[André]

Republicanos unem-se para atacar Hillary Clinton

Os candidatos republicanos concentraram quinta-feira á noite os ataques contra a democrata Hillary Clinton, num último debate na televisão antes de uma primária crucial na Florida (sudeste dos EUA) na próxima terça-feira.

O senador do Arizona John McCain, que oscila entre o primeiro e o segundo lugar nas sondagens de opinião sobre a votação na Florida, acusou Hillary Clinton, uma das favoritas à indicação democrata, de querer «erguer a bandeira branca da rendição» no Iraque, o que segundo ele daria uma vitória de bandeja à rede terrorista Al Qaeda.

Para McCain, os Estados Unidos «estão a ter sucesso» no Iraque.

«Estou ansioso» para enfrentar Hillary Clinton, cujo programa «não é coerente» com os desejos dos americanos, declarou o ex-governador de Massachusetts Mitt Romney, o maior concorrente de McCain na Florida.

«Não consigo imaginar a ideia de Bill Clinton a voltar para a Casa Branca sem nada para fazer», disse Romney, provocando os risos da plateia. «O que queremos é um presidente, não um casal que pensa que vai dirigir o país», acrescentou.

A equipe de campanha de Hillary Clinton respondeu afirmando que a ex-primeira-dama também está «ansiosa» por debater com o republicano que será seu adversário em Novembro, «apresentando os seus argumentos para um regresso rápido e responsável das tropas e detalhando suas soluções para revitalizar a economia e inverter as políticas de George W. Bush».

Ao contrário dos candidatos democratas, que se confrontaram duramente durante um debate na noite de segunda-feira, os republicanos esforçaram-se por ostentar uma frente unida: os candidatos concordaram em aprovar o princípio da guerra no Iraque, uma política fiscal fundada na redução dos impostos e o corte das despesas federais.

Os «presidenciáveis» norte-americanos são «candidatos excepcionais, que fazem óptimas campanhas», admitiu, citando como exemplo, o ex-presidente da Câmara de Nova Iorque Rudolph Giuliani, que apostou tudo na Florida e poderá retirar-se da corrida à Casa Branca em caso de derrota.

Giuliani brincou ao afirmar que «induziu os adversários no erro» e que, apesar do que indicam as sondagens, será o vencedor das primárias na Florida.

Giulliani, que era há alguns meses o favorito dos republicanos, instalou-se virtualmente na Florida e aposta tudo numa vitória neste estado. Deixou de fazer campanha nas primeiras prévias republicanas, organizadas em pequenos estados conservadores.

Acrescentou estar feliz por ter escapado ao apoio do New York Times, um jornal considerado como um feudo da intelligentzia de esquerda pelos conservadores.

O New York Times manifestou apoio a McCain, e a Hillary Clinton do lado democrata. «Ao ouvi-la falar sobre a presidência, o seu programa e as suas respostas para os grandes problemas da América, ficamos impressionados com a sua sabedoria e sua experiência», escreveram os editorialistas do jornal. Hillary Clinton está a travar uma dura batalha contra o jovem senador Barack Obama, que apostas tudo na primária da Carolina do Sul, prevista para sábado. Michelle Obama denunciou quinta-feira «tácticas da vitória a qualquer custo» através de «ataques enganosos» da equipa de campanha da ex-primeira-dama.

As prévias da Carolina do Sul e da Florida são as últimas antes da «super-terça» de 5 de Fevereiro

Diário Digital / Lusa

[André]

CNN dá vitória a Barack Obama na primárias da Carolina do Sul

O senador democrata Barack Obama venceu hoje as primárias da Carolina do Sul por uma grande diferença sobre a sua principal adversária, Hillary Clinton, segundo as projecções da cadeia televisiva CNN.

O facto de metade dos eleitores serem afro-americanos poderá ter contribuído para o senador do Illinois ganhar esta batalha.

A verificarem-se os prognósticos da CNN, Barack Obama contará com uma nova vitória, depois de ter ganho no Estado do Iowa, e partirá com uma posição de força para as eleições de 5 de Fevereiro, em que vão votar paralelamente 22 Estados de costa a costa do país.

A ex-primeira dama deverá ter alcançado, deste modo, o segundo lugar na Carolina do Sul, enquanto o ex-senador John Edwards terá ficado em terceiro lugar.

Este resultado constituiu um duro revés para John Edwards, devido às expectativas que tinha de alcançar uma boa posição no Estado que o viu nascer, e onde ganhou em 2004 frente ao seu adversário John Kerry.

Lusa

[tsumetomo]

Obama speech: 'Yes, we can change'


 COLUMBIA, South Carolina (CNN) -- Here is the transcript of Sen. Barack Obama's remarks after he won the Democratic presidential primary in South Carolina.

Thank you, South Carolina.

Thank you to the rock of my life, Michelle Obama.

Thank you to Malia and Sasha Obama, who haven't seen their daddy in a week.

Thank you to Pete Skidmore for his outstanding service to our country and being such a great supporter of this campaign.

Over two weeks ago, we saw the people of Iowa proclaim that our time for change has come. But there were those who doubted this country's desire for something new, who said Iowa was a fluke, not to be repeated again.
Don't Miss

    * Obama wins big in South Carolina primary
    * ElectionCenter 2008: South Carolina

Well, tonight, the cynics who believed that what began in the snows of Iowa was just an illusion were told a different story by the good people of South Carolina.

