Why is it that Obama does exceedingly well in caucus states?

[rateyes]

I mean Obama cleaned house in those states with overwhelming majorities.

Is it because of the discussion that takes place in those states, as opposed to the primaries where no discussion takes place at the polls? Or, is it simply an anomoly that the caucus states are more or less progressive (depending on your point of view)?

And, is Texas a caucus state---I know it was one when I lived there during the 1988 election, when I was a delegate to the Tarrant County Convention.

Anybody have any explanations?

[tyne]

1. IMO

It's because a supporter has to invest and commit around 3 to 4 hours of their time.

[rateyes]

2. So, Obama supporters are more apt to commit that much time?

If true, that really says something. Of course, Hillary won the Nevada caucuses, but not by much. Not by the margins Obama won the caucus states last night.

[joshcryer]

13. No, it means they're actually able to.

If you're a wage earner and you need to get food on the table, it's not so easy.

[rateyes]

20. Oh, I see...

Wage earners support Clinton over Obama, and Obama supporters don't have families to feed. :wtf:

[joshcryer]

44. No, more like Obama supporters are "political insiders," and as we can see...

...the political insiders are going overwhelmingly for Obama.

[Coexist]

41. if only there were places you could drive through on your way

and pick up some cheap food.

[dicknbush]

5. THis means it favors those who don't have schedules or kids or jobs

Students I think like to play this game. I think it explains a lot about why Obamo does well in the caucus. I htink each of the staes that he won in have large student populations. What the demo from Boulder for instance? And this is good but I think it might be a bit of a problem in the long run.

[scheming daemons]

9. No... it favors those that have more passion for their candidate...

[joshcryer]

14. Oh, OK, so I'll just leave my crap job to go vote in a process that I'm hardly involved in to...

...begin with. Because I work that 12 hour a day wage laboring job and every week I involve myself in local politics. What a joke.

People like the whole direct democracy thing, one vote, one count.

[Captain Hilts]

26. No, it's more complicated than that. Older voters participate less in caucuses, though...

they have high voter turnout rates.

[Sensitivity]

3. Mainly active party members who have been following the contest go to Caucus meetings

[L. Coyote]

21. And yet, organizers can bring in overwhelming numbers of new members

Organizing it what makes the difference, and the caususes have a distinct role, pointing to how much energy a candidate can convince a person to invest. You have to have a motivated following to win in caucuses, and you have to build organization.

[557188]

4. Bullying, hype and being trendy

Obama is the "cool" candidate. It's all about fitting in with the "cool" crowd.

An example of this would be music. When you're with your peers you tend to listen to music that is accepted. The Bon Jovi, just a random example, is something you listen to in private because you may be embarrassed because your more vocal friends don't like it. The group dynamic is powerful as many people can't stand up for themselves and give in too easily.

Primaries are about individual choice without the influence of others.

[tyne]

6. Ya

Hundreds of the over 60 crowd at my caucus just wanted to be "cool" last night. LOL

Idaho.

[book_worm]

32. funny, oh you weren't joking.

[Renew Deal]

7. Because Obama fought for their votes

Hillary ignored them.

[busymom]

8. Important...

In our caucus in MN last night, you could vote for president between 7-8pm. There were big groups of students from the university that showed up...but all WORKING americans that happened to be on the evening shift were disenfranchised...nurses, docs, wal-mart, target, Caribou employees...etc etc etc

[joshcryer]

11. Yep, it's not a real sample of a population, just the people who "are involved."

This often times includes local party elites. That poor person who has to work 12 hours a day is not going to be represented.

[joshcryer]

10. Do you think regular people are going to be involved in the caucusing process?

Think about it. Do normal people want to go down to the meeting and talk it out and do whatever? Not really. So what you have are trend setters actually going out and doing it. And because Obama always puts people on the ground in these states, his people can easily grab enough people to fill a caucus.

Hillary really needs to work on her caucusing abilities. Dean lost in 2004 because he didn't really prepare himself for what goes on in a caucus.

[rateyes]

22. You just keep digging a deeper hole for yourself...

So, now, caucus goers aren't "normal" or "regular people?" :wtf:

[F.Gordon]

35. No. They are not

Caucus goers are mostly active party insiders. Not "normal".... "regular" voters. I only saw a handful of people that I haven't already seen at other dem party events.

[rateyes]

46. So, caucus goers are "abnormal people?"

:shrug: He didn's say "voters." He said, "people."

