O candidato republicano à presidência dos Estados Unidos, John McCain, descreveu-se hoje como dono de um carácter de ferro, com valores militares e ideais norte-americanos, afirmando que essa é a diferença entre si e o seu possível rival nas presidenciais em Novembro, o jovem democrata negro Barack Obama. Durante o recente périplo que fez durante uma semana pelos Estados Unidos, McCain, de 71 anos, salientou a sua transformação de adolescente rebelde em herói militar, prisioneiro de guerra admirado no Vietname e senador honesto e maduro para encarar a presidência norte-americana. Ao focar a sua personalidade na campanha, McCain levanta, indirectamente, a seguinte questão: quando é que que Obama, nascido há 46 anos no Havai e formado em Harvard, teve a oportunidade de colocar à prova o seu carácter e o seu patriotismo? Na quarta-feira, quando McCain visitou a Academia da Marinha em Anápolis, norte de Maryland, o candidato republicano mencionou subtilmente a controvérsia que Obama tem instigado sobre a sua idade. Caso eleito, McCain seria o presidente mais velho a governar o país. «Como um dos meus adversários em potencial continua a insistir, há 50 anos que sirvo este país e seus ideais», afirmou McCain. «Cometi muitos erros e arrependo-me de muitas coisas, mas os Estados Unidos e os seus ideais salvaram-me de consequências piores e isso não posso esquecer», acrescentou. O candidato republicano ainda considerou que a sua idade lhe dá uma importância particular para escolher a pessoa que o acompanhará como vice-presidente, que substitui o presidente em casos de urgência. «Gostaria de resolver isso o mais rápido possível, sei da importância dessa questão devido à minha idade», disse McCain durante um programa de rádio em Nova Iorque. Em eleições anteriores, as façanhas de guerra do republicano Bob Dole não impediram que Bill Clinton ganhasse em 1996, muito menos o democrata John Kerry quando enfrentou George W. Bush em 2004. McCain foi derrotado por Bush em 2000. Diário Digital / Lusa
Clinton releases tax returns Hillary Clinton released her tax returns for the years 2000 to 2006 late Friday afternoon, ending weeks of speculation over her delay in making them public.“The Clintons have now made public thirty years of tax returns, a record matched by few people in public service,” spokesman Jay Carson said in a statement. “None of Hillary Clinton's presidential opponents have revealed anything close to this amount of personal financial information.”The campaign said the records showed Bill and Hillary Clinton had paid more than $33.7 million in federal taxes on a joint income of $109 million and donated $10.2 million to charities over the past eight years.The New York senator had initially said that she would not release them unless she was the Democratic nominee. But at a debate shortly before the March 4 primaries, she said she would consider releasing them "even earlier," though she did not name a precise date."I will certainly work toward releasing them, and we will get that done and in the public domain," said Clinton.Later, she pledged to release the documents by this year's April 15 tax filing deadline. But ten days ago, following Obama's decision to release his tax returns of this decade, and attacks from his campaign over Clinton's delay in making her own public, she announced that she would release the returns within the week.The Obama campaign's criticism centered on Clinton's decision to lend her campaign $5 million earlier this year, along with former President Bill Clinton's $20 million payout from supermarket holding company Yucaipa.In conference calls with reporters, Clinton campaign spokesman Howard Wolfson accused the Obama campaign of unfounded negative attacks over the delay, noting that there were "20 years of Clinton tax returns in the public record."The tax returns are the second of three batches of documents Clinton has come under pressure to release. Her scheduling records that date to her time as First Lady were released late last month. The list of major donors to the Clinton Presidential Library has yet to be released.–CNN Associate Political Editor Rebecca Sinderbrand(Full statement below; complete returns are available here.)Hillary and Bill Clinton Tax ReturnsStatement of Jay CarsonClinton Campaign SpokesmanApril 4, 2008Today Senator Hillary Clinton and President Bill Clinton are releasing their tax returns for the years 2000 through 2006, and are providing information regarding their 2007 taxes as well.The Clintons have now made public thirty years of tax returns, a record matched by few people in public service. None of Hillary Clinton's presidential opponents have revealed anything close to this amount of personal financial information.What the Clintons' tax returns show is that they paid more than $33,000,000 in federal taxes and donated more than $10,000,000 to charities over the past eight years. They paid taxes and made charitable contributions at a higher rate than taxpayers at their income level.TAXES PAID: $33,783,507The Clintons paid $33,783,507 in federal taxes - 31% of their adjusted gross income. According to the most recent data available from the IRS, in 2005 taxpayers earning $10,000,000 or more paid on average 20.8% of their adjusted gross income in taxes.CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS: $10,256,741The Clintons donated $10,256,741 to charity - 9.5% of their adjusted gross income. According to the most recent data available from the IRS, in 2005 taxpayers earning $10,000,000 or more contributed 3.1% of their adjusted gross income in cash contributions to charity. Information