After four -- after four great contests, in every corner of this country, we have the most votes, the most delegates, and the most diverse coalition of Americans that we've seen in a long, long time.

You can see it in the faces here tonight. There are young and old, rich and poor. They are black and white, Latino and Asian and Native American.

They are Democrats from Des Moines and independents from Concord and, yes, some Republicans from rural Nevada. And we've got young people all across this country who have never had a reason to participate until now.

And in nine days, in nine short days, nearly half the nation will have the chance to join us in saying that we are tired of business as usual in Washington. We are hungry for change and we are ready to believe again.

But if there's anything, though, that we have been reminded of since Iowa, it's that the kind of change we seek will not come easy, partly because we have fine candidates in this race, fierce competitors who are worthy of our respect and our admiration.

And as contentious as this campaign may get, we have to remember that this is a contest for the Democratic nomination. And that all of us share an abiding desire to end the disastrous policies of the current administration.

But there are real differences between the candidates. We are looking for more than just a change of party in the White House. We're looking to fundamentally change the status quo in Washington.

It's a status quo that extends beyond any particular party and right now that status quo is fighting back with everything it's got, with the same old tactics that divide and distract us from solving the problems people face, whether those problems are health care that folks can't afford or a mortgage they cannot pay.

So this will not be easy. Make no mistake about what we're up against. We're up against the belief that it's all right for lobbyists to dominate our government, that they are just part of the system in Washington.

But we know that the undue influence of lobbyists is part of the problem and this election is our chance to say that we are not going to let them stand in our way anymore.

We're up against the conventional thinking that says your ability to lead as president comes from longevity in Washington or proximity to the White House. But we know that real leadership is about candor and judgment and the ability to rally Americans from all walks of life around a common purpose, a higher purpose.

We're up against decades of bitter partisanship that cause politicians to demonize their opponents instead of coming together to make college affordable or energy cleaner. It's the kind of partisanship where you're not even allowed to say that a Republican had an idea, even if it's one you never agreed with.

That's the kind of politics that is bad for our party, it is bad for our country, and this is our chance to end it once and for all.

We're up against the idea that it's acceptable to say anything and do anything to win an election. But we know that this is exactly what's wrong with our politics. This is why people don't believe what their leaders say anymore. This is why they tune out. And this election is our chance to give the American people a reason to believe again.

But let me say this, South Carolina. What we've seen in these last weeks is that we're also up against forces that are not the fault of any one campaign, but feed the habits that prevent us from being who we want to be as a nation.

It's the politics that uses religion as a wedge and patriotism as a bludgeon, a politics that tells us that we have to think, act and even vote within the confines of the categories that supposedly define us, the assumption that young people are apathetic, the assumption that Republicans won't cross over, the assumption that the wealthy care nothing for the poor and that the poor don't vote, the assumption that African-Americans can't support the white candidate, whites can't support the African-American candidate, blacks and Latinos cannot come together.

We are here tonight to say that that is not the America we believe in.

I did not travel around this state over the last year and see a white South Carolina or a black South Carolina. I saw South Carolina.

I saw crumbling schools that are stealing the future of black children and white children alike. I saw shuttered mills and homes for sale that once belonged to Americans from all walks of life and men and women of every color and creed who serve together and fight together and bleed together under the same proud flag.

I saw what America is and I believe in what this country can be. That is the country I see. That is the country you see. But now it is up to us to help the entire nation embrace this vision.

Because in the end, we're not just against the ingrained and destructive habits of Washington, we're also struggling with our own doubts, our own fears, our own cynicism.

The change we seek has always required great struggle and great sacrifice. And so this is a battle in our own hearts and minds about what kind of country we want and how hard we're willing to work for it.

So let me remind you tonight that change will not be easy. Change will take time. There will be setbacks and false starts and sometimes we'll make mistakes.

But as hard as it may seem, we cannot lose hope, because there are people all across this great nation who are counting on us, who can't afford another four years without health care, that can't afford another four years without good schools, that can't afford another four years without decent wages because our leaders couldn't come together and get it done.

Theirs are the stories and voices we carry on from South Carolina. The mother who can't get Medicaid to cover all the needs of her sick child. She needs us to pass a health care plan that cuts costs and makes health care available and affordable for every single American. That's what she's looking for.

The teacher who works another shift at Dunkin' Donuts after school just to make ends meet, she needs us to reform our education system so that she gets better pay and more support and her students get the resources that they need to achieve their dreams.

The Maytag worker who's now competing with his own teenager for a $7 an hour job at the local Wal-Mart, because the factory he gave his life to shut its doors, he needs us to stop giving tax breaks to companies that ship our jobs overseas and start putting them in the pockets of working Americans who deserve it and put them in the pockets of struggling homeowners who are having a tough time and looking after seniors who should retire with dignity and respect.

That woman who told me that she hasn't been able to breath since the day her nephew left for Iraq or the soldier who doesn't know his child because he's on his third or fourth or even fifth tour of duty, they need us to come together and put an end to a war that should have never been authorized and should have never been waged.

So understand this, South Carolina. The choice in this election is not between regions or religions or genders. It's not about rich vs. poor, young vs. old. And it is not about black vs. white.

This election is about the past vs. the future. It's about whether we settle for the same divisions and distractions and drama that passes for politics today or whether we reach for a politics of common sense and innovation, a politics of shared sacrifice and shared prosperity.

