Clinton Camp: It's A Miracle We're Not Behind In Pennsylvania

[NJSecularist]

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2008/04/09/clinton-camp-its-a-miracl_n_95883.html

If you were operating off of the tone of Sen. Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign it's a downright political miracle that the she isn't trailing Barack Obama by 20 points in the current Pennsylvania polls.

In a Wednesday conference call with reporters, aides to the New York Democrat offered a heaping dose of expectations-setting roughly two weeks before Pennsylvanians hit the polls.

"The fact that we still maintain a lead after Sen. Obama spent six days here and got the backing of Sen. Casey, and in light of being outspent, I think it is remarkable that we still maintain a lead," said T.J. Rooney, the state's Democratic Party chairman. "We don't think we have any weaknesses in this state. It has been said before and it bears repeating: we are being outspent financially."

And indeed, Obama is pouring massive resources into the state. Estimates have him outspending Clinton by a margin of three-to-one in Pennsylvania, and his campaign has been flooding the airwaves with advertisements. With these advantages, Clinton's aides say, its remarkable that Clinton is even hanging on.

"If Senator Obama is not able to win Pennsylvania with all the resources he has thrown at the state... it will again demonstrate that he has serious problems winning the large states and closing the deal with voters," said Clinton's spokesman Howard Wolfson. "We all now that the road to 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue runs through Pennsylvania. If Sen. Obama, outspending us three to one in the state, is unable to win Pennsylvania it would be another sign that his campaign is not the best to face Sen. McCain in the fall."

The reality, of course, is much more nuanced. For weeks Clinton supporters have been predicting her victory in the state, some by double-digit margins. As recently as yesterday, a poll had the Senator besting Obama by 16 points, although that could be an outlier; the distance between the two candidates has narrowed sharply. And Pennsylvania's political landscape - with more blue collar white voters - and its primary structure - which is limited to only Democrats - lend itself more favorably to Clinton's candidacy.

That said, Obama has devoted myriad resources to besting Clinton in the Keystone State, in what would perhaps be a knockout win. As Wolfson told the reporters, referencing to the 37-point score Obama recently rolled at a bowling alley: "He has been willing even to put his bowling skills on display in an effort to do well here."

:eyes: :eyes: :eyes:

Wolfson, your camp stepped into Pennsylvania with a 20 point lead.

[slinkerwink]

1. and SUSA showed her 18 points up

[kwenu]

2. They are doing the best they can with the sad condition that they are in.

[Catherina]

24. They are but who trains these people? What kind of silliness is

"The fact that we still maintain a lead after Sen. Obama spent six days here and got the backing of Sen. Casey, and in light of being outspent, I think it is remarkable that we still maintain a lead."

The person who said that gets a 0 in motivational speaking. Why remind people that Casey is backing your opponent, that your opponent is getting more donations from people or that it's remarkable you have a lead? That was a party official too!

I would have said something like "Our opponent has been pouring money like crazy into PA but his money won't ever buy the people's trust. We're thankful to the voters for remaining focused on the issues." Something like that...

[rurallib]

3. Time for Penn to do a poll.

[Zachstar]

4. Hey Clinton Damage control is not going to help you in a firewall state.

If the campaign does not win by over 10 it will be known that a major Clinton firewall was broken into pieces by the change man. That will resonate in the remaining states and will be a disaster for the Clinton campaign.

Clinton its now or never with PA. Stop with the BS and start with the campaigning or your chances of winning anything are low. People are tired of the BS.

[SoCalDem]

5. In November '07 she was at 48% in PA ..Obama at 15%

She's improved as much as she's going to..

In FIVE months, she's only gone up...um ....not much


http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/democratic_primaries.html

[Kittycat]

6. If you ain't got no money, take your broke @ss home.

Sorry, Fergi just popped in my head.

Seriously though... She's being outspent, because no one cares enough to donate to her campaign, and all her lobbyist friends are maxed out.

[MercutioATC]

20. This is DU. You can say "ass" here...

:)

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

7. It's remarkable that Obama has kicked Clinton's butt so far

given how far she was ahead of him in terms of support and fundraising just a few months ago.

[Cha]

8. What's a "miracle" is that hilary clinton's

nose hasn't grown 7 feet in all her political years and this Dem primary.

"Why Hillary’s Lies are Important"

- March 24, 2008, 9:53PM
Hillary Clinton has been caught in a series of lies and misrepresentations during the primary campaign. To some of her supporters, these lies may seem trivial and insignificant and even politics-as-usual. However, please consider the serious impact of these lies by placing them in the context of the past seven years of the Bush Administration and the legacy of expanded executive power that he leaves behind. In particular, consider the dangerous message that the Clinton campaign sends by employing similar tactics to achieve her political goals.

