As previously noted, Hawaii caucus turnout has never been above 5,000. The Obama camp's pie-in-the-sky prediction was 18,000.
Final tally? 37,247.
--Barron YoungSmith
Posted: Wednesday, February 20, 2008 10:48 AM with 11 comment(s)
Yeah, but this just goes to show that Obama only wins in states that hold contested elections. Sure, he wins big in caucus states, he wins big in primary states, he wins big when turnout is low, and he wins big with record-high turnout. But what the Obama-worshipping media is overlooking is that in each of the 25 state contests Obama has won so far, his name appeared on the ballot. It's time to stop giving Obama a pass on this critical issue.
Remember, if Hillary Clinton wins the Democratic nomination, Barack Obama's name will not be on the ballot in November. And only Hillary Clinton has demonstrated that she can win when Obama's name is not on the ballot. In fact, she's undefeated in contests where Obama is not on the ballot, making her clearly the more electable general-election candidate.
I'm not the widest-read person around, but why is no one discussing the significance of this extended turnout, all around the country, and its potential for the General Election. Seems to me that the demonstrated ability of Obama to get dramatically higher number of voters out to the polls has a huge bearing on favorable prospects for the Democrats in the fall. Not only at the top of the ticket, but down the line.
The man may have long coattails.
Brilliant, Rhubarbs. Comment of the day.
Roobarbs = hilarious. Please report to Ballston headquarters. A job is waiting for you.
Rhubarbs - auditioning for a job as Mark Penn's wingman, are we? I could totally see that on a press release.
kevmonj, I agree. TNR - get some egghead on this.
rhubards, dead on, and don't forget, America loves whiny losers who never concede defeat but defiantly ignore it, because as you rightly point out she has never truly been defeated. She allowed the people of some states to choose Obama because she understands they did it only out of racial, or ideological, or gender, or political solidarity, when in fact it is her they truly love.
What's interesting is that not only was the total number of attendees at the caucuses so high, but that the number of Hillary supporters (8,800) even exceeded the 5,000 mark.
It is amazing to see what happens to turnout when the voters actually like the people on the ballot. It's been a long time....
Teamsters endorse Obama 1.4 million members.
Rhubarbs,
Not sure if your aware. But your fame is spreading. Your comment in this thread has appeared on Sully's blog. andrewsullivan.theatlantic.com/.../clinton-undefea.html
Congrats