about the Clinton Family Foundation, including a list of charities to which the Clintons contributed through the Foundation, is available online in the Foundation's publicly available tax returns (www.foundationcenter.org).AFTER TAX EARNINGS: $57,157,297CUMULATIVE TOTAL(GROSS) INCOME: $109,175,175Including, among other items:Senator Clinton's Senate Salary: $1,051,606President Clinton's Presidential Pension: $1,217,250Senator Clinton's Book Income: $10,457,083President Clinton's Book Income: $29,580,525President Clinton's Speech Income: $51,855,599SENATOR CLINTON'S BOOK INCOME: $10,457,083Senator Clinton's book income is comprised of earnings for Living History ($10,267,895), including an $8,000,000 advance, and It Takes a Village ($189,188). The earnings for It Takes a Village were donated to charity. Since the release of It Takes a Village in 1996, Senator Clinton has donated over $1,100,000 to charity.PRESIDENT CLINTON'S BOOK INCOME: $29,580,525President Clinton's book income is comprised of earnings for My Life ($23,280,525), including a $15,000,000 advance, and Giving ($6,300,000). The President donated $1,000,000 of his income from Giving in 2007 to charity.PRESIDENT CLINTON'S SPEECH INCOME: $51,855,599NOTE: The figures in this summary include 2007 estimates.Annual tax information is available for download below:2000 | 2001 | 2002 | 2003 | 2004 | 2005 | 2006 | 2007Paid for by Hillary Clinton for President Terms of Service | Privacy Policy | Contact UsFiled under: Hillary Clinton
McCain even with Obama, leads Clinton: Reuters pollWASHINGTON (Reuters) - Republican presidential candidate John McCain runs even with Democratic rival Barack Obama and narrowly leads Hillary Clinton in potential match-ups in November, according to a Reuters/Zogby poll released on Wednesday.McCain was seen as a better steward of the economy than either Democrat despite their repeated criticism of his economic credentials. He led Obama by 3 points and Clinton by 5 points on the question of who would best manage the economy.In the Democratic race, Obama widened his national lead over Clinton to 51 percent to 38 percent, up from a 3-point edge in March, in polling taken before a controversy erupted over Obama's comments about small-town residents.The two Democrats, battling for the right to face McCain in November's presidential election, both gained ground on the Arizona senator nationally in the last month although Obama fares slightly better in head-to-head match-ups.Obama pulled into a statistical tie with McCain at 45 percent after trailing him by 6 points last month. Clinton trails McCain by 5 points, 46 percent to 41 percent, gaining slightly from an 8-point deficit last month."Obama still does better than Clinton against McCain, but it's a very close race either way," pollster John Zogby said. "Obama and Clinton hurt each other the longer their race drags on, and McCain is getting a free pass."Heading into the next Democratic contest in Pennsylvania on Tuesday, Obama has been under heavy fire from Clinton and McCain for saying small-town residents are bitter about the ailing economy and cling to religion, guns and anti-immigrant bigotry in frustration.The national poll, taken Thursday through Saturday, was nearly completed before the Obama controversy erupted when his April 6 comments at a private San Francisco fundraiser became public on Friday night. The furor's impact on the Democratic race is unclear.CYCLICAL RACEObama had gained ground on Clinton in the last month after weathering a controversy over inflammatory statements by his pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright, while Clinton came under fire for falsely claiming to have faced sniper fire in Bosnia in 1996."Obama rebounded from the Reverend Wright situation and it was Clinton's turn to get scrutinized," Zogby said. "Now it's back to Obama for the small-town comments. This race has been very cyclical."The poll found Obama made gains in the last month among at least two key national constituencies that have sustained Clinton's bid. The Illinois senator led among women, 48 percent to 42 percent, and among whites, 46 percent to 41 percent.Obama also held big leads among men, blacks, young voters and high-income voters. Clinton, a New York senator, led among the elderly, Hispanics and voters with less than a high-school education.Obama has been steadily narrowing the gap on Clinton in Pennsylvania, where her sizable double-digit poll lead had dwindled to single digits in most recent polls.An Obama win in Pennsylvania could knock Clinton out of the race, while she needs a big victory to make headway in her effort to overtake Obama in the popular vote cast in state contests and pledged delegates to the nominating convention.With 10 contests remaining, Obama has a nearly unassailable lead in pledged delegates, but neither candidate is likely to gain enough delegates to win without help from nearly 800 Democratic Party officials and insiders who are free to back any candidate.The poll also gauged potential head-to-head match-ups if independent Ralph Nader or possible Libertarian candidate Bob Barr, a former congressman, get on the ballot. Nader drew 3 percent and Barr 2 percent in both national match-ups.McCain fared slightly worse against Obama with Barr and Nader in the race, but their presence did not change his margin over Clinton.The national survey of 532 likely Democratic primary voters had a margin of error of 4.3 percentage points. The poll of the race between McCain and the two Democratic contenders surveyed 1,049 likely voters with a margin of error of 3.1 percentage points.