1. The Florida and Michigan Primaries / The Delegate Count
Hillary agreed to honor the DNC’s decision to strip Florida and Michigan of its delegates after their primaries were moved up into January in express violation of the DNC rules. She did not change her position on the validity of these primaries until she found herself unexpectedly behind in the delegate count and desperately needed to claim the delegates that she had won in these unsanctioned contests. As her chances of winning the nomination became increasingly slim in recent weeks, we have been presented with threatening and desperate lines of reasoning for why these primary results should count as is. At the same time, Clinton and her surrogates continue to propose different metrics for determining who should win the nomination even though there is and has been a clearly defined process in place for several decades.

Please think about the implications of changing election rules after the fact. We have suffered through at least one stolen presidential election and the manipulation of untold numbers of Congressional and state elections through various vote tampering and voter intimidation schemes used by the Republicans and their allies. The American people (and especially Democratic voters) have lost faith in the integrity of the election process. The Clinton strategy to continually change the rules for determining the Democratic Party nominee sets a dangerous precedent that could lead to increasingly un-Democratic elections in the future if it is allowed to succeed. If anything, we need more transparency and methods of accountability in our elections in order to repair the damage done in recent years and to restore our confidence in the Government.

2. The Bosnia Fabrication / Exaggerated Experience Claims
Hillary fabricated a story about a dangerous, life-risking visit to Bosnia in order to gain stature as an experienced negotiator in international conflicts and war. While this type of embellishment can seem almost comical, it represents a willingness to distort reality in order to influence the public perception. This is the same type of distortion that the Bush administration used to justify the war in Iraq, although the magnitude of the lie is certainly on a different scale. The Bush administration falsified reports, cherry-picked intelligence, used unreliable sources, and employed fear-mongering tactics to convince the American public that our safety was at risk and as such, you were either with us or with the terrorists. The lies used by President Bush and Vice President Dick Cheney are impeachable offenses and should be condemned by all Americans. Sadly, the Clinton campaign seems to have shown a shocking willingness to employ the same tactics to create a more favorable reality and to rely on divide-and-conquer rhetoric to weaken opposition. Her attempts to frighten the American people by conjuring up 3 AM phone calls are bad enough, but her vote of confidence in John McCain over Barack Obama should be seen as treason against the Democratic Party.

3. NAFTA
Hillary lied about her position on NAFTA and used her lies in a calculated way to influence the Ohio primary. Recently released White House documents confirm that Hillary had been an active proponent of NAFTA prior to its passage, and she has continued to support it publicly in her speeches and memoir. However, while campaigning in Ohio, she claimed to have been privately against NAFTA during the Clinton presidency and believes that it should be rewritten to protect American jobs and workers. This type of maneuvering is reminiscent of the behind-closed-doors policy-making that the Bush administration has used during the past seven years. Specifically, Bush and Cheney have made policy decisions without providing transparency to Congress or the public, and President Bush has repeatedly ignored the rule of law by issuing signing statements and disregarding the parts of the laws that he doesn’t agree with. If we cannot trust Hillary to be truthful about her positions on critical legislative issues now, how can we trust that she will be truthful as president?

These are just three examples that illustrate the concerns we should have with a candidate who demonstrates a sense of entitlement to the nomination and is willing to lie, misrepresent, threaten, and divide in order to obtain the nomination. President Bush and the neoconservative movement have greatly harmed this country by the creation of an imperial-like presidency. This election is not just about whether a Democrat or Republican wins but if the checks and balances are restored to the three branches of government. The framers of the Constitution were in such fear of an imperial president that mechanisms for impeachment are prominently and explicitly included in the Constitution. If Hillary Clinton is willing to use lies and deceit to win the Democratic nomination, what assurances do we have that she will not continue to use them once she is president?
http://tpmcafe.talkingpointsmemo.com/talk/2008/03/why-h ...

<snip>

"Her response to being caught lying to a military audience, when she invented a story about being under sniper fire in Bosnia, was to say it wasn't surprising she got some things wrong, seeing how she spoke millions of words every day. What a magnificent idea, that if you say lots of words some of them are bound to be fantastic lies. So if you listen carefully to horse-racing commentators they say things like "And it's Teddy's Boy still leading three furlongs out as they come up to the fourth last fence with Nip and Tuck two lengths behind by the way I fought a tiger once, punched it clean out and they're all safely over."

<lots more>
http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/opinion/article3 ...

"It's not that lying to pad the resume, avoid Indictment or to advance her political fortune is anything new for Hillary Clinton. She famously said she was named after Sir Edmund Hillary (debunked); she told New Yorkers she was a Yankee fan when she lived in Chicago (debunked); she told rural New Yorkers that she was a "duck hunter" (debunked); she claimed that her daughter Chelsea was jogging around the World Trade Center at the time of the 9/11 attack (debunked by Chelsea herself.) And, those subpoenaed Rose Law billing records just happened to show up one day on a hallway table in the most monitored home in America!"

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.ph...

[AllentownJake]

9. Their internal poll numbers

Must be scaring the shit out of them if they came out officially lowering the expectations this week. They've been mostly having Fast Eddie do it last week.

[bunnies]

10. Its expectations limbo! How low can she go?! nt

[FlyingSquirrel]

11. Translation: If we win PA by a single vote, It's clear who the voters REALLY want

and it ain't Obama.

:eyes:

Oh, and if we lose PA, it's because we had a patch of bad luck and he outspent us.

[BeyondGeography]

12. spinspinspinspinspin

:boring:

[AtomicKitten]

13. Heads up for those moving goalposts!

[Barack_America]

15. I think I just saw them sail past my window here in Philly...

Looks like they were headed towards North Carolina!



Hope those guys got paid upfront!

[AtomicKitten]

17. North Carolina is her new firewall ...... then Puerto Rico!

[Bigleaf]

14. The only fucking miracle is the medias reluctance to report on the as-yet-to-be-paid Clinton vendors

[Shakespeare]

16. "....what with that 20+ point lead we had two weeks ago, and all...."

:rofl: :rofl: :rofl:

[Window]

18. There goes camp Clinton with their spin. They must think people are stupid.

But then, they have nothing else to say. To hear them tell it, you would think she blew him out of the water in the "big" states to date.

[Cha]

19. Oh yeah? I just saw this on buzzflash

and it doesn't look like hilary's wanting for votes in Pittsburgh..

PITTSBURGH -- In a makeshift auditorium on the banks of the Monongahela River, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton assembled her team of Pennsylvania power brokers. They sat in the front row behind a velvet rope, dressed in dark suits and waving at the crowd. There was the Pennsylvania governor, the county commissioner, a handful of major chief executives . . . and a kid they called Luke.

About 300 people filed into the auditorium to hear Clinton's speech on the economy, and Luke walked onstage to introduce her. He had a boyish face and spiky brown hair, and he stuffed his hands into the pockets of a too-big suit. He spoke hurriedly while pacing, persevering through the sort of nervousness one might expect from a college student, or a campaign volunteer, or an enamored Clinton supporter. Then he introduced himself.

"I'm Luke Ravenstahl," he said, "the mayor of Pittsburgh."

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/04/08/AR2008040802975.html

What's this guy's problem? Doesn't he know a bad candidate from a good one..i.e Obama? Doesn't he know hilary's adviser mark penn is a Union Buster?

[rug]

22. He must lack your nuanced grasp of politics.

[AllentownJake]

23. I've heard

That there were threats of reprisals from the Govenor if anyone on a local level endorsed Obama. Therefore they are quiet or endorse Hillary.

[Catherina]

25. Luke Ravenstahl?

Over the weekend of August 18, 2007 Ravenstahl used a Homeland Security funded SUV to go to a Toby Keith concert at the Post Gazette Pavilion. The Mayor's use of the GMC Yukon to travel to the concert may have violated the terms of the grant that funded the purchase of the vehicle. Responding to the allegations of impropriety, Ravenstahl said "I'm still going to continue to be who I'm going to be, and go to concerts like I always have, and go to have a drink with my wife in bars. That's what 27-year-olds do and I shouldn't be any different ... I'm not going to change my life to appease the media or appease somebody who wants me to be somebody I'm not. I think the fact that I'm 27 is something the city should embrace and it's something that I've embraced."<16>

Sgt. Mona Wallace was reportedly intimidated for reporting the incident to Public Safety Director Michael Huss. Police Chief Nate Harper began disciplinary measures against her, but the reprimand was rescinded by Huss.<17>

In a story by the New York Times, Ravenstahl complained that he could no longer attend Pittsburgh Steelers games. "I just can’t enjoy the game when I know I’m going to get hounded by the press the whole time", Mr. Ravenstahl said. <18>

In the same story, Ravenstahl discussed a number of controversies that he has been involved in as mayor: "'Let’s see, first, in January, there was ‘Heinz-gate’”, Mr. Ravenstahl said, referring to accusations that he was arrested while drunk at a football game at Heinz Field three years ago. “Then in March it was ‘New York-gate’”, where he was lambasted for having flown to New York on a trip paid for by Ron Burkle, a billionaire and political fund-raiser. In April, there was “Tiger-gate”, when Mr. Ravenstahl was mocked for trying to get a photo opportunity with Tiger Woods. “What did I miss?” Ravenstahl said, looking to his press secretary, who sheepishly reminded him. “Boston-gate” was last week, where Mr. Ravenstahl was faulted for being in Boston instead of attending a community meeting on the design of a new casino. This week it was “S.U.V.-gate”, as the front pages of local newspapers criticized Mr. Ravenstahl for using a vehicle paid for with Department of Homeland Security money to take his wife to a country-western concert." <19>


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luke_Ravenstahl

There are more details here. http://www.pittsburghlive.com/x/pittsburghtrib/s_498601.html

[anonymous171]

21. What an asshole.