Still Trailing, Clinton Challenges Obama Over Ability to Beat McCain
Wednesday: Hillary Rodham Clinton waves to media members on her campaign plane during a flight to a rally in Indianapolis. (AP Photo)
Hillary Clinton’s big win in the Pennsylvania primary yielded only slight gains in the pledged delegate count, putting pressure on the New York senator to pull off a streak of similar victories in the nine contests ahead.
But Clinton is using the victory to build her case that she’s the better Democrat to face presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in November. Her campaign was re-energized as the candidates tour Indiana Wednesday, brushing off the still daunting task that lies ahead.
Clinton raised $3.5 million in the initial hours after her victory, and the campaign said it was on track to raise $10 million online in the 24 hours since winning Pennsylvania — which the campaign claimed was her best one-day haul.
“At the end of the day, people have to decide who they think would be not only the best president, which is the most important question, but who would be the better candidate against Senator McCain. And I think the coalition that I’ve put together, as demonstrated once again last night, is a very strong base for us to beat Senator McCain,” Clinton told NBC’s “Today.”
Not so, said Obama.
“It’s important to put this in perspective,” he told reporters after a town hall meeting in New Albany, Ind., Wednesday. “What we did do in Pennsylvania is create an organization, make voters familiar with me, close the gap significantly, which creates an organization for us in November in a general election. It’s a strong base to build on … We’re very confident about where we’re going to be once we’re the nominee.”
Clinton won at least 81 of the 158 delegates up for grabs in Tuesday’s contest, according to an analysis of election returns by The Associated Press. Obama won at least 70, with seven still to be determined. That closed some of the distance for Clinton, but not enough to take away Obama’s front-runner status. She still trails Obama in the delegate count 1,591 to 1,719 — the eventual nominee needs 2,025 delegates to win. Clinton had been down 1,509 to 1,648 before the night’s delegate tally.
Her electability argument is based on the success she’s had in big states. Clinton has won states, including New York and California, with 240 electoral votes compared to 202 electoral votes in states that Obama has won. She has used that statistic to argue that she will be a better candidate in the general election. Her campaign also issued a statement that she has won more of the popular vote than Obama although that count included Michigan, where he wasn’t on the ballot, and Florida, where neither campaigned.
“I’m very proud that as of today, I have received more votes by the people who have voted than anybody else,” Clinton said Wednesday at a rally in Indianapolis.
Indiana and North Carolina are the next states to vote on May 6.
Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said any Democrat can win California and New York, but Obama is doing better than Clinton in states where polls have been taken on hypothetical head-to-head match-ups with McCain. Plouffe named Colorado, Connecticut, Iowa, Maine, Minnesota, Montana, North Dakota, New Mexico, Nevada, Virginia and Wisconsin as strong Obama performance states. Obama hasn’t won a major state since Wisconsin on Feb. 22.
Plouffe added that by Clinton’s own definition, she must win North Carolina, with 115 delegates, by a healthy margin in order to be consistent in her claim that she can win big states. Polls show Obama well ahead in that state.
“We don’t think performance in primaries is the most important measure in how you’re doing against McCain right now, but we’ve performed well in a lot of those states in the primaries,” Plouffe said. “It’s a flawed exercise to somehow suggest that performance in primaries is the leading indicator in what’s gonna happen in the general.”
He also shot down some of Clinton’s argument that Obama can’t win households with income under $50,000 and voters under 60 . Plouffe pointed out that Obama won voters under 60 in 19 states to Clinton’s nine, and won 14 states to Clinton’s 15 states with voters making less than $50,000.
Obama hinted Wednesday that he feels he’s already earned the nomination.
Asked about superdelegates at his town hall meeting Obama said: “I have to admit I have a little self interest in here — but I do think that these elections that we’ve been doing should be counted for something. And so if we’ve won the most delegates from the voters, seems to me that it might be a good idea to make me the nominee.”
Clinton still leads Obama in superdelegates by 25. Hot off her victory, Clinton on Wednesday picked up a new superdelegate, Tennessee Rep. John Tanner. For either candidate to win, they will have to rely on the remaining 300-plus unpledged party leaders who serve as superdelegates.
“There’s no chance she’s gonna catch him in terms of pledged delegates,” National Public Radio national correspondent Juan Williams told FOX News, adding that if she can make a convincing argument that she can win the big states, then she has a chance to catch up through superdelegates.
“Short of that she’s really inviting civil war inside the Democratic Party. That’s literally the nuclear option,” he said.
FOX News’ Bonney Kapp contributed to this report.
obama is not electable in the big states. this is a fact. he can not beat mccain in the big states that hillary won and too many of clinto supporters will vote for mccain whereas the majority of obama supporters will vote for hillary and not mccain. so whose voters will go to mccain in bigger numbers? clintons. this means that if the super d’s pick clinton she has better chance at becoming president than obama and if oabam is the nominee he will lose to mccain because he will lose middle class blue color white women older folks vets etc. yes people get used to it. obama will not become the president and in fact will lose by big numbers. then the dnc can blame themselves and the obama supporters can continue to blame the white folks. obama has too many skeletons that are just now coming out of the closet. things will only get worse for him. i just love it though when i hear all of these political joksters telling america how the superdelegates that they HAVE to vote for obama. i think that thses obama supporters better watch what they say because the superdelegates might get bitter and cast their vote to hillary.
If they GIVE Hillary the nomination which would not be democratic; I will FOREVER vote Republican no matter who runs.
The Clintons are the most corrupt people ever. At least, McCain is a war hero. Obama has earned the nomination at great cost. He would make a great President……..
The democratic party is in one big mess that Al Gore and Howard Dean (and even Oprah) combined could not ever fix. The situation is simply hopelessly dreadful. Who would have thought that the once pace-setting Democrats have devolved into an overly ambitious group of power-hungry traditional politicians? With the ways that the poor dems are slugging it out, it seems that McCain would simply be basking under the sun, or better yet, placidly strolling in Central Park come November. America awaits for its next Republican president!
There is a very simple theory about power and corruption:
Power attracts corruption & The longer the same power structure prevails the greater is the probability for corruption.
Does it not worry you that you are about to select the WIFE of a former president as a presidential candidate? (Have you not learned anything after selecting the SON of a former president as a president?)
In Europe this possibility for electing another Clinton is seen as a worrying sign of increasing potential for corruption & US’s inability to overcome its current economical and credibility crisis (in the eyes of other nations).
Clinton must win North Carolina. Checkmate.
Obama is not as good without telepromtor or script.
Obama is a rookie.
Clinton is a pro!
Superdelegates act as a check to keep unelectables from being nominated. Given Obama’s sentiments, and seeing the company he keeps, is he really electable?
Haha! Go ahead, Hilary! I guarantee if she wins the nomination a Republican will be in ofice once again!!!