I've not read anywhere or heard anything about this subject.

I don't believe it's because he appears elitist that the working-class w/no college degree are not voting for him.

I think they are voting for Hillary because their prejudice/racist beliefs cannot allow a black man in the White House.

It's unfortunate to stereotype but the lower-class, uneducated are just that. Ignorant and close minded.

They probably don't want a women in the White House either but they are voting for the lesser of, in their minds, 2 evils.

Who cares about the color or your skin or your gender? America needs to get over this mind-set that all caucasions and/or african americans are prejudice. We are not electing the 'hottest' or the 'coolest' or the 'best dancer', people! This is not 'American Idol/President'. This is important stuff. Get to the heart of the issue and use your heads to actually RESEARCH a candidiate and find out where they stand, where they came from, and where they are going. We need to get past good looks and charisma - that's how we ended up with Bill Clinton. We don't need a snake charmer - we need a leader. Someone who has the guts to do what is right. Personally, I don't believe that to be Hilary or Barrack. They are both jokes. It's sad, too. Because I would love to see an American minority leading our country. However, neither the female nor the african american has it.

Well, it's not because of that. But keep saying that, and I guarantee you that those working class, no college degree DEMOCRATS will be voting McCain. Just wait until all the working class, no college degree REPUBLICANS come into play.

The vote from more than just white people is going to Hillary. Nobody's said anything about other demographics - in NC the black vote carried him, and her support with other groups got stronger. That's why she should stay in the race. These southern states have really high black Democrat populations, and a vast, vast majority of the rest are strong Republicans that don't vote in the primary. So, he's understandably getting huge margins.

But it's winner-take-all in the general election. Those states won't get us a single electoral college vote.

And this is precisely why we have superdelegates. The Democratic party, if support hasn't clearly swayed to one side, has to make sure that the side with the swing voters wins. His lead is really slim, and it's due to the southern states that put him way up.

It's unfortunate that all the race baiting and fear-mongering about a "black backlash" has all the superdelegates terrified to vote for her, because they're afraid they'll lose their own elections in response. Why do you think so many have remained unpledged after he's been the guy in the lead for so long? They're really hoping she can pull ahead before they vote for her - because they don't want people to call them racists - she's the logical candidate for people that look at the political map, and actually want to choose the Democrat who will win this fall!

This is their job - to make sure we take the more moderate route - he's winning the far left half of the party, but they'll vote Democrat no matter what! I think Obama should be her Chief of Staff, and make a Presidential bid in 2016, if we want to actually win the general election.

FairfaxBrian,

"Nobody's said anything about other demographics - in NC the black vote carried him"??? EVERY SINGLE ARTICLE I have read mentions that NC's black vote went 90% Obama. WHere do you come up with this stuff?

demoss:

I've not read anywhere or heard anything about this subject.

I don't believe it's because he appears elitist that the working-class w/no college degree are not voting for him.

I think they are voting for Hillary because their prejudice/racist beliefs cannot allow a black man in the White House.

It's unfortunate to stereotype but the lower-class, uneducated are just that. Ignorant and close minded.

They probably don't want a women in the White House either but they are voting for the lesser of, in their minds, 2 evils.

One seldom-if-ever-discussed factor that has kept Hillary in this race is Rush Limbaugh's "Operation Chaos." Rush, who often refers tastelessly to the former first lady as "Hillary Rotten Clinton," has encouraged conservative Republican loyalists to vote for her, contending that their party chances of winning the election is greater with a divided Democratic party and divisive and more-easily-demonized-and-defe­ated Hillary. Personally, I say as a devoted Bill-Clintonite that their is a good reason our founders placed an 8-year term limit upon the highset office. For me, 4 or 8 more years (a potentially 16 year total) behind the wheel of the US Oval Office would be too risky even for someone as devout as "Saint Peter."

Your write, "I think they are voting for Hillary because their prejudice/racist beliefs cannot allow a black man in the White House."

"Hello kettle! This is the pot speaking, did you know that you were black?"

Don't you find it ironic that you are grossly over generalizing an enormous, diverse, group of people and calling them ignorant and close-minded? Are any Clinton supporters able to make an intelligent decision in your opinion, or does the very fact that they support another candidate automatically make them ignorant racists?

Absolute worst case is 10% of the voters went for Hillary over Barack because of racism (based on the polling data I've seen). So yeah, you can't say its lower-class etc., at most just a subset of them. In fact I'm sure that 10% includes some middle and upper class folks as well.

For the sake of argument lets say all 10% that said race was a factor and went for Hillary are a) actual dems not rep's messing with our primaries, b) actually racist. The question then is how many of these guys are hard core racists and how many are mildly racist. I would argue Obama can win a good chunk of slightly racist people in the general but not the primary.

So really I'm saying there may be some effect from racism, but its really not worth worrying about.

do you think Blue Collar people are, Whites? Have you LOOKED at the skin color of the people cutting your yard, digging up your streets, hammering your nails and so on?

