McCain can ever hope to be on his best day. A big win by Senator Clinton in West Virginia over Senator Obama does not mean the presumed Democratic nominee cannot carry the state in the general election. Believing that is a discredit not just to West Virginians, but also to Senator Clinton. John McCain is no Hillary Clinton.
Yesterday at a Fayetteville,WV rally for Hillary, Bill Clinton argued Hillary and health care with a voter. From CBS News. HT The Huffington Post. Short ad is shown at the start.
He had a very busy day as was evidenced by the fact that he arrived at Concord University in Athens an hour and a half late. I was not able to attend, but a friend who did thought it was worth the time she waited to see him in person and listen to him speak.
(Bumped back onto the front page. - promoted by Clem Guttata)
It pains me, I feel the need to write this diary... but after reading the coverage of the West Virginia primary around the blogosphere this needs to be said.
When I voted for Barack Obama last week, I was voting for Barack Obama, not against Hillary Clinton and not against John Edwards (also on the W.Va. ballot).
I happen to think Barack Obama will make an even better president than Hillary Clinton. Just because I prefer Obama over Clinton doesn't make make me anti-woman, anti-white people, or anti-anything else. I voted for Obama, it's as simple as that.
So, for the love of God, why do some people insist a West Virginia vote for Hillary Clinton is a vote against Barack Obama? Further, why do so many insist it's a vote against Obama just because of the color of his skin?
Yes, there are some West Virginia Democrats and Independents who will vote in the Democratic primary next week who will vote for McCain in November. Unlike other states to our south, a generation of the most conservative Democrats have not left the party in droves. Even so, President Bush has an astoundingly high 85% disapproval rating in West Virginia*, so there's no telling where those votes will end up in November.
Indeed, the vast percentage of Clinton voters will turn out in November for Obama -- right now they prefer Hillary Clinton to Barack Obama. That doesn't make them racist, misandrist, or prejudiced against people from Illinois.
You know, that vote for Hillary Clinton is probably just that: a vote for Hillary Clinton.
* Correction: 85% disapproval rating is among those planning to vote in Democratic primary.
Whether you want Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton to be our Democratic nominee, go volunteer for your candidate.
As I've mentioned for months, the Obama supporters have been much more active on the ground even though polls have shown Clinton with an insurmountable lead in the state. As Clem has pointed out so well, this state's demographics are perfectly suited for Clinton. But even more than the demographics, this state's personality is suited for her to win. West Virginians love politicians they're familiar with. We had Bill Clinton as our president and Hillary Clinton as our First Lady for eight years.
So for months Obama's supporters here have heard that Obama does not have a chance in West Virginia. That just made his supporters, and there are many of us, work even harder. Damn the overwhelming odds and full speed ahead has been the attitude of many of them. In Berkeley County, 50 of the 52 county delegates elected to attend the state convention were Obama supporters. Similiar efforts have taken place across the state.
The Clinton campaign effort got a late start in West Virginia. And national pundits and experts are calling the race over for her. To Senator Clinton's West Virginia volunteers, as an Obama supporter I urge you not to listen to them. Go out and give it your all for Senator Clinton.
In 2004, many of us worked very hard here in the Eastern Panhandle to GOTV for Sen. John Kerry. We increased his vote by 30 percent over Vice President Al Gore's total here in 2000. And we still had our asses handed to us.
But you know what? I look back in pride to the fact that I did everything I could to make a difference. I've said it before and I'll say it again: every door knocked, every mile walked, every letter sent, every dime spent, I'd do it all over again.
Now go do that for your candidate, whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton or even if you're a Republican supporter of Ron Paul. (And someone has planted more Ron Paul signs in this county than for any other candidate - with the exception of Democratic sheriff's candidate Kenny LeMaster.)
We've got plenty of time to come back together as Democrats before the convention in Denver. Primary wounds will heal. But what will be harder to get over is regret. If you want your candidate to win, go do everything you can to make it happen.
On what was probably one of the toughest days of her campaign so far, with pundits and analysts of all stripes declaring her presidential candidacy finished, Mrs. Clinton put on her battle face Wednesday and confronted what was at times a hostile crowd at a hastily arranged speech here at Shepherd University.
Shepherdstown, a quaint and hippieish town on the Potomac River in the West Virginia Panhandle, is where Robert E. Lee led his Confederate Army in retreat after the battle of Antietam, the single bloodiest day of the Civil War.
Mrs. Clinton endured boos when she mentioned her proposal for a gasoline tax holiday, catcalls when she spoke of ending the Iraq war and, most difficult of all, the heckling of her daughter, Chelsea, who introduced her.
"End the dynasty!" a young man holding an Obama poster shouted when Chelsea Clinton stepped to the microphone.
All the while, a smile was fixed on Mrs. Clinton's perfectly made-up face - not a hair was out of place - and she betrayed only an occasional glimmer of recognition of the exceedingly narrow straits she must now navigate.
[snip]
Mrs. Clinton added the stop at 3 a.m. Wednesday in an effort to show that she remained committed to campaigning in the remaining six contests on the Democratic primary calendar (West Virginia holds its primary on Tuesday). She may also have been seeking refuge from the dust storm of speculation in Washington over the fate of her campaign. She returned to Washington after the event in Shepherdstown to try to persuade a small group of undecided superdelegates to remain undecided, and then to raise money for her near-broke campaign at a mother-daughter dinner at a hotel.
A pop psychologist might say that Mrs. Clinton was showing symptoms of denial or of being divorced from reality, but she has said for months that she will not quit as long as there remains a mathematical possibility that she could capture the nomination. That chance narrowed considerably Tuesday night, but the path is not totally blocked.
As a brief news conference after her remarks at the college, she said, "It's a new day, it's a new state, it's a new election," her upbeat tone never wavering. "I'm staying in this race until there's a nominee. I'm going to work as hard as I can to become that nominee."
Jay Carson, a campaign spokesman, said that he had spoken privately with Mrs. Clinton on Wednesday morning and that she was in a good mood.
"We feel we did well last night," Mr. Carson said. "She is not someone who is buffeted by the day-to-day ups and downs of the campaign. She is tough and tenacious. That's why she's a phenomenal campaigner and why she'd be a great president."
"She's unflappable," he added. "She's proven that to you in the press and to the voters."
Mr. Carson is divorced from reality if he really feels the Clinton campaign "did well" on Tuesday. Nonetheless, he's right about Hillary being "tough and tenacious." But for the emergence of Barack Obama as an even better candidate, she would almost certainly already be our party's nominee.
UPDATE from Carnacki: From the report from JBdem4usa, it sounds like the NY Times reporter may have gotten it wrong.
Eastern Panhandle Talk show says Crowd was Well Behaved
I notice quite a discrepancy when I read your blog account of the speech by Hillary yesterday in Shepherdstown after hearing a radio broadcast on WEPM in Martinsburg which describes the crowd as well behaved. Which was it? I was proud to hear that the Obama supporters were polite to Hillary when she is obviously going through a tough time right now, even though I agree that her policies are not what I would call progressive or even different than those who came before her. Better than Bush for sure but not quite radical enough to get us out of the hole we've dug with bad policies for the past seven plus years.
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