There are those who will continue to tell us that we can't do this, that we can't have what we're looking for, that we can't have what we want, that we're peddling false hopes. But here is what I know. I know that when people say we can't overcome all the big money and influence in Washington, I think of that elderly woman who sent me a contribution the other day, an envelope that had a money order for $3.01 along with a verse of scripture tucked inside the envelope. So don't tell us change isn't possible. That woman knows change is possible.

When I hear the cynical talk that blacks and whites and Latinos can't join together and work together, I'm reminded of the Latino brothers and sisters I organized with and stood with and fought with side by side for jobs and justice on the streets of Chicago. So don't tell us change can't happen.

When I hear that we'll never overcome the racial divide in our politics, I think about that Republican woman who used to work for Strom Thurmond, who is now devoted to educating inner city-children and who went out into the streets of South Carolina and knocked on doors for this campaign. Don't tell me we can't change.

Yes, we can. Yes, we can change. Yes, we can.

Yes, we can heal this nation. Yes, we can seize our future. And as we leave this great state with a new wind at our backs and we take this journey across this great country, a country we love, with the message we carry from the plains of Iowa to the hills of New Hampshire, from the Nevada desert to the South Carolina coast, the same message we had when we were up and when we were down, that out of many, we are one; that while we breath, we will hope.

And where we are met with cynicism and doubt and fear and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of the American people in three simple words -- yes, we can.

http://edition.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/26/obama.transcript/

[André]

Ted Kennedy vai anunciar apoio a Barack Obama

O senador Ted Kennedy vai anunciar segunda-feira o seu apoio a Barack Obama, candidato à nomeação pelo Partido Democrata, noticiou hoje a ABC, depois de a única filha viva de John F. Kennedy, Caroline, ter anunciado o seu.

"Um presidente como o meu pai", é o título de uma coluna de opinião assinada por Caroline Kennedy publicada hoje no influente New York Times, um dia depois da vitória de Obama sobre a sua principal concorrente, Hillary Clinton, nas primárias da Carolina do Sul.

No texto, a filha de um dos presidentes mais populares nos Estados Unidos escreve: "Ao longo dos anos, emocionou-me muito as pessoas dizerem-me que gostariam de sentir a inspiração e a esperança na América que as pessoas sentiam quando o meu pai era presidente. Este sentimento é ainda mais profundo hoje. Por isso apoio um dos candidatos nas primárias democratas, Barack Obama".

"Vou deixar que seja Ted Kennedy a falar, e ninguém o faz melhor do que ele, mas, obviamente, qualquer dos candidatos democratas adorariam ter o apoio de Ted Kennedy. E nós trabalhámos de facto para isso", disse Obama à ABC, questionado sobre se vai ter esse apoio.

O apoio dos dois Kennedy é visto pelos analistas como uma importante ajuda do "sistema" e é conhecido depois de vários senadores democratas terem criticado publicamente as "tácticas de campanha" de Hillary e do marido, o ex-presidente Bill Clinton.

Com a expressiva vitória que Obama obteve na Carolina do Sul - 55 por cento contra os 27 por cento de Clinton - e muitos analistas a preverem que a chamada "super terça-feira" não vai ser decisiva, as sondagens nacionais são seguidas com cada vez maior atenção.

Um destes estudos, publicado hoje, mostra uma redução na diferença entre os dois principais candidatos democratas, separados agora por apenas nove por cento dos votos: Hillary reúne 40 por cento das intenções de voto, Obama 31.

A mesma sondagem mostra também um "empate" entre os republicanos John McCain e Mitt Romney, ambos com 27 por cento das intenções de voto, bem à frente dos restantes candidatos à nomeação republicana.

Romney, que partiu para a corrida com vantagem e tem feito campanha com elogios à administração Bush, conta a partir de hoje, na sua equipa, com uma das filhas do vice-presidente Dick Cheney, Liz Cheney.

O presidente e o vice-presidente afirmaram desde o início que não se envolveriam na campanha manifestando apoio a um dos candidatos, mas Romney conta com os apoios públicos do pai e do irmão de George W. Bush, respectivamente o ex-presidente George H. Bush e o governador da Florida, Jeb Bush.

Liz Cheney, 41 anos, é a filha mais velha das duas filhas de Dick e Lynne Cheney.

A sua irmã, Mary, é mais conhecida do público, por ter revelado publicamente que é lésbica, apesar da oposição da administração que o pai integra ao casamento de homossexuais.

Lusa

[André]

Votação na Florida é a 1ª grande batalha entre pré-candidatos

Os pré-candidatos à presidência americana travam hoje no estado da Florida (sul) a primeira grande batalha na disputa pela indicação partidária às eleições de Novembro, uma votação crucial para os republicanos, sobretudo para o ex-presidente da Câmara de Nova Iorque Rudy Giuliani.

A disputa conservadora concentra toda a tensão, com o senador e ex-veterano da guerra do Vietnam John McCain (33%) e o ex-governador de Massachusetts Mitt Romney (30%) em empate técnico, segundo uma sondagem do instituto Zogby International.

Giuliani, favorito absoluto há alguns meses, chega em baixa à votação, de acordo com as sondagens, e a lutar pelo terceiro ou quarto lugar com o ex-governador do Arkansas Mike Huckabee, o que levanta dúvidas sobre as suas possibilidades de prosseguir na corrida.

