Obamas Wins Give Him the Advantage

With his 8^th and 9^th consecutive wins in Wisconsin and Hawaii, Barack Obama is starting to distance himself form the dead heat he and Hillary Clinton were in after the Super Tuesday Primaries. As reported in an article by Cenk Uygur in today's (February 20, 2008) Huffington Post, Obama has a 70 Delegate lead not counting super delegates. If you throw in pledged super delegates, Obama's lead over Clinton sits at 145 delegates.

Facing an uphill battle, the Clinton camp has stepped up their attacks on the Senator from Illinois. With primaries in Texas and Ohio coming up on March fourth, Clinton is under the gun to pick up Texas' 168 committed delegates if she wins the primary there. Also at stake that day are Ohio's 141 pledged delegates. This does not include the super delegates in each state, 21 in Ohio and 60 in Texas.

In a speech last night, broadcast live on the major cable news channels, Clinton attacked Obama's seemingly lack of experience. She said, "This is the choice we face: One of us is ready to be Commander-in-Chief of a dangerous world." Clinton went on to talk about her experience against the Republican opposition. While in midsentence, CNN cut to Houston, Texas for Barack Obama's Wisconsin victory speech. "Houston, I think we have achieved lift-off here," Obama told a packed arena.

With the upcoming Democratic Debate in Cleveland on February 26, with so much at stake, you can bet both Candidates will be Calling Ohio home until then. Bill Clinton was in Marietta, Canton, Toledo and Steubenville on Monday with Mrs. Clinton in Youngstown on Tuesday. Daughter Chelsea is crisscrossing the state, making visits to Ohio colleges. A similar whirlwind campaign strategy is underway in Texas also.

Sources:

Cenk Uygur; AP Should Start Reporting The Real Delegate Count: The Huffington Post http://www.huffingtonpost.com/cenk-uygur/ap-should-start-reporting_b_87508.html

Dana Milbank: Obama By The Numbers: Twice-Told Tales,And Nine In A Row: The Washington Post http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/02/19/AR2008021902342.html

Author Unknown; Obama Faces Fire From Clinton, McCain; CNNPolitics.com http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/02/13/2008.hopefuls/index.html

Patrick Healy and Jeff Zeleny; Obama Extends Streak To 10, Makes Inroads Among Woman: The New York Times: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/02/20/us/politics/20elect.html?_r=1&oref=slogin