Polls Show Obama Struggling to ‘Close the Deal’
Barack Obama speaks to reporters Friday in Indianapolis, Ind. (AP Photo)
More than a week after Barack Obama vowed to “close the deal” and wrap up the Democratic presidential nomination, he finds Hillary Clinton closing the gap and polls showing Americans still questioning his relationship with his controversial former pastor.
Clinton, still numerically outmatched when it comes to delegates won, is experiencing a surge in North Carolina and Indiana, which are holding primaries Tuesday and will set the trajectory for the campaign’s final weeks.
An average of polls on RealClearPolitics.com shows Obama with a 7-point lead in North Carolina; last month he was carrying the state in some surveys by more than 20 points. And Indiana, a state that was thought to be neck-and-neck, is trending toward Clinton. Averages show her up by 6 points in the state.
Clinton was endorsed Friday by The Indianapolis Star, which circulates in the state’s competitive capital suburbs. And a new Rasmussen Poll indicated that voters weren’t accepting Obama’s moves this week to denounce his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, and shed the controversy surrounding him.
Fifty-eight percent of those polled said Obama denounced Wright out of political convenience, not outrage. The poll was conducted nationally Wednesday and Thursday night.
“This primary election on Tuesday is a game-changer. This is going to make a huge difference going forward,” Clinton said Friday in Kinston, N.C. “The entire country and probably the entire world is looking to see what North Carolina decides.”
North Carolina and Indiana offer 115 and 72 delegates, respectively, representing Obama’s last one-day chance to pull away in the delegate count and leave Clinton in the dust. The six contests that will remain after Tuesday each offer fewer than 60 delegates, and individually are unlikely to have a big impact on the dynamic of the race.
Asked about his apparent rut at a press conference in Indianapolis Friday, Obama tried to find the silver lining.
“We have had a rough couple of weeks; I won’t deny that,” he said. “And what’s remarkable is that, despite that, we are seeing terrific support all across Indiana and all across North Carolina. I have been incredibly encouraged over the last several days as we have campaigned. …
“This campaign has been tight throughout. But I am very confident that the American people are looking for the kind of truth-telling and serious policy-making that is going to have an impact on their lives. And as long as I am talking about the issues that matter to them, I think we have a terrific chance,” he said.
Obama’s nearly 10-point loss in Pennsylvania on April 22 made a set of victories Tuesday all the more important for him. He would like to shake Clinton and send a signal to uncommitted superdelegates that he’s the Democrat with the mandate from voters.
Clinton needs those superdelegates to overcome Obama’s total delegate lead, which as of Friday was 1,736 to 1,602.
In the past two months, Obama has whittled Clinton’s superdelegate lead by half. Clinton holds a 20-superdelegate lead, 268 to 248.
One notable superdelegate, former Democratic National Committee Chairman Joe Andrew, switched his support from Clinton to Obama on Thursday, despite having been named to the top party job by former President Bill Clinton.
“This has got to come to an end,” Andrew said from his hometown of Indianapolis. He said he planned to call all the other superdelegates he knows and encourage them to back Obama.
Obama also got the backing Friday of former DNC Chairman Paul Kirk Jr., who said in a statement: “Senator Obama is the one candidate who has and will continue to expand the electorate beyond the traditional Democratic party base and bring young and new and independent voters to the Democratic banner in November, an essential ingredient to a Democratic victory. …
“After the attention paid to the poisonous and polarizing diatribe of recent days, Senator Obama’s clear and compelling message, which appeals to our best instincts as Americans, is more important than ever.”
Clinton’s campaign brushed off Kirk’s endorsement as “old news.”
FOX News’ Aaron Bruns and Bonney Kapp and The Associated Press contributed to this report.
here is the problem,with everything if we all was held accountable on what our parents said or someone close to us we all will be hated.I’m a big obama supporter and always will be. this needs to end now, he is the best person for the job right now,the media is dragging this all in the dirt. Mrs Clinton must not like the Democratic party cause she wants to help bring out the negitive or the faults on a fellow Democrat.I dont dislike her but I lost respect for her.And if you want experience she dont have that, Bill Clinton does for 8 yrs and so does the cook in the white house.
I hope B.O. does win the nom.
He thinks he’s been vetted now, wait ’till the real race starts.
‘course then, he’ll ask for a clean race and will want to stop ads like, “”McCain Says ‘100 Years in Iraq’ Ad Is ‘Direct Falsification’”".
And even though I disagreed with McCain trying to stop the ads in N.C., at least he made statements against them.
So i guess Hillary has never had ties to anyone who has said anything that is of the level the Rev. Wright was saying? Come on people… This is a non-issue. I am a good citizen, and i know plenty of people who say some very controversial things… I’m soooo tired of this campaign that i’m moving to Canada.
TO GW It varies from state to states. some states have a higher % of blacks while states like states don’t. for instance like Pennsylvania have only like 10%. To summarize , some states their important and some states their not. Personally I think Dems are so divide its almost impossible for either one to win who would have thought. A house divide soon falls and thats were their heading.
The thing I find absolutely amazing is what is now happening with the superdelegates. All this time they’ve been pushing for Clinton to quit the race because Obama had the popular vote and they swore they wouldn’t go against what “the people” want. Well, now that the tide is turning and Clinton IS winning the popular vote, the decided superdelegates are trying to sway the undecided ones to still vote with Obama. What happend to what “the people” want???? You’d think they were running a racket.
I hope the superdelegates will vote for Hillary. It would even be nice if a few of those for Obama would change their minds and come back to Hillary
Obama is a nice guy - just not Presidential Material - not enough experience and his background is far too questionable.
Hillary Clinton is the best candidate - she can win against McCain.
Sure wish the obama group would stop being so negative and mean about everything!
Obama - the great pretender!
Hilliary will be the last Democratic candidate that my friends and I will be voting for. After Hilliary we may never vote again if the other parties don’t have a good candidate. We are disgusted with the backstabbing and disloyalty that’s going on in this party. Some people in this party are lacking compassion. It’s like kicking you’re friend when he/she is down. I can’t believe them sacrificing friendship for politics. What a shame.
Joe Andrews’s statement that “this has got to come to an end,” is infuriatingly disingenuous. Apparently Andrews prefers bringing it to an end by shutting it down instead of letting the democratic election process play itself out. That smacks of such manipulation and lack of integrity that it is almost unbelievable. If that is the overall view of the DNC, they in no way represent this lifelong Democrat voter. I am digusted with the DNC’s desperate pap about how prematurely backing Obama is going to heal the party. If they believe that, they are in for a tremendous shock. And if the Democratic party isn’t more thoughtful than the illogical Joe Andrews, the presidential race in November will just be the beginning of what they stand to lose. Democratic voters WANT this nomination process to play out! And they want superdelegates to quit trying to shut it down. Following the advice of Andrew isn’t going to heal the party or win the Nov. election, either one!