Why I cannot support Obama in the GE
by Ignored and Disgusted, Sat May 10, 2008 at 08:04:19 AM EST
The 2008 democratic primary election began as a veritable win-win scenario for the party. After all, givng voters the historic chance to choose between an African American and a woman for the nomination would be sure to spark an increase in turnout and create excitement within the various factions of the Democratic Party. (with the exception of white men) However, this so called "fair nomination process" was almost immediately marred by the incompetence of DNC chairman Howard Dean. In his ineptitude, he permitted four rather small states pivotal easrly positions in the nominating process: Iowa and New Hampshire to preserve their first in the nation status, Nevada to appease the bumbling Harry Reid, and South Carolina to satisfy the African American faction of the party, which includes such notables as Senator Obama and Rep. Clyburn. By the same token, he stripped the crucial GE swing states of Florida and Michigan merely for their desire that their large caches of delegates would actually receive the same weight in the contest as those from the traditional early states. This, of course, has been of great benefit to Senator Obama, who not only lost the Florida primary by a wide margin, but also took his name off the Michigan ballot so that he could claim that there had been no contest there and that he was simply "following the rules." Virtually all of Senator Obama's wins have been blown out of proportion by the media, who thinks that Obama merely has to win a state to declare a victory. The burden of proof has been much harder on Senator Clinton has been much higher, with some Obama supporters here and on Daily Kos (including Kos himself) saying that a CLinton win in Pennsylvania would require a twenty point margin. Senator Obama is already trying to discount the results of the Indiana primary because of Republican involvement but why is there no mention of the ovberwhelming support he receive from that 20% of the electorate in the Wisconsin Primary that identified themselves as Republicans. This is not Senator Obama's fault directly but he has certainly been aided by the what I now call the "liberal media." For me however, one of Obama's more egregious mistakes is his cynical use of race to advance his campaign. He used racial tensions in South Carolina to shore up that voting bloc while simultaneously denouncing former President Bill CLinton. (see: 1990s, Clinton first black president). The numerous allegations of racism against Senator Clinton and party elders such as Geraldine Ferarro have been completely unfounded and Senator Obama has continued his disdain for blue collar workers, essentially ceding them to the Republican nominee, the (perceived) moderate and maverick John McCain. The traditional process of selecting a candidate based on who is more qualified and ready to assume the office has been largely shunted to the side by Senator Obama, who continues to rack up victories in contests that cannot genuinely be called competitive due to the large numbers of African
Americans that have residences there. In most if not all of the debates, Senator Clinton displayed a breadth of knowledge and experience unparalled by that of Senator Obama, most notably on foreign policy and healthcare. I am not trying to exonerate Senator Clinton from her perennial politcal expediency, as her appeal to gun owners is more oriented towards the GE in states like West Virginia, Kentucky, and Tennessee. I am simply trying to say that Senator Obama's lackluster debate performances, not to mention the damage inflicted by the Wright and Rezko scandals, are not indicators of his potential competence as president. Rather, they serve to warn voters of Senator Obama's narrow coalition of voters, African Americans and young voters, who alone are not enough to win a GE. (but are to win a primary)
The premature calls for CLinton to exit the race need to stop, as do the presuppositions that the people of WV and Kentucky are racist. The supporters of Hillary CLinton have been ruthlessly lambasted, insulted, and cursed out (see the rantings of Daily Kos for confirmation) and many will not forget the dripping condescension of Obama's campaign (Axelrod, anyone) come the General election. This does not necessarily translate into votes for McCain but aty this point in time, many of us feel that McCain is more qualified than Obama to assume the Presidency.
Tags: Obama, Clinton, general, election, support, yet another McCain fool (all tags)