Clinton and Obama – Please Stop!
Published in Financial Times Deutschland
(Germany) on May 7, 2008
by Sabine Muscat (link to original)
It’s time that the superdelegates end the duel between presidential candidates Clinton and Obama – if Clinton can’t recognize herself that the time has come.
There are times in life when you have to make a decision, even if you don’t know whether it’s the right thing to do. You can make a list of pros and cons, ask friends for advice, or visit a fortune-teller. Theories of probability only provide limited assistance because no one can know all variables. And that’s why you can only act on the information you have at your disposal at a specific point in time.
And that’s exactly the situation the superdelegates in the U.S. Democrat party are in now, as they have the power to end the battle between rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. This information at hand is clear: the number of delegates favoring an Obama nomination is closer to a majority.
With his clear victory in North Carolina, Obama neutralized Clinton’s win in Pennsylvania last week. Clinton couldn't catch up, and dynamics bringing her a clear win in Indiana weren’t there.
The Democrats have had six months to compare the two candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton – and realize that both represent the same core democratic positions. No one can say which one of them has a better chance against Republican John McCain on November 4. The only thing that is clear right now is that the gap between both candidates and McCain is shrinking. The Democrats should be worrying less about who the candidate is, and more on whether they have at least one.
Both Obama and Clinton spoke indirectly to this issue in their Tuesday speeches. “We have to remember who we are as Democrats,” said Obama, winner in North Carolina. “There won’t be any change if the Republicans keep the White House,” said Clinton. From the Democrat point of view, it’s time to prevent that from happening. And avoid another round of the unseemly mudslinging of the last few weeks.
There are not too many surprises ahead. Clinton is the favorite in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Puerto Rico, places where the voters are working class whites and Latinos. Obama has better cards in Oregon, Montana, and South Dakota. He’s traditionally strong in liberal bastions and the Midwest. None of these states will bring new information, or turn around the race. That’s why Clinton wants the results of Michigan and Florida, which were not counted due to a dispute with the party central, and not recognized. She won in both of these states, however, without really competing for them.
The signal set by a revisionist action like this would be disastrous. It would cause more discord, instead of unifying the party. If Hillary Clinton can’t recognize herself that it is time to throw in the towel, then the remaining undecided superdelegates need to help her out; with a quick vote in favor of the candidate who has won the primaries up until now: Barack Obama.
There are times in life when you have to make a decision, even if you don’t know whether it’s the right thing to do. You can make a list of pros and cons, ask friends for advice, or visit a fortune-teller. Theories of probability only provide limited assistance because no one can know all variables. And that’s why you can only act on the information you have at your disposal at a specific point in time.
And that’s exactly the situation the superdelegates in the U.S. Democrat party are in now, as they have the power to end the battle between rivals Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. This information at hand is clear: the number of delegates favoring an Obama nomination is closer to a majority.
With his clear victory in North Carolina, Obama neutralized Clinton’s win in Pennsylvania last week. Clinton couldn't catch up, and dynamics bringing her a clear win in Indiana weren’t there.
The Democrats have had six months to compare the two candidates Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton – and realize that both represent the same core democratic positions. No one can say which one of them has a better chance against Republican John McCain on November 4. The only thing that is clear right now is that the gap between both candidates and McCain is shrinking. The Democrats should be worrying less about who the candidate is, and more on whether they have at least one.
Both Obama and Clinton spoke indirectly to this issue in their Tuesday speeches. “We have to remember who we are as Democrats,” said Obama, winner in North Carolina. “There won’t be any change if the Republicans keep the White House,” said Clinton. From the Democrat point of view, it’s time to prevent that from happening. And avoid another round of the unseemly mudslinging of the last few weeks.
There are not too many surprises ahead. Clinton is the favorite in West Virginia, Kentucky, and Puerto Rico, places where the voters are working class whites and Latinos. Obama has better cards in Oregon, Montana, and South Dakota. He’s traditionally strong in liberal bastions and the Midwest. None of these states will bring new information, or turn around the race. That’s why Clinton wants the results of Michigan and Florida, which were not counted due to a dispute with the party central, and not recognized. She won in both of these states, however, without really competing for them.
The signal set by a revisionist action like this would be disastrous. It would cause more discord, instead of unifying the party. If Hillary Clinton can’t recognize herself that it is time to throw in the towel, then the remaining undecided superdelegates need to help her out; with a quick vote in favor of the candidate who has won the primaries up until now: Barack Obama.