A primária da Flórida é a primeira num dos grandes estados do país, que devido ao tamanho da população designam uma quantidade maior de delegados para as convenções partidárias que definem as candidaturas.

Os republicanos têm muito em jogo na Florida, já que o estado designará 57 delegados para a convenção nacional que escolherá em Setembro o candidato do partido à presidência.

Do lado democrata o resultado terá carácter simbólico - além do efeito psicológico -, já que não designará os delegados deste estado na convenção nacional como punição pelo facto de a Florida violar o calendário das primárias.

As sondagens mostram a ex-primeira-dama Hillary Clinton com ampla vantagem sobre o senador de Illinois Barack Obama, especialmente entre os eleitores hispânicos.

Um triunfo na Florida dará um grande impulso e pode ter uma influência positiva na «Superterça», de 5 de Fevereiro, quando os dois partidos celebrarão primárias em mais de 20 estados, incluindo outros «grandes» como Califórnia e Nova Iorque.

Os favoritos republicanos McCain e Romney não fizeram tréguas antes da votação e trocaram acusações em temas diversos, como a economia e a guerra do Iraque.

Ao contrário dos democratas, que devido ao conflito sobre a data da votação não fizeram campanha, os republicanos realizaram amplas campanhas na Florida.

Na segunda-feira, Romney, um empresário com fama de ter recuperado empresas problemáticas, salientou a sua capacidade para administrar a economia e criticou McCain pela sua alegada ignorância neste campo.

«Francamente não posso imaginar como se pode ter um presidente dos Estados Unidos que não entenda de economia», disse Romney aos jornalistas em Palm Beach (100 km a norte de Miami).

A campanha de McCain respondeu rapidamente aos ataques, afirmando: «Mitt Romney tem demonstrado nesta campanha que dirá qualquer coisa, sobre qualquer um, e a qualquer momento, se isto lhe servir politicamente», disse o porta-voz de McCain, Jill Hazelbaker.

Segundo uma sondagem do instituto Newlink Reseach, os hispânicos da Florida apoiam McCain (36,16%), com Rommey (25,63%) em segundo.

Entre os democratas, os hispânicos preferem de longe a senadora Hillary Clinton (68,56%), enquanto Barack Obama não obtém mais de 14,74%.

Com mais de 18 milhões de habitantes, a Florida tem mais de 20% de população hispânica, 15% de negros e 61% de brancos não latinos, segundo dados oficiais.

Em 2007 a assembleia local aprovou uma lei que antecipava as primárias no estado de Março para Janeiro - numa tentativa de dar à Florida mais peso no processo de votações - e violou uma disposição que proibia a eleição antes da «Superterça».

Como punição, os republicanos afirmaram que só designarão 57 dos 114 delegados que correspondem à Florida na convenção nacional partidária.

Diário Digital / Lusa

[tsumetomo]

McCain Defeats Romney in Florida Vote


Senator John McCain won a closely contested Florida primary on Tuesday night, capturing the biggest delegate prize of the primary season and adding a crucial jolt of momentum to his campaign as the nominating fight expands into a national race next Tuesday.

The Arizona senator bested his chief rival Mitt Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, after drawing on the support of moderate and socially liberal voters.

Lagging far behind is Rudolph W. Giuliani of New York, who has virtually staked his campaign on a strong showing in this state. Mr. Giuliani, who outspent his rivals and spent weeks campaigning across the Florida peninsula, is fighting for third place with former Gov. Mike Huckabee, a potentially fatal performance on a do-or-die night for the former mayor.

Mr. McCain had 36 percent of the vote and Mr. Romney had 32 percent with nearly two-third of the precincts reporting. Mr. Giuliani had 15 percent of the vote, while Mr. Huckabee had 13 percent.

“You don’t always win,” Mr. Giuliani told supporters in Orlando, Fla. “You can always try to do it right.”

In the Democratic race, Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton won with a strong showing over her chief rival, Senator Barack Obama, though the winner of that contest will receive no delegates to the national convention because of a scheduling dispute with the national party.

None of the Democratic candidates campaigned in the state and the race was generally considered moot, but Mrs. Clinton hoped to gain momentum from a victory here ahead of the 22-state national primary on Feb. 5.

In an energetic victory speech, Mrs. Clinton appealed to Florida voters who may have felt disenfranchised by the cloud cast over their primary. “I promise you I will do everything I can to make sure not only are Florida’s Democratic delegates seated, but that Florida is in the winning column for the Democrats in 2008,” she told supporters in Davie, Fla., where she flew on Tuesday for an appearance.

But the focus on Tuesday was squarely on the Republican race, which offers the biggest single delegate prize yet of the primary season. Before the Florida vote, Senator McCain had 32 pledged delegates, Mr. Romney had 27 and Mr. Huckabee had 7.

Mr. McCain received much of his support in Florida from independents, moderates and socially liberal Republican voters, according to exit polls. More conservative and more affluent voters turned to Mr. Romney.

White evangelical Christians boosted Mr. Huckabee’s campaign in South Carolina, but in Florida, the group divided its support between Mr. Huckabee and Mr. Romney, with each candidate receiving about a third of its votes.

Early exit polls showed a heavy turnout of voters who expressed concern about the state of the nation’s economy.