[joshcryer]

43. Absolutely not.

[demokatgurrl]

12. Because closet racists

have no closets to go into.
Somewhat tongue-in-cheek, but I think it has a bit of truth to it. People will talk a good game about being color blind, etc. but when they get in that voting booth, alone.... who will know?


and this is from a Clinton supporter, who will vote for whoever gets the Dem nomination, regardless of race, creed or gender.

[goldcanyonaz]

16. So, one could say that they would vote for Obama just to not appear racist.

Can go both ways with that analogy.

[TexasObserver]

15. if Hillary supporters can vote any time, they'll participate

but causus attending cuts into time set aside for watching TV and napping

Obama gets the younger people out in mass, and that's why he's so strong in caucuses.

[goldcanyonaz]

17. Napping and TV time? WTF!! Ever heard of something called a job?

[Name removed]

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[Name removed]

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[rateyes]

23. Obama supporters don't have jobs? nt

[Captain Hilts]

27. Or can't find/afford a baby-sitter. nt

[TexasObserver]

33. it has to do with age groups

Obama has younger voters and Hillary has older voters. It's no secret that older voters tend to vote in higher numbers, but they are not excited about spending four hours of a given evening at a caucus.

[Occam Bandage]

39. You can take children along.

[Captain Hilts]

40. Most people don't want to drag small children to an event like that. nt

[mntleo2]

19. It Is About The Discussion

...I am over 55, yet raising my 2 year old grandniece as a single parent, and I work. I got a babysitter and I am going (WA State caucus this Saturday). I went last time when I worked as well. I went in 2004 ready to vote for Edwards and became a delegate for Kucinich instead at that time, because of the discussion. As an Edwards supporter this time, I am undecided and may join that group if I think it will help the awesome platform Edwards had, and I am leaning towards Obama now, whom I have always liked ~ but I will wait to see what happens and what we discuss there because I know that, even though I am already aware of the platforms and am into a great deal of the "inside poop" I will not decide until after listening to all sides of the arguments.

I am sorry that people who work and/or have children cannot attend on Saturdays. We would have the same problem if we met Tuesday nights, Wednesday mornings, or Sunday afternoon. We no longer have a work week that is for most people M-F, 8-5. Maybe we need to work on that as well since we have lost just about all our other worker's rights when we gave them up in the 1970's, '80's, and '90's by allowing our unions to make a choice between their workers and their own survival and gave everything away while "negotiating" with the boss at the golf club. It obviously did not work, because the unions are still dying on the vine and our rights are almost gone. Now our children and grandchildren will have to fight and die for the same labor fights my grandparents did in the 1920's and 30's. Because my generation were a bunch of ignorant and selfish louts who only looked at the moment instead of thinking ahead for their kids and grandkids ~ and ultimately even shot themselves in the foot as most boomers will never retire, but work for a wage until they die of old age. Thus we will all struggle to ever be able to participate in the political process unless we take a day off with or without pay.

My 2 cents

[TriMetFan]

24. And this is why a Caucus doesn't work.

Voting should be done on paper ballots and in private.

[Captain Hilts]

25. Younger, wealthier voters have the time and energy to devote to caucuses. Older and people w/kids..

find it difficult to participate. So, Obama's demographic paritcipates at a higher rate than hers does. Older voters, particularly women, didn't want to go out at night, in sub-freezing temperatures to spend hours discussing their vote choices before crowds in Iowa.

Women, in particular, are much more vulnerable to spousal pressure to vote certain ways than are men. That's also a factor in the caucus process.

[Occam Bandage]

38. Retirees generally dominate caucuses, though. nt

[totodeinhere]

28. Obama has spent a lot of time and money in the small caucus states.

Remember a couple of days ago when Clinton was campaigning in California and Obama was in Idaho? A lot of people wondered why he was in Idaho, but now we know. He was following a small state strategy, and that is the strategy that has won for him a small lead in the delegate count up to this point.

[leftofthedial]

30. it is hard to talk about Clinton for more than a few minutes

and still vote for her

[book_worm]

31. organiziation and dedicated supporters.

[F.Gordon]

34. I attended my last cluster fuck

Shit, after last night, I may become apolitical.

My precinct looked like an Obama Party. The precinct captain had her Obama crap on so everyone could see who she supported. The ONLY sign at my precinct was an Obama sign. If they had not let people register after 7:00pm the Clinton supporters would not have met the 15% Cluster Fuck rule.

Last night confirmed my earlier suspicions. Obama has always been the "chosen one" by the Dem Party. Clinton, Edwards, et al just fucked it up for Obama to be the crowned king. What I saw and what I discovered in talking with a few people.... the local Dem Party made the decision to back Obama.