Polémicas recentes, a crença de Hillary numa vitória de Obama e os avisos dirigidos ao Irão marcaram o debate de quarta-feira entre os candidatos democratas à Casa Branca.Hillary Clinton, senadora democrata de Nova Iorque, declarou pela primeira vez que acredita que Barack Obama, senador democrata do Illinois, tem possibilidades de vencer o republicano John McCain na corrida à Casa Branca.O «sim, sim, sim» de Clinton foi o melhor que Obama conseguiu num debate de 90 minutos marcado pelas perguntas em torno das recentes polémicas da campanha, mas parco em críticas mútuas. O debate de quarta-feira foi o último antes das primárias da Pensilvânia (a 22 de Abril), que podem mesmo ditar a desistência de Hillary perante o domínio de Obama na luta pelo maior número de delegados à convenção do Partido Democrata.Obama tem reduzido a desvantagem para Hillary nas sondagens daquele estado. Os últimos episódios da campanha democrata não introduziram desequilíbrios significativos na dinâmica eleitoral.No entanto, foram as gaffes de campanhas que acabaram por dominar grande parte do debate de quarta-feira.O "lapso de memória" de Hillary sobre a visita à Bósnia, as inflamadas declarações do Reverendo Wright, a suposta sobranceria de Obama perante a população rural da Pensilvânia e as alegadas ligações de ambos os candidatos a interesses económicos foram tópicos revisitados pelo moderador.Erros assumidos«Disse algumas coisas que não estiveram em linha com aquilo que eu sabia ser verdade» - foi assim que a senadora de Nova Iorque admitiu ter exagerado o relato da sua visita a uma Bósnia supostamente perigosa onde, na verdade, já se respirava paz.«Compreendo perfeitamente que tivessem ficado ofendidos com as palavras que escolhi» - Obama lamentava desta forma ter reduzido a fé e as tradições da Pensilvânia rural a uma mera «frustração» das gentes perante a crise económica da América da era Bush.Obama foi ainda assim acusado por Hillary de «incompreensão» quanto ao papel da religião na socieade norte-americana.Candidatura conjunta «prematura»O limar de arestas e o corte de Hillary com um momentâneo e potencialmente lesivo alinhamento com o republicano McCain nas críticas a Barack Obama não são, no entanto, suficientes para se pensar numa candidatura democrata conjunta à Casa Branca.«É prematuro», afirmou Obama. Hillary também se esquivou ao desafio lançado pelo moderador do debate, mas sublinhou a prioridade de se fazer «tudo o que for necessário para termos um democrata na Casa Branca em Janeiro».Foi na segunda metade de um duelo morno que surgiram os grande temas de campanha. No Iraque, Hillary revelou um recúo. Se ao longo da campanha a candidata prometeu a retirada imediata das tropas norte-americanas no terreno, a senadora de Nova Iorque faz agora depender a sua decisão de consultas às chefias militares.Também Obama foi cauteloso e aponta agora o ano de 2010 como a meta para o fim da presença americana no Iraque. Ameaça ao IrãoAinda no Médio Oriente, a defesa de Israel saltou para a agenda de campanha, com os dois candidatos a prometerem uma resposta musculada a uma possível ofensiva do Irão.«Um ataque [do Irão] contra Israel é um ataque contra o nosso maior aliado na região», afirmou Obama. «Um ataque contra Israel incorre numa retaliação pesada por parte dos Estados Unidos», concordou Hillary.Na política doméstica, Hillary e Obama voltaram a convergir quanto ao fim do perdão fiscal aos milionários norte-americanos, no compromisso de não subir os impostos sobre a classe média e na reflexão sobre as leis de porte de armas - mas sem nunca mencionar a sua proibição.Sem agressividade, mas também sem brilho, os dois candidatos encerraram o debate renovando apelos ao eleitorado de classe média.As primárias da Pensilvânia realizam-se a 22 de Abril. SOL
Debate morno favorece Barack Obama
Clinton wins Pennsylvania Democratic raceHILADELPHIA, April 22 (Reuters) - Sen. Hillary Clinton won the Pennsylvania presidential contest on Tuesday, defeating rival Barack Obama in a state crucial to her efforts to become the Democratic nominee in the November election.The first presidential vote in six weeks continued Clinton's recent momentum as she tries to catch Obama, who leads in the state-by-state race for delegates to the party's nominating convention this summer. The victory in Pennsylvania, with its 158 pledged delegates, will help Clinton narrow the gap although Obama will collect a large number of delegates under Democratic rules. (Editing by Doina Chiacu)