Almost half of the Republican voters polled said they considered the economy the most important issue at stake in the election, and almost two-thirds described the nation’s financial state in negative terms.

In the Republican race, more than 60 percent of voters were over 50 years old, and nearly half make $75,000 a year or more.

State election officials said voting has been steady throughout Tuesday.

State election officials in Florida said voting has been steady throughout the day. “Some of the Panhandle counties and more rural counties have had what appears to be a slower turnout,” said Sterling Ivey, a spokesman for the Florida Department of State. He said some high-population counties, including Miami-Dade, Broward, Pinellas and Hillsborough, “have had a higher turnout.”

Weather in Florida was generally good, and Mr. Ivey said no major problems had been reported at the state’s roughly 6,900 polling places.

Campaign officials had predicted a high turnout for the election both because of the important Republican primary and a proposed constitutional amendment on the ballot to overhaul property taxes, which had generated great interest.

The campaign has generated an unusually high number of absentee and early votes. Mr. Ivey said about 1 million voters had cast their ballots early. Despite the Democratic National Committee’s decision to penalize Florida for moving its primary to January by refusing to seat delegates from the state, early ballots showed a vigorous response from Democratic voters. Mr. Ivey said the early vote count as of Saturday stood at 470,000 by Republicans and 404,000 by Democrats.

According to early exit polls, 4 in 10 Florida Republicans favor deportation for illegal immigrants. The rest are closely divided on whether illegal immigrants should be allowed to stay as temporary workers or offered a chance to apply for citizenship.

Hispanic Republicans in Florida are more inclined to favor a guest worker program over deportation. Forty-five percent said illegal immigrants should be allowed to remain in the United States as temporary workers, while a third of Hispanic Republicans said illegal immigrants should be offered the opportunity to apply for citizenship. Only a fifth of Hispanics favor deportation.

While majorities of Democrats said the United States is ready for a woman president and a black president, almost 20 percent said the country was not ready for a woman to be president and almost 30 percent said the country was not ready for a black president.

The poll was conducted by Edison/Mitofsky for the National ElectionPool of the television networks and The Associated Press.

In the Miami area, a number of poll workers reported turnout that varied from site to site.

Jim Woodman, a volunteer poll worker at a station on Brickell Avenue in Miami, said that apart from the usual lunchtime spike, the traffic had been slow, particularly compared with most of the other 10 or so elections he had worked.

“It’s usually a circus,” he said, as he stood in front of the polling station in a Lutheran church. In front, a poll worker and a woman promoting a county ballot question stared phlegmatically at passing traffic. A few Rudy Giuliani posters were tacked to wooden in the grass median. “Not a soul,” Mr. Woodman said.

Ollie Tillman, overseeing a polling station in Miami’s impoverished Overtown neighborhood, said turnout had been sparse, but expected a surge of voters at the end of the workday, beginning about 4:30 p.m.

Meanwhile, voting was brisk early Tuesday in the Village of El Portal, a small, diverse municipality north of the City of Miami, poll workers said. “There were like 15 to 20 people waiting at the door” when the polls opened, said Noel Grigalba, an election specialist for Miami-Dade County. “And they keep coming, coming, coming, coming.” Poll workers said the voting rolls appeared to be heavily weighted in favor of registered Democrats.

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/29/us/politics/30cnd-primary.html?_r=1&hp=&oref=slogin&pagewanted=print

[tsumetomo]

Hillary Clinton trumpets win in Florida despite lack of delegates


Sen. Hillary Clinton will win Florida's Democratic presidential primary Tuesday, CNN projects, although party sanctions have stripped the state of its convention delegates and no Democrats campaigned there.
art.clinton.pool.jpg

Hillary Clinton addresses Florida crowd in Davie, Florida, after winning the state's primary.

Published polls showed the New York senator and former first lady was heavily favored in the state.

Her leading rivals, South Carolina primary winner Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. John Edwards, did not campaign in Florida. They opted to concentrate on next week's "Super Tuesday" contests in states such as New York, California, Missouri and Georgia.

CNN's projection is based on precincts reporting results, entrance polls and other statistical models -- including the number of votes outstanding in areas where Clinton was expected to do well.

The sanctions make Tuesday night's results largely meaningless to the Democratic presidential race. Obama described the primary as a "beauty contest" Tuesday, and his campaign issued a statement declaring the race a tie in the delegate count: "Zero for Obama, zero for Clinton."

But Clinton has pledged to fight to have the state's delegates seated at the August convention in Denver, and has increasingly stressed the state's importance since losing Saturday's hotly contested primary in South Carolina to Obama.

Though Democrats agreed to leave the state off their itineraries in a show of solidarity with the national party, Clinton attended permitted fund-raisers in Florida on Sunday and planned to appear with supporters there after polls closed.

And turnout was high for the race even though no delegates were at stake. Nearly 400,000 people cast early or absentee ballots ahead of the primary, and Tuesday's vote was expected to top the nearly 800,000 who turned out in 2004.

Donna Brazile, who managed former Vice President Al Gore's presidential bid, said many Democrats were likely to turn out to vote on a state constitutional amendment that would limit property tax increases and expand homestead exemptions.

"People are very afraid this will cut public services, cut back education," said Brazile, a CNN analyst. "So the Florida Education Association and all of the unions are spending millions of dollars to get voters to turn out."

