Obama seeks to turn the tables in Ohio and Texas

[DeepModem Mom]

LAT: Obama seeks to turn the tables in Ohio and Texas
Latinos and blue-collar whites, two mainstays of Clinton support, are being aggressively courted in crucial primary states.
By Peter Wallsten and Tom Hamburger, Los Angeles Times Staff Writers
February 18, 2008

BROWNSVILLE, TEXAS -- With the Democratic presidential race about to enter another crucial phase of voting, Barack Obama has launched a newly aggressive strategy to undermine two pillars of support for rival Hillary Rodham Clinton: Latinos and working-class white voters. Each is an important constituency in major March 4 primaries -- Latinos in Texas and blue-collar workers in Ohio -- which many believe Clinton must win to keep her White House hopes alive.

In Ohio, Obama backers are courting local union leaders and members with promises that the Illinois senator will change U.S. trade policies enacted by Clinton's husband, and which the unions blame for severe job losses. In Texas, Obama has launched a new effort to introduce himself to Latino voters as someone who understands their challenges, thanks to his background of attending college on a scholarship and working with churches as a community organizer. Obama has also launched a new organizing campaign in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas. One piece of that effort could be glimpsed at a Saturday-night celebration of a new Obama office in downtown Brownsville, about half a mile from the Mexican border. It drew about 200 supporters, a noteworthy crowd, the campaign said, for an event not attended by the candidate.

Latinos and blue-collar whites were largely elusive for Obama in the primaries and caucuses held so far. Clinton strategists believe the two groups form a natural base of voters for her that will carry her to victories in delegate-rich Ohio and Texas. But exit polls from some of the most recent voting states, such as Virginia and Maryland, show that Obama has begun to narrow the gap not only with Latinos but with lower-income whites, who have been among Clinton's most loyal backers. Now, the Obama strategy is to peel away as much of that base as possible, helping him to either win Ohio and Texas outright or at least split the states' delegations to the national nominating convention.

"This is, or it was, Clinton country," said Michael Rodriguez, 40, a Brownsville lawyer who helped open the Obama office here and now serves on the campaign's local steering committee. "We're finding people who were Clinton supporters and making them Obama supporters."

In going after both groups, Obama's appeal to younger Americans is proving important....

***

Obama aides argue that they enjoy more advantages in Texas, where Latinos and blacks have a history of building political coalitions. Former Dallas Mayor Ron Kirk, an African American who is advising the Obama campaign, won about 70% of the Latino vote in his mayoral runs. He also carried the heavily Latino Rio Grande Valley as a U.S. Senate candidate in 2002, though he lost that race. Moreover, Obama strategists say Texas Latinos tend to be more politically independent than those in other states, having voted in large numbers for George W. Bush in his races for governor and president. This suggests they may feel comfortable severing their historical ties to the Clinton camp, the Obama aides say....

http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-dems18feb18,0,3178099,full.story

[gabeana]

1. Survey USA Poll head to head vs McCain

I just checked Survey USA websites. This is the polling
service I find the most accurate. In a head to head hillary is
down -7 to McCain while Obama up +10 vs McCain. By the way I
am new here, and a former edwards supporter,and i want the
strongest candidate, just one poll take it for what it is

[jenmito]

4. Thanks for the info. in that poll. There are other polls that show the same thing...

and welcome to the DU! :hi:

[DeepModem Mom]

6. Thanks for posting this info -- and welcome to DU, gabeana!!!

[gabeana]

7. Thanks for the welcome

The thing that got me is that Wisconsin hasn't gone republican since Reagan's 1984 blow out, I also wonder what it means for the numbers tomorrow between Obama-Clinton

[BeyondGeography]

2. The farce that the Clintons, world-class suck-ups to rich people, are more for the little guy

than Obama will be easy pickings for him. On the other hand, what can she do to eat into his base of blacks, young voters and college degree holders?

Zero. Or maybe denigrating oratory and making two of the most compelling young black leaders in the country, Deval Patrick and Barack Obama, into cartoon characters for their latest smearfest will help them with black voters.

Closing arguments, just around the corner. Time to turn the page, Democrats.

[loveangelc]

3. He wins one of those states and this race is oveeeeeeerrrrrrrrrr :)

[GarbagemanLB]

5. awesome.

[NJSecularist]

8. Ohio will be the tougher hurdle to jump

He could win Texas solely due to a large black turnout and support from 40% of the white electorate and 40% of the Latino electorate.

But he won't have that luxury in Ohio. He needs to make in-roads among working-class whites, a group he hasn't been able to dent' from Hillary's grasp, or he is going to get blown out.

It'll be interesting to see what he does and what his strategy is. Cuyahoga County, Hamilton County, Montgomery County, Franklin County and Lucas County should all be safe Obama strongholds. But counties like Stark, Butler, Lake are all going to be tough counties for him to win in, and those are very important counties that he needs to be respectable in. Not to mention the 50+ counties in Ohio that aren't significant by themselves due to their size but when you add them all together, they all have the chance to go to Hillary by very good margins and that will be the difference in the state.