Jesus Christ, but Obama supporters are so far removed from working class reality that they don't even know the identities of the people doing the bloody damn work!

Who are you going to go out with for drinks after a hard day constructing a house or an office building? You are going to go out with Jose and Nyugn and Abdul Jamal NOT with Mr. Bloody damn three piece suit White guy you blithering damn idiot!

So then WHY aren't non Black minorities voting for Obama? It's because it's their asses on the line if they guess wrong in this election. It's because they don't have the financial cushion to play 'feel good' political games like self-indulgent liberal Whites can generally afford to do. They KNOW that the economy is tanking and they KNOW that they are going to be the ones hurt. So WHY are they voting for Hillary? They are voting for her because they KNOW that she knows how to fix the economy if anyone can. THEY KNOW Obama's background and KNOW that he is just full of wishful thinking and empty promises.

Jackass!

"... Obama supporters are so far removed from working class reality that they don't even know the identities of the people doing the bloody damn work!"

Vent all you want but your choice is coming down to siding with John "Bush" McCain or joining us moronic, idiotic, self-indulgent, jackasses. Hell, with a choice like that no wonder you're bitter and angry.

Obama 08!

Here is an African American view point that might help you understand why he is getting 90% of the black vote.

Obama would lose in a landslide if he ran against another African American in a heavily black. The things that make him comfortable to many whites (his speeches) would put off many blacks because you know in 30 seconds that this guy isn’t a brother from the hood and has spent a lot of time with white people. (I.e. the same he’s not like you that is hurting him against the more conservative types)In other words just like white blue collar vote he would have trouble here.

Obama at best might have only gotten 60-70% of the black vote if it were simply a matter of black racism / favoritism against white. And that is 60%-70% of the vote all things being even. i.e. Equal name recognition at the start. Equal chance at the start. Roughly equal money at the start. There is always a segment of the black population that isn’t going to go with the rest just as in any population. And not everyone is color blind. I.e. Alan Keyes is black but very few could support him on ANYTHING. Skin color, just like being Irish in an Irish district or Catholic in a heavily catholic one or Italian in LITTLE Italy only goes so far.

In fact at the start Clinton had like 60% of the black vote Most blacks didn’t think a black man could win the primary AND me personally I though the chances of the cubs winning the World Series were higher than there ever being a black President. I figured at best Obama would wind up as a VP.

I was very comfortable voting for her in a general election. I was only going to vote for Obama because I felt we could use a little change. My mom, who is more conservative than me was going to vote for Hillary because she felt we needed experience. Then the Clinton camp made a bad statement that did not go well and it turned my mom to Obama.

I am a bit more forgiving after all maybe it was mis said. However when Hillary took the low road over answering if he were a Muslim (i.e. “I don’t know” instead of “This shouldn’t be an issues”) she turned me off. If all that were not bad enough at a debate she bated Obama with “Do you denounce Louis Farrakhan” i.e. does every black man need to explain his position on that? Lets not talk about taking so long to denource Ferraro. Leaking that videa of Wright(like him or think he is a racist fool, He is a member of the black church a major part of the black experince.)The leak was viewed as an attack upon the black church and a shameless attempt to scare white people with a scary black man. Her scrouched earth tactics burned the black community badly.

Basically she has P***** off the black population. The 90% voting for Obama is a vote against hillary. I no longer can vote for her for preisdent. Sorry, dude just can’t. I can’t hold my noise hard enough to do it. Frankly I don’t think I could vote for Obama with hillary has his VP.

She has not attacked other minority groups and so they are less p****** off with her. That is why she is getting more traction there. Me personally I don’t think she is racist, but she panders to them unashamedly and at best she lacks the diplomacy to be president.

I also think a lot of people support her because of her last name. It is like a trusted brand that you have known so long and just do not want to abandon despite evidence suggesting that this brand is not as good as it seems. If this race were between two white men with equal name recognition and they were making Hillarie’s argument he would be laughed at. Why on earth should the delegates give the nomination to the guy who won fewer delegates? Much less other things like popular vote and states won and cash on hand. That would be dumb.

However this is like trying to get people to switch brands. People know Hillary, they don’t know Obama. There is ample evidence that Hillary can not run a competent campaign. She didn’t plan for the primary to run past Super Tuesday. She has had to loan her campaign money on more than one occasion. She is unable to win enough delegates in a race for delegates. (Also by the way delegates are assigned to states with a formula that takes in account electoral vote and how strongly the district favors democrats. ). Not counting the little problem, of she ticked off a major democratic group African Americans. I am sorry but this brand isn’t living up to its label.

I don’t know if Obama can win the general, but I do not see how Hillary can or could even without the Obama factor. She would concentrate too many resources in too few states and get run over as McCain wins all those unimportant states and try to reach voters in ineffective ways. Her lack of diplomacy would tick off any voter block that got caught in it and her scorched earth would not work well against a liked war vet. I don’t think she has the skills to be an effective politician.

pathfinder-01,

“I don’t think she has the skills to be an effective politician.”

You made several inciteful points about the presidential candidates but I think the more important thing you should be asking, is whether Hillary - or the other candidates - has the skills to be an effective executive. All of the present contenders have already proven themselves to be better-than-average politicians. Washington and the statehouses are full of smooth operators, which is how most of them got there. The current president is a great example of what I am trying to say. His performance as an executive has been dreadful despite the fact he made it all the way to the Oval Office. Fortunately, we all have until November to make up our minds about who would be a better chief executive for our country.

I do think that I understand how you arrived at the conclusion that Hillary has a “lack of diplomacy” - because she has ticked off black voters, but couldn’t the same also be said of Barack Obama regarding white blue-collar workers?. I honestly think the abrasive quality that you decry in Hillary can be an asset for an executive when they set out to accomplish something. The trait facilitates the act of shaking things up in order to bring about change.

I can see how this demeanor could possibly discourage voters, but try not to look at it too personally right now. In my opinion, that bluntness we observe in Hillary is a useful indicator of how she thinks. I believe Hillary has a habit of reducing experiences and complex problems into simple (more actionable) terms. Perhaps she developed this skill as a lawyer, but I think it would serve her especially well in the role of chief executive. Incidentally, I find Barack Obama as equally attractive a candidate even though I have focused on Hillary here.

going to save it and think about it, but right now I am going to reply with rage in my eyes because yesterday and today OBAMA SUPPORTERS HAVE JUST PISSED ME OFF!

Reading your reply I note two things.

1] Had Hillary been a black candidate you would EASILY have forgiven her or even agreed with her or her husband's 'controversial' statements but no . . . you [Blacks, that is to say] EXPECTED this White candidate running for ALL THE PEOPLE to talk, act, and think . . . like a Black candidate simply because she was competing against a Black candidate and so you punished her because she wasn't Black. You LOOKED for anything that would give you an excuse to feel alienated from her so that you could in good conscience practice 'feel good' politics and vote for Barack. That's racism.

2] What you call lack of diplomacy is just telling the FUCKING TRUTH and it's the truth that turned off Blacks and ultra-liberals because they and you WANTED to live in your isolated little dream world.

Congratulations, you and they have managed to do just that and collectively you took a guaranteed easy presidential win by the Democratic Party [well you and the corrupt DNC did -- we know know that they did their best to rig this for Obama's benefit] in order to play at 'feel good' politics. Collectively you have probably doomed this nation to four more fears worth of republicanism as a result. So thank you just all to hell for that!

Gatewood, again...your ignorance is mind-boggling. Your excuse of Bill Clinton's comment about Jesse Jackson just shows how little you personally understand a racist remark when you hear it. Furthermore, your dismissive approach to Obama supporters shows a real lack of depth of your part.

make me want to puke. You have it so arranged that no White politician can say ANYTHING in reference to a minority during a political race that is not utterly uplifting and filled with joyous hot-air, meaningless hype.

On the other hand you think that ANYTHING the minority candidate says is wholly justified and just fine and dandy BECAUSE he is a minority and he is saying it against the White candidates or against Whites in general.

Had Hillary spoken about bitter Blacks clinging to religion and so forth YOU would have gone bloody damn insane and you KNOW it. You are an utter hypocrite.

Mainstream democrats are getting tired of you ultra-liberals. Thanks to you it looks like the Party is going to fracture after all. I can't say I'm unhappy about that. Maybe it's about time that Ultra-liberals and mainstream democrats finally go their separate ways.

Gatewood,

You must really be miffed. I initially thought you were being rhetorical to lure a fresh perspective. Well, I gress you got what you were lookin’ fer, after all. But I think you crossed the line calling blacks racist for practicing “feel good politics” by switching to Barack Obama, as well as blaming ultra-liberals for keeping blacks living in an “isolated dream world” by revealing Hillary’s weaknesses.

You mentioned that you need to think about a few things raised by pathfinder-01. You could start by trying to figure out what you actually mean by “isolated dream world.” This remark, and the ‘blacks are racist’ remark are utterly cynical and do not characterize the real world.

I am almost certain the world that most blacks and even white blue-collar workers have navigated is dramatically different from the one you know and live in. Take a ride in your car (or take a bus) into the city some day when you are able, and check out the poorer sections. You’ll find out just who’s living in those “dream worlds,” as you call them.

Here is a <link> to a New Jersey (where I live) Star-Ledger article that appeared today that talks about many of the things we are discussing.

Just for your information, Gatewood, I am not an ultra-liberal and I could just as easily vote for Hillary. I am a white, life-long Republican who cannot vote Republican after eight years of nothing and worse.

Perhaps you are really angry because you are a Republican with a conscience and without an option. Barack Obama may just be the right person blacks and white blue-collar workers (not simply racists and dreamers) need who understands how to help get them out of the cultural trap. It might make more sense if you directed your ire at the Republican party and their voters who elect and re-elect candidates who do little if anything to change the status quo in the country.