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/01/29/fl.primary.dems/index.html

[André]

McCain e Hillary vencem na Florida, Giulliani desiste

O senador republicano John McCain venceu terça-feira as primárias republicanas no Estado da Florida, depois de uma acirrada disputa com o ex-governador Mitt Romney, que ficou em segundo lugar, enquanto a democrata Hillary Clinton obteve uma estrondosa vitória sobre o seu rival Barack Obama, apesar de este contar com o apoio do clã Kennedy. Rudolph Giulliani vai desistir a favor de McCain.
O antigo «mayor» de Nova Iorque, Rudolph Giuliani, prepara-se para em breve abandonar a corrida para a nomeação republicana à candidatura presidencial dos EUA e apoiar o senador John McCain, afirmam fontes partidárias republicanas.

Giuliani ficou em terceiro lugar nas primárias de terça-feira na Florida, onde apostava bastante, vendo os 57 delegados serem arrebatados por nova vitória de John Mccain, claramente à frente no campo republicano.

McCain obteve 36 por cento dos votos, contra 32 do antigo governador do Massachusetts, Mitt Romney.

Do lado democrata, Hillary Clinton também obteve uma estrondosa vitória sobre o seu rival Barack Obama, que ainda na véspera parecia ter saído reforçado com o apoio de quase todo o clã Kennedy.

Hillary obteve cerca de 50 por cento dos votos, quando o apuramento já ia acima dos 80 por cento, contra cerca de 33 de Obama.

A vitória de Hillary Clinton tem apenas efeito psicológico, pelo menos por enquanto, porque a direcção nacional do Partido Democrático determinou que a Florida não enviará nem um dos 210 delegados a que tinha direito à Convenção Democrática de Agosto, como punição por a liderança estadual do partido ter antecipado a data das primárias.

Os dois principais candidatos democratas não fizeram campanha na Florida, respeitando o boicote decidido pela direcção nacional do partido, pelo que Obama desvalorizou os resultados, considerando a votação «um concurso de beleza», já que os votantes «não conhecem o programa dos candidatos».

A direcção nacional do Partido Republicano também não gostou da alteração da data, mas preferiu reduzir a delegação da Florida a metade dos 114 delegados previstos.

É o segundo lote considerável de delegados que é negado a Hillary Clinton. No Michigan, igualmente punido pela direcção partidária, a vitória de Hillary não lhe trouxe os 156 delegados a que outrora teria direito.

A candidata anunciou que vai insistir junto da direcção partidária para que os delegados eleitos sejam autorizados a estar na Convenção Democrática, alegando que isso seria um estímulo à participação eleitoral no Michigan e, em especial, na Florida, onde o predomínio republicano é conhecido.

Ao comentar a sua vitória entre os republicanos, McCain afirmou ser «o único líder conservador capaz de unir o partido».

Fontes partidárias republicanas disseram que Giuliani deverá anunciar hoje, na Califórnia, a sua desistência da corrida presidencial e o apoio a John McCain.

Giuliani esteve prestes a anunciá-lo na terça-feira, mas não o fez, conquanto o seu discurso de reconhecimento da derrota na Florida soasse a despedida.

«Manter-nos-emos empenhados e juntos vamos garantir que tudo faremos para entregar um país melhor do que está à próxima geração», disse Giuliani em Orlando, Florida.

Interrogado directamente sobre se vai desistir, respondeu: «Vou para a Califórnia.»

Diário Digital / Lusa

[tsumetomo]

Another one bites the dust...

Edwards Is Dropping Out



NEW ORLEANS — Democratic candidate John Edwards has decided to drop out of the presidential primary race, giving a speech this afternoon at the same place where he began this campaign — in New Orleans.

Throughout this season, Mr. Edwards hasn’t been able to break through the dueling high-profile candidacies of Senators Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama. And he had not been able to raise the kind of funds that those two had early on.

Top advisers said that Mr. Edwards would not be endorsing another candidate today when he makes his announcement at 1 p.m. On Tuesday, Mr. Edwards canceled events in Alabama and North Dakota, opting instead to fly to New Orleans late Tuesday night. His press aides told reporters that he would make a “major policy speech” on poverty, in the city where Mr. Edwards announced his candidacy in December 2006.

He placed a distant third last night in Florida’s primary. And even more disappointing, as a native of South Carolina, he finished in the mid-teens there, as Mr. Obama won overwhelmingly. Mr. Edwards had campaigned heavily in Iowa for months and months, fine-turning a populist message and issuing many proposals, including one on health care, long before his rivals issued theirs. In the caucuses, he finished second, but just around a percentage point ahead of Mrs. Clinton.

As the primary season headed toward Super Tuesday, and several of the big Southern states, Mr. Edwards was expected to draw a swath of white voters his way.

http://thecaucus.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/01/30/edwards-is-dropping-out/

[ShadIntel]

Estou a favor do Sistema Político Chinês, embora não saiba como ele seja.

Se não fosse tão grave o facto de admirar um dos sistemas dictatoriais mais corruptos da história, esta teria piada...

Eu gosto de carne de burro, embora nunca a tenha provado...  

[André]

Após saída de Giuliani e Edwards, líderes focam-se na Super Terça

A disputa dos pré-candidatos presidenciais pela nomeação dos respectivos partidos para se candidatarem à Casa Branca estreitou-se hoje, após a desistência do democrata John Edwards e do republicano Rudolph Giuliani.