A Caucus DOES NOT represent a sampling of the actual voters. It is a cluster fuck that allows the active Party members to dictate who gets the nom. I was very disgusted by what I witnessed last evening.

Like I said... I attended my last cluster fuck. It is not even close to be representative of the democratic process.

Edit? all the usual crap

[okasha]

36. Texas is not a caucus state.

In 1988, I voted for Jesse in the Texas primary, so I have no idea why you may have gone to something you thought was a caucus. Maybe it was a local party meeting.

One of the reasons Obama does and has done well in caucus states is that caucuses allow second choices. Obama picked up a good many Edwards voters in venues where Edwards didn't meet the minimum. He probably picked up some of Edwards' support in last night's primaries, too, at least among the anti-Hillary Edwards voters.

[rateyes]

47. I was a student in Ft. Worth, and there was a presidential caucus

at the school down the road. I went, and caucused for Jesse Jackson (the only white voter to do so), and was elected by the Caucus, at the precinct level, to go to the Tarrant County convention, where the actual delegates from the county to the State Convention were chosen. From there, the State Convention chose delegates to the National Convention. That was 20 years ago, so, I don't know WTF happened either, then, if there was an actual primary. :shrug:

[okasha]

49. Color that two of us who don't know what happened.

:shrug:

It sounds, though, as if the "caucus" was actually a precinct meeting and that the process was not to select a candidate but to select the delegates who would represent/be pledged to the candidates in the primary. To quote my long-ago civics teacher, "You're not really voting for the candidate. You're voting for the delegates who will vote for the candidate at the convention."

[ozone_man]

52. It's an open primary, closed caucus hybrid

Those that have voted in the primary are eligible to attend the caucus.

Texas holds primary election and begins caucusing at the precinct conventions immediately after primary elections close. Any person casting a vote in the party primary is eligible to caucus at their precinct location at 7:15 pm of election night. Allocation of delegates between primary and caucus varies among political parties. According to Texas Democratic Party rules, District Level delegates are allocated based on primary elections. At-Large and PLEO delegates are allocated based on state convention delegate sign-ins after caucusing at the precinct and district/county levels.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_%28United_States%29_presidential_primaries%2C_2008#_ref-22

[Occam Bandage]

37. His supporters are dedicated enough to spend a few hours. Clinton's aren't.

[BadgerLaw2010]

42. Would you like to be in a room full of Obama supporters? n/t

[Egnever]

45. Ground game

His ground game has been excelent. Its all about GOTV in caucuses.

[goodgd_yall]

48. Not all caucuses are like Iowa's----many do not involve "discussions"

For instance, New Mexico's did not. I don't know why they call them caucuses, to tell you the truth. The differences I see are: fewer places to vote and a restricted amount of time to vote.

[Beacool]

50. We were told that the national campaign didn't make an effort

in the caucus states because there were too few delegates to warrant a massive mobilization of ground forces. They mainly concentrated in the primary states.

[LisaM]

51. Is it possible to discuss the reasons without insulting the other candidates' voters?

We have caucuses on Saturday (here in Washington) and I am not looking forward to them. At my last caucus, there were a lot of very vocal Dean supporters. It was hard to get a word in. I'm not looking forward at all to the caucus on Saturday, but of course I will attend. I don't feel like getting pushed around, I don't want to listen to a bunch of people spouting sound bites. It is during the day, but if it were an evening and I had to go alone, as a woman, I probably wouldn't. I think the caucus system lends itself very much to the bandwagon jumpers, the front runners, whomever's getting the media buzz, to people who have no compunction about trying to sway someone else's vote, and frankly does disenfranchise workers, particularly workers in the service economy. I would far rather go cast my vote in private. I know who I am going to caucus for, but I don't feel like getting shouted down if it comes to that.

[rateyes]

54. Sorry if I insulted anyone....

I didn't try to. In fact, I tried not to.

[gaspee]

53. Most people

Can be swayed by other people. Caucuses, IMO, are undemocratic. Most people are followers, not leaders. Proven fact - proven in study after study and also a function of our social and biological order.

Most people also engage in group think. Caucuses are inherently unfair to people who are not strong willed. I happen to be a stubborn, strong willed asshole, so I would actually like to have a caucus but I still think they are undemocratic.

[GalleryGod]

55. No Bosses. No Political Drones/Machines. No Latinos.

Next 5 Primaries: Boo-Hoo NO Latino FIREWALL

:rofl: bye-bye baby !:rofl: