Will Oregon matter in the presidential race?

Last night, KGW led with the presidential race - and focused on the campaign coming to Oregon. BlueOregon was all over the story, including co-editor Kari Chisholm and yesterday's guest contributor Josh Kardon:

Update: Also, BlueOregon co-editor Charlie Burr was interviewed as part of KATU's coverage. Watch that video here.

Discuss.

  • (Show?)

    Putting me up side-by-side with Josh Kardon seemed to imply that I'm an Obama spokesperson. I am not.

    I am, as Kardon said yesterday, an "Obama-come-lately". :)

    Other than that, and my very messy desk, the piece is pretty good!

  • Bill R. (unverified)
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    It's hard to know yet whether Oregon will matter. The Clintons keep moving the goalposts. Their challenge now is, "Meet me in Pennsylvania." But Wyoming and Mississippi don't matter. Will Oregon matter? Maybe not... especially if the Clintons expect to lose. She might not even campaign here. The Clintons are betting on the superdelegates and don't care about the pledged delegates now so Oregon probably doesn't matter.

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    I was watching the news last night and saw Charlie Burr on there as well.

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    If Obama is the candidate, Oregon will probably not be a swing state as it will reliably go for Obama. As well, Ohio, Florida, Pennsylvania, and New Mexico will also probably not be swing states... they will go for McCain.

  • (Show?)

    Wow! Kari Chisolm in High-Freaking-Def!

  • (Show?)

    Nice job plugging the site! KATU also did a feature on the race which can be found here (in the same spirit of promoting our team of editors.)

    Peter, I think you're way off with your analysis of Obama in a general election. I spent time watching Obama down in Tampa last year and drew the exact opposite conclusion. Also, as recently as yesterday, U.S. Senator Sherrod Brown of Ohio, who's undecided, said that either Obama or Clinton would likely carry the state because its poorly performing economy. I'd also point that your analysis seems to ignore the coalition Obama put together in Wisconsin.

  • Katy (unverified)
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    The Clintons keep moving the goal posts? Huh??

  • Chuck Butcher (unverified)
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    Peter,

    You base that assumption on what? Clinton-itis? You seem to be making a case that Clinton supporters won't vote Obama? Maybe you should look over the demographics of her support base before making such bald-faced statements.

    There might well be an argument that a piece of Obama's support won't go Clinton, I don't think it's real strong. What you won't see is the level of enthusiasm and activism from them. A large chunk of that is probably very candidate specific.

    The results of BushCo are going to drive the vote in November. You seem very willing to ignore all the polling that shows Obama significantly ahead in ability to whack John McBush. You may think Hillary is something special, and you're welcome to that idea (wrong as it is), but your blatant BS is tiresome.

    I don't like Hillary Clinton and I don't like her for very specific reasons and I don't make up junk about it. You might try that. I don't claim to be soft spoken, so what? Real is still real.

  • petrichor (unverified)
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    i truly hope oregon does not matter this year. the only way hillary can win now is with more of the fear based attacks she has been leveling against obama, combined with some serious super-delegate strong arming, and then a nasty credentials committee fight. her only path to the nomination is a path that would seriously hurt the legitimacy of the eventual democratic nominee.

    obama still has the opportunity to win without that extra baggage, so he must. hillary will not (and should not) bow out. i've been a very tentative obama supporter, but i think it might be time to get off the sidelines. that ball is in our court.

    oh, and do you really blog in a suit??

  • (Show?)

    Whoohoo! Thanks Charlie! I've added that link to the post above.

  • (Show?)

    oh, and do you really blog in a suit??

    Not typically. All pajamas all the time. Mainstream media eat your heart out!

  • Katy (unverified)
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    Chuck, What is the polling that shows Obama significantly ahead in his ability to beat McCain? The PEW poll I saw showed that 25% of Clinton supporters would vote for McCain in a general in gets the nomination w/10% of Obama supporters defecting. Again, I'm may just be confused.

  • (Show?)

    Of course Oregon matters!

    Even if it doesn't decide the contest (I think that will come down to FL and MI), it will give us a voice.

    And there's some crucial overlapping work here as well: in working for our primary we're preparing for the general.

    I work every day to try and get positive words out about Hillary for this reason. Even if she doesn't win Oregon, if she is the nominee all progressive Oregonians should want her to prevail here, and that will be harder if fellow democrats are constantly reinforcing negative talking-points that the right-wing foisted on her a decade ago - points that are not borne out by her very progressive Senate record.

    Her policies are strong and she's a great Democrat; hedge your bets, even if your an Obama supporter, and make sure Hillary knows she's welcome here too. Let's use our primary to show the rest of the nation what Democratic unity looks like.

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    I base it on opinion and also polling that shows that in a McCain-Obama match up, Obama will lose: New Jersey, Michigan, Florida, Rhode Island...

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    Correction, polling shows that he will lose: New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Florida, West Virginia... (was looking at wrong map).

    Again, I don't necessarily put a lot of stock in polls right now, simply because there is a huge Obama bias with his recent attention.

    But the fact that polls show him losing NJ, Penn, and WV suggests that he has a serious blue collar problem that will likely only get worse.

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    Chris, of course Clinton supporters are welcome here. The editors of Blue Oregon tried to get more pro-Clinton posts here for weeks. We're thrilled they're joining the conversation. Vive la difference!

    When Clinton supporters or steering committee members spread false negative attacks -- like the Jay Z story you picked up from Taylor Marsh -- I'm going to debunk them. That doesn't mean I'm trying to make you feel uncomfortable or unwelcomed here. As I wrote weeks ago, it's possible to support your candidate without trying to tear your opponent down.

  • (Show?)

    Several polls have also showed Obama beating McCain. Those polls show Obama up by 7-8 points, outside of the margin of error. Hillary is within the margin of error on the same poll, put them in a statistical tie.

    Obama tops new national polls

    This one shows Obama up by 7%, Hillary and McCain at 46% each. The story talks about several polls, including one where Democrats said Obama had the best chance of beating Sen. John McCain -- 59 percent to Clinton's 28 percent.

    Polls done by CNN and Time last month both showed Obama 7-8 points ahead of McCain and Hillary and McCain statistically tied.

    The ones that have Hillary beating McCain are typically within the margin of error, while Obama is outside.

    On another thread, Peter said "Polls mean very little when conducted in March, after a media coronation of Obama." However, the polls I am talking about above were all conducted in February.

  • (Show?)

    Kari:

    Nothing better than working on your pjs!

    Btw- how's the little man doing? Feeling better?

  • Katy (unverified)
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    I'd just like to say for the record that I haven't seen one single nasty or harsh comment from Kari, Charlie or Jeff (I'm not sure of all the editors at BO, I'm just listing the ones I know of). I've only read positive comments or comments defending their candidate coming from those who represent this site. A few other people however...WOW.

  • (Show?)

    Nice piece! Somehow, I can't get the Charlie clip to work, though.

  • Bill R. (unverified)
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    More on matchups with McCain:

    http://politicalwire.com/archives/2008/03/05/both_democrats_lead_mccain.html

    Both Democrats Lead McCain A new Washington Post/ABC News poll shows both Democratic presidential candidates ahead of Sen. John McCain in general election match ups.

    Sen. Barack Obama leads McCain, 52% to 40%, while Sen. Hillary Clinton is ahead, 50% to 44%.

    Key finding: "Another obstacle for McCain may be his age. More than a quarter of those polled said they are less inclined to support McCain because he would be the oldest person ever to become president. The percentage discouraged by McCain's age is more than double that of people who would be less enthusiastic about supporting Obama because he is African American or Clinton because she is a woman."

    March 5, 2008 | Related News

  • (Show?)

    Check out these electoral maps from Survey USA published by kos this afternoon.

    In Oregon: McCain v Clinton: +5 McCain McCain v Obama: + 8 Obama

    Pretty amazing. Either Steve or Jeff would like to have the benefit of possible coattails like that.

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    On another thread, Peter said "Polls mean very little when conducted in March, after a media coronation of Obama." However, the polls I am talking about above were all conducted in February

    Then they are even less reliable than ones conducted in March.

  • Charlie Burr (unverified)
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    Peter, didn't you also predict the defeat of Measure 49? All I'm saying is maybe you're underestimating voters here too.

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    For those touting polls in early 2008 as somehow predictive of the final outcome, here's a good lesson to remember. In September polls might be more meaningful!

  • Peter Bray (unverified)
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    Yes, I predicted that... based on polling. So I hopefully learned that early polling often correlates little with eventual outcomes!

  • backbeat12 (unverified)
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    A few other people however...WOW

    :wave:

    Watch this video then tell me why I should support her. She'll draft my sons in one of her New York minutes:

    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pYATbsu2cP8

  • BCM (unverified)
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    Get off the cross, Katy. As TA insightfully pointed out, you haven't posted a single comment with substance -- just incessant whining.Your victims complex is really ruining our discussions on the issues.

    On the other hand, I disagree with Peter's suppositions, but he is on the issues so he is positvely contributing.

  • (Show?)

    Charlie Burr: thanks for the note. BTW I wasn't meaning solely your reply, though you did hyperbolize a little by conflating a comment on blue oregon with an attack by the Clinton campaign. And I agree, we should not be tearing anyone down at this point. I was berated and cussed out on other threads, on both BO and other sites, long before that exchange with you. :-)

    The anecdote is one I've dropped, even though it was not at first denied it was never officially proven. Curious that you bring it up again though - a tactic perhaps? I'll let it go if you will.

    Campaigns, and individual approaches with them, evolve. I think this is a point where we all need to be building unity and making positive cases (and purely factual distinctions) for our candidates, and you can count on that from me.

    Democrats in 2008!

  • Bill Bodden (unverified)
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    There might well be an argument that a piece of Obama's support won't go Clinton, I don't think it's real strong. What you won't see is the level of enthusiasm and activism from them. A large chunk of that is probably very candidate specific.

    I'm supporting Obama, not with the starry-eyed enthusiasm of some of his supporters, but on the slim chance that he can make a difference. I'm also an independent (NAV) so I don't feel any obligation to go for any Democrat the voters choose. It is too early to say what I'll do in November, but I could just as well write in someone other than Hillary or McCain. Chances are many other, though certainly not all, independents will feel the same way. My anti-Hillary hostility is not the result of right-wing propaganda as some people might like to think or have suggested. Events I have observed in her and Slick Willy's past have stuck with me, and they are mostly negative.

    I work every day to try and get positive words out about Hillary for this reason. Even if she doesn't win Oregon, if she is the nominee all progressive Oregonians should want her to prevail here, and that will be harder if fellow democrats are constantly reinforcing negative talking-points that the right-wing foisted on her a decade ago - points that are not borne out by her very progressive Senate record.

    I seem to recall Hillary and her campaign recently making negative statements about Obama that the right-wing could use against him if he is the nominee. John McCain would be better than Obama on security when McCain is prepared to expand the war in Iraq to Iran? Come on. Get real.

  • Bill Bodden (unverified)
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    If Josh Kardon's post, follow-up remarks, and failure to respond to challenges are representative of his future performance as Clinton point man in Oregon, I don't think Obama has much to worry about in this state. If, as seems likely, Hillary goes for dirty tricks will JK be a loyal cohort leader?

  • (Show?)

    The anecdote is one I've dropped, even though it was not at first denied it was never officially proven. Curious that you bring it up again though - a tactic perhaps?

    Chris, the Jay Z incident never happened. And both in this thread and before, you seem to want to get one last dig in: that the Obama campaign didn’t deny it.

    But that’s just another false talking point from Taylor Marsh. And the Obama people clearly did respond to it, as reflected in Ben Smith's story at Politico. Finally, I said the false story was being spread by Clinton supporters and members of her Oregon steering committee. That’s true and I stand by it.

    But I know we can agree on one thing: Go Dems!

  • (Show?)

    If Josh Kardon's post, follow-up remarks, and failure to respond to challenges are representative of his future performance as Clinton point man in Oregon, I don't think Obama has much to worry about in this state.

    The worst thing anyone supporting Obama could do is underestimate the urgency and intensity of work needed to win Oregon. And I suspect if Paddy, Josh, Sue and others were running things nationally for Hillary, the campaign would probably look a lot different.

    Josh wrote before that's he's going to be busting his hump for whoever secures the nomination. I hope that's Obama, but regardless, I will be right there with him helping our nominee. And I suspect that despite Paddy's irritation with t.a. barnhart, Paddy's DNA is genetically incapable of sitting on the sidelines for such an important fight.

    I believe very strongly Obama is our best nominee, but it's important folks not lose sight of the fall campaign.

  • Matthew Sutton (unverified)
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    Did Josh ever get back to us on when Hillary is going to release her tax returns like Barack has done?

    I would also like Josh to explain to us why Hillary did not read the NIE report before she voted to invade Iraq, and why she echoed Bush-Cheney's "stay the course" position for so so long.

  • Katy (unverified)
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    I'm curious about the story of Obama refusing to have his picture taken w/Gavin Newsom. It was told my Willy Brown and Newson and memebers of his staff all say that it happened. People keep asking about Clinton's vote on Iraq (something that Obama never had to vote on so we have no way of knowing how he would have voted)and why she should be trusted - so why should Obama be trusted w/the lgbt community? I'd like to ask the Obama supporters if this doesn't make you a little uncomfortable?

  • petrichor (unverified)
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    i say this as a weak obama supporter, but are you really saying that not getting ones photo taken with gavin newson means that you're not down with the lgtbq community?

    if i were going after obama on that issue i would mention donnie mclurkin. but seeing as obama supports the full repeal of doma, and hillary only wants a partial roll back, and he's been speaking out at black churches against homophobia, i'd say that's a wash at the very least.

  • Katy (unverified)
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    It was smack dab in the middle of Newson's turmoil over his decision to allow gay marriage in SF. Seems to me, at the very least, something like this shows that Obama is very much capable of the calculating political moves that people keep accusing Clinton's campaign of doing. At worst it shows he's a flip-flopper, a hyprocrite.

    I guess if we're being honest we'd agree that every candidate isn't perfect and that yes, this is a rather uncomfortable story.

  • (Show?)

    According to both Newsweek and Bob Shrum's book, "No Excuses", it was Bill Clinton at this time who counseled John Kerry to support a federal gay marriage amendment to win Ohio. And you're comparing that to a photo?

    On issues, via Lesbian Life:

    Barack Obama and Gay Rights in Illinois: Barack Obama supported gay rights during his Illinois Senate tenure. He sponsored legislation in Illinois that would ban discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation.

    Barack Obama in the United States Senate: Every two years the Human Rights Campaign, the largest national gay and lesbian organization, issues a scorecard for members of the Senate based on their sponsorship and voting on key issues of importance to gay and lesbian citizens. Barack Obama scored 89 out of 100% in the 2006 scorecard.

    Here's how HRC rated Barack Obama: Barack Obama on Hate Crimes: Barack Obama co-sponsored legislation to expand federal hate crimes laws to include crimes perpetrated because of sexual orientation and gender identity.

    Employment Non-Discrimination: Barack Obama supports the Employment Non-Discrimination Act and believes it should be expanded to include sexual orientation and gender identity.

    Don't Ask, Don't Tell - Gays in the Military: Barack Obama believes we need to repeal the "Don't Ask, Don't Tell" policy and allow gays and lesbians to serve openly in the military. His campaign literature says, "The key test for military service should be patriotism, a sense of duty, and a willingness to serve."

    Gay & Lesbian Adoption: Barack Obama believes gays and lesbians should have the same rights to adopt children as heterosexuals.

    Barack Obama and Gay Marriage/ Civil Unions: Although Barack Obama has said that he supports civil unions, he is against gay marriage. In an interview with the Chicago Daily Tribune, Obama said, "I'm a Christian. And so, although I try not to have my religious beliefs dominate or determine my political views on this issue, I do believe that tradition, and my religious beliefs say that marriage is something sanctified between a man and a woman."

    Barack Obama did vote against a Federal Marriage Amendment and opposed the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996.

  • Katy (unverified)
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    Actually, no. I'm asking if this story makes any Obama supporters uncomfortable? Last time I checked Bill Clinton isn't running for President?

  • Bill R. (unverified)
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    Great reach-out by Josh Kardon, Hit and run! If he really thinks Hillary has a shot at winning with any legitimacy, why does he support her scorched earth campaign. Yesterday she spent the day endorsing John McCain and trashing Obama. In the event of a stolen nomination, is there some notion that Obama or his supporters would support Hillary, or that the party would even survive? If there is a real dialogue here, the Clinton campaign needs to make the case that it can actually unite the party around her candidacy and win a legitimate nomination contest. Right now it's just total war and people aren't giving money to a party they think is in cahoots with Clinton to rig the nomination. The DNC are calling people left and right and are running out of cash, thanks to these kind of tactics. When Clinton goes around making sound bites for John McCain, then the prospects for the fall look pretty grim and candidates down-ticket are going to suffer as well. So what words of wisdom, Josh Kardon, or is this just a drive-by BS??

  • (Show?)

    Katy, we both know that Bill Clinton is the campaign's main surrogate -- and really kind of stands alone in his super "surrogatiness" -- so it's a little of disingenuous to pick and choose from when he's relevant and when he's not.

  • (Show?)

    So the question becomes:

    Does Bill's surrogatiness trump Barak's Sartorial Nattiness?

    I'm liking it Charlie........

  • petrichor (unverified)
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    katy,

    i am not obamanaut. i am equally prepared to be disappointed by either obama or hillary when they inevitably employ the kick-the-base strategy to appease the conservative establishment after election.

    so if you provide a reference for that story, i'll happily read it, and if it passes the smell test, i'll attach it to my list of things to be disappointed about. since newsom and brown are in the clinton camp, the claim doesn't have much merritt without a ref.

    in the spirit of agreement, though, i am happy to admit that obama is equally capable of calculating political moves as hillary, and that no candidate is perfect. (though right now clinton is perfectly aligned with mcain in her liebermanesque attacks on obama)

  • (Show?)

    Kari and Josh, you guys should run for something. You look great in HD.

    Charlie, you do know my genetic makeup and of course I'll be there for the nominee of my party with all my heart and soul. It's still not clear to me that I'll be welcomed by some in the Obama camp should he become our nominee, but I've covered that ground before.

    Bill R, can we agree that this is a tough campaign is neither one has totally clean hands? For example, is probably over any line of reasonableness. And I'd love to see a cite from you on the DNC running out of money. Everything that I've read indicates just the opposite.

    How about here in Oregon, we all just remember that after Denver we're going to have to play nice together or we're going to end up with McCain and Smith.

  • (Show?)

    Sorry, that's what I get for not previewing. I was trying to use the link to the word "Monster."

  • Bill Bodden (unverified)
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    So what words of wisdom, Josh Kardon, or is this just a drive-by BS??

    My vote gores for drive-by bullshit. I challenged him on some points on an earlier thread. No response. He has been challenged on this thread and, poof, Josh is gone.

  • (Show?)

    Yeah Paddy, on the Monster comment, several reporters including this one currently at the top on Huffpost, offer some perspective. Ms. Power has now stepped down from the campaign, as The Scotsman, which broke the story decided to publicize one of those "off the record" remarks made by regularly by the staffs of both campaigns.

    The sad part, is this reprises the tired meme that anyone who opposes the Likud Party in Israel and the Neo-Conservative movement here in the US is necessarily "anti-semitic", which among other things begs the question of the de facto "semitism" of Arabs.

    I'm sure we'll be hearing endless variations on this theme from your guys in the unlikely event that Obama's krew has the guts to keep pushing for fair play in the Israel/Palestine arena.

  • Bill Bodden (unverified)
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    My vote gores for drive-by bullshit. I challenged him on some points on an earlier thread. No response. He has been challenged on this thread and, poof, Josh is gone.

    On the other hand, maybe Hillary has him too busy digging up dirt on Obama to fuel her scorched earth policy.

    I'm sure we'll be hearing endless variations on this theme from your guys in the unlikely event that Obama's krew has the guts to keep pushing for fair play in the Israel/Palestine arena.

    Other than a few politicians - Kucinich, Gravel, Ron Paul - and Ralph Nader none has had the integrity to demand a fair and just settlement of the Israeli-Palestinian problem. Those who consider this to be political suicide may be right, but the inescapable consequence is that it demonstrates our national hypocrisy and encourages enmity among many Arabs (semites) and Muslims. If I recall correctly the maltreatment of Arabs in Palestine and Iraq was part of the motivation for 9/11.

  • joel (unverified)
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    Again, I don't necessarily put a lot of stock in polls right now, simply because there is a huge Obama bias with his recent attention.

    But the fact that polls show him losing NJ, Penn, and WV suggests that he has a serious blue collar problem that will likely only get worse.

    I had not previously realized that working-class voters were restricted to a few states. Thanks for the correction.

  • (Show?)

    And I'd love to see a cite showing the DNC running out of money. Everything I've read shows just the opposite.

    Today's New York Times includes a piece about the DNC's money woes, including ending 2007 "flat broke." Thankfully, they've raised more since, but we still trail the Republicans badly.

    If the Clinton campaign wants to change the nominating rules in the middle of the game, it doesn't make a lot of sense for the DNC to be forced to pay for it. Have new elections in Florida and Michigan if people want, but have the states pick up the tab. Or have caucuses, which are better party-building tools anyway.

    I think the whole Florida/Michigan thing is another example of the Clinton campaign putting its self-interest ahead of the interests of the Democratic party.

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