À frente na corrida, Hillary Clinton e Barack Obama entre os democratas, e John McCain e Mitt Romney entre os republicanos, centram-se agora nas votações da Super Terça-feira.

Na próxima terça-feira, mais de 20 Estados norte-americanos votam nos seus pré-candidatos.

Mais de 1.000 delegados republicanos estão em jogo nas primárias em 21 Estados. Para garantir a nomeação republicana é necessário um total de 1.191 delegados.

Para os democratas - que realizam primárias em 22 Estados - estão em jogo 1.681 delegados. Para garantir a indicação, em Agosto, são necessários 2.025 delegados.

Hoje, o governador da Califórnia, Arnold Schwarzenegger, deve anunciar o seu apoio a McCain, que é senador pelo Arizona.

A Califórnia - um dos Estados onde haverá votação na terça-feira - representa 15% do total de votos necessários para a nomeação.

McCain também recebeu o apoio do ex-presidente da Câmara de Nova Iorque Rudolph Giuliani, assim que este decidiu abandonar a corrida, na quarta-feira.

Num debate televisivo na noite de quarta-feira na Califórnia, McCain e Romney questionaram-se mutuamente sobre as credenciais conservadoras e quanto à habilidade para presidir o país.

A vitória que McCain obteve na Florida valeu 57 delegados para a Convenção Nacional Republicana, colocando-o à frente de Romney na disputa pela maioria no total de delegados.

Romney acusou McCain de usar «truques sujos» na disputa, ao sugerir que o ex-governador do Massachusetts estabeleceria um prazo para a saída das tropas norte-americanas do Iraque.

«Eu nunca apoiei um cronograma específico para a retirada», disse Romney, acrescentando que tal sugestão seria um «truque sujo que (o ex-presidente norte-americano) Ronald Reagan (1981-1989) consideraria repreensível».

McCain rebateu as críticas, afirmando que «está claro que (Romney) quer um calendário».

Em Abril do ano passado, Romney afirmou que líderes norte-americanos e iraquianos manteriam «uma série de calendários que eram discutidos em particular».

Romney tentou retratar McCain - cuja popularidade é grande entre políticos independentes - como uma figura com perfil que não se enquadra entre os conservadores.

Entre os democratas - que também tiveram quarta-feira um debate em Los Angeles - a saída de Edwards torna a campanha uma disputa ainda mais acirrada entre Obama e Hillary.

A senadora por Nova Iorque obteve uma ampla vitória simbólica na Florida.

Ao anunciar a sua saída num discurso em Nova Orleães, Edwards afirmou que está na altura de «se afastar e deixar a história seguir o seu rumo» numa disputa entre «uma mulher e um negro».

Se for eleita, Hillary será a primeira mulher a ocupar a Presidência dos EUA.

Por seu turno, Obama é o primeiro negro da história do país a ter possibilidades reais de chegar à Casa Branca.

O ex-senador pela Carolina do Norte desistiu da corrida após perder as prévias em quatro Estados.

Um total de 40% dos partidários de Edwards dizem apoiar Hillary, enquanto 25% apoiam Obama, de acordo com uma sondagem realizada no mês passado.

A saída de Edwards garante a Obama mais seis delegados - deixando-o com um total de 187 - e quatro a Hillary - deixando-a com 253.

Um total de 2.025 delegados são necessários para garantir a nomeação democrata.

Diário Digital / Lusa

[André]

Arnold Schwarzenegger apoia John McCain para candidato Republicano

O governador da Califórnia, Arnold Schwarzenegger, saiu hoje em apoio de John McCain, candidato à investidura republicana para as presidenciais norte-americanas de Novembro.

O apoio de Schwarzenegger, que classificou McCain de "líder extraordinário" empenhado numa "cruzada contra as despesas supérfluas", poderá ser determinante, segundo os analistas políticos, para o senador pelo Arizona.

Arnold Schwarzenegger e John McCain visitaram juntos uma central de energia solar em Los Angeles, acompanhados pelo antigo presidente da Câmara de Nova Iorque, Rudolph Giuliani.

A energia é o grande problema da Califórnia, que luta por se libertar da dependência do petróleo.

Giuliani anunciou na quarta-feira a desistência da corrida à Casa Branca e o apoio a McCain, depois da vitória deste, terça-feira, na Florida.

A canalização dos simpatizantes de Arnold Schwarzenegger e Rudolf Giuliani para john McCain ocorre a escassos cinco dias da "super terça-feira", dia em que duas dezenas de Estados norte-americanos, entre os quais a Califórnia, escolherão os seus candidatos.

Os Estados da Califórnia e Nova Iorque são considerados cruciais na campanha de McCain, oferecendo-lhe em conjunto 271 delegados, mais de uma quarta parte dos 1023 que se pronunciarão a 05 de Fevereiro.

Do lado republicano, as últimas sondagens dão uma vantagem clara a  John McCain sobre o seu principal rival Mitt Romney, antigo governador de Massachusetts.

Lusa

[tsumetomo]

Obama Raises $32 Million in January


WASHINGTON (AP) - Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama raised $32 million in the single month of January, a whopping figure that has permitted the campaign to boost staff and extend advertising to states beyond the sweeping Feb. 5 contests, aides said Thursday.

Obama is now advertising in 20 of the 22 states in play for next week's Super Tuesday and plans to begin advertising in seven more states that hold primaries or caucuses later in February. Rival Hillary Rodham Clinton is advertising in 12 Super Tuesday states, including her own home state of New York.

With John Edwards out of the race, Clinton and Obama are in a fierce race for delegates to secure the nomination. Feb. 5 offers the biggest single opportunity for delegates, but is impossible for either one to seal the nomination on that day.

Obama campaign manager David Plouffe said the campaign attracted 170,000 new donors for a total of 650,000 donors overall. The $32 million raised in one month matches the campaign's best three-month fundraising period in 2007, when the campaign raised $30 million in primary money and $2 million for the general. The money raised in January was all for the primaries.

``We think that the strength of our financial position and the number of donors does speak to financial sustainability if it ends up going through March and April,'' Plouffe said of the race. ``We think we will have the financial resources to conduct vigorous campaigns in the states to come.''

Plouffe said the campaign, surprisingly, had its best single fundraising period the day after losing the New Hampshire primary to Clinton. In January, Obama won the Iowa caucuses and the South Carolina primary; Clinton won the New Hampshire primary and the Nevada caucuses. She also won popular votes in Michigan and Florida where the candidates did not campaign because no nominating delegates were at stake.

Obama and Clinton are competing heavily for votes in California, the richest Feb. 5 prize in terms of delegates. Obama has also ventured into New York, forcing Clinton to play defense in a state that has elected her twice to the Senate.

The only two Feb. 5 states Obama is not advertising in are Oklahoma and his home state of Illinois. Plouffe said the campaign also is set to begin radio and television ads Friday in states with contests between Feb. 9 and Feb. 12, including Louisiana, Washington, Nebraska, Maine, Maryland, Virginia and Washington, D.C.

Obama and Clinton have been aggressive fundraisers: Both raised more than $100 million in 2007.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/uslatest/story/0,,-7271801,00.html

[Supremo Alquimista]

VOTA HILLARY CLINTO

[tsumetomo]

News Shocker: Ron Paul biggest GOP fundraiser last quarter




Well, it's official, ladies and gentlemen. Believe it or not, Rep. Ron Paul, the 72-year-old Texan who hardly ever gets mentioned in Republican political news and the one-time libertarian who always gets the least time on TV debates if he isn't barred completely, was, in fact, the most successful Republican fundraiser in the last three months of 2007.

By a Texas mile.

By the thousands Paul's fervent followers donated $19.95 million to the "Ron Paul Revolution." He spent $17.75 million and at year's end had $7.8 million cash on hand, making him the only Republican candidate to increase his fundraising totals in every quarter of 2007. According to his website, Paul's Paulunteers have contributed another $4.1 million this month to...

fuel the strict constitutionalist's travels and advertising campaign.

Compare that impressive financial success with, say, the late candidate Rudy Giuliani, who raised only $14.4 million from Oct. 1 to Dec. 31 and spent $18.2 million.

Or the departed Fred Thompson, who collected $8.9 million and spent $13.9 million.

Or even the newly-minted Republican frontrunner Sen. John McCain, who raked in only $9.9 million, spent $10.5 million and had only $2.9 million cash in hand. Of course, McCain's string of primary victories in January will have boosted his financial fortunes. Everybody loves a winner.

Mitt Romney actually raised only $9.2 million from other people last quarter, less than half of Paul's haul. However, the former Massachusetts governor -- and if he keeps spending at this rate the quite possibly former multimillionaire -- gave himself $18 million more of his own money last fall for a total of $27.2 million and $2.4 million cash on hand.

The former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, who's had trouble raising money, issued an unusual statement Thursday night. "My presidential campaign," he said, "has defied the odds and will continue to do so, as we head into the Super Tuesday primaries, proving the power of of message over money and mechanics."

The statement did not include any Huckabee figures for the fourth quarter. Which suggests that the winner of the Republican caucuses in Iowa didn't have a very good fourth quarter.

So a certain suspicious blogger, lead by the experienced hand of The Times' campaign finance expert Dan Morain, went to the website of the Federal Election Commission and looked up Huckabee's fourth quarter report. It seems he raised about $6.7 million, a third of Paul's sum, while spending $7.08 million, leaving him on New Year's Eve with cash on hand of only $651,300.68. No wonder he didn't mention numbers in the news release.

Now, this month Huckabee will have received some donations after his Jan. 3 Iowa win. But it does raise serious questions about how long the Arkansan can continue to compete after Feb. 5 or even how much he can do before other than get on as many free radio and TV shows as possible.

Paul, who's done well in some symbolic straw polls and little-noticed state caucuses until his best showing so far as a second-place finisher to Romney in the Nevada caucuses, has repeatedly disavowed a third-party effort if his bid to be the Republican nominee in St. Paul next summer falls short.

His determined followers maintain that a news media conspiracy is holding down Paul's success at the polls, although obviously word has gotten out to somebody for him to raise such sums. Paul's outspoken stands, including withdrawal from Iraq and drastic downsizing of the federal government, run counter to each of his GOP competitors.

As for Paul's campaign, his loyal troops plan another "money bomb," a big fundraising day, today in honor of Ron and Carol Paul's 51st wedding anniversary. One of the obvious gifts: the undisputed GOP fundraising championship for the last three months of 2007.

http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/washington/2008/02/news-shocker-ro.html