Latest Delegate CountDemocrats * Total delegates: 4,049 * Total needed: 2,025 * Delegates claimed so far: Barack Obama 1,720 (1,482 pledged, 238 superdelegates); Hillary Clinton 1,588(1,326 pledged, 262 superdelegates); others 18
Edwards Backers Team Up With ObamaNo, John Edwards has not yet endorsed a candidate.But nearly 50 of his most prominent backers lined up behind Senator Barack Obama today, in a gesture designed to give Mr. Obama a heavy boost of support less than two weeks before the North Carolina primary on May 6.The group includes Ed Turlington, Mr. Edwards’s former national general campaign chairman; three North Carolina members of Congress; and 46 local activists, philanthropists and business leaders, among others. (Not surprisingly, given Mr. Edwards’s background, the list holds the names of 20 lawyers.)Mr. Turlington, speaking from his law office in Raleigh, said that he had not expected to endorse a candidate after Mr. Edwards dropped out of the race on Jan. 30.“I thought I was going to be on the sidelines,” Mr. Turlington said, adding that he made the decision about 10 days ago, after speaking to Mr. Obama. “I think his candidacy is doing a lot of important things that are similar to themes that John Edwards ran on.”Among those things, he said, were Mr. Obama’s pledges to change the culture of Washington and fight for issues that are important to working people.Throughout his second bid for the Democratic nomination, Mr. Edwards clashed repeatedly with Mrs. Clinton, particularly in debates. He criticized Mrs. Clinton for accepting campaign contributions from Washington lobbyists, a practice that he fiercely opposed.And much of his campaign pitch centered on the notion that establishment Washington politicians have become corrupted by the influence of lobbyists for drug companies, oil companies and other corporate interests.“You can’t just trade corporate Republicans for corporate Democrats,” he told audiences frequently, an attack aimed at Mrs. Clinton.Mr. Edwards’s campaign sounded similar themes to Mr. Obama’s – both candidates positioned themselves as change agents who would clean house in Washington.But despite heavy courting from both candidates, Mr. Edwards has still not made an endorsement. And the former Edwards supporters cautioned today that their announcement should not be viewed as a sign that Mr. Edwards’s endorsement was right behind. Two former campaign aides of Mr. Edwards said today that he has signaled recently that he may not endorse a candidate at all.Mr. Turlington said he has “no idea” if Mr. Edwards agrees that Mr. Obama is the better choice. “He’ll make up his own mind,” he said.
Senate: MCain is Absolutely, Positively an AmericanThe News Blog covered this a few months ago when some conservative bloggers who didn't want to see Sen. John McCain as the Republican presidential nominee, were making noises about the fact that he was born in the Panama Canal Zone -- his father was stationed there -- and that meant he wasn't 'really' an American and thus couldn't run for president.Codswallup. That's basically what the Senate said yesterday. The Senate passed a unanimous resolution affirming that McCain is indeed 100% American, "the kind of 'natural born' citizen the Founding Fathers determined could serve as president.""There is no evidence of the intention of the framers or any Congress to limit the constitutional rights of children born to Americans serving in the military nor to prevent those children from serving as their country's president," the resolution said.The resolution does not have the power of law. But its main authors, Democratic Senators Patrick J. Leahy of Vermont and Claire McCaskill of Missouri, both Democrats, wanted the Senate to take a clear stand on the issue.
O candidato à nomeação democrata Barack Obama está a recuperar popularidade, depois de romper publicamente com o pastor Jeremiah Wright, segundo uma sondagem divulgada no domingo nos EUA. A sondagem, divulgada pelo New York Times e pela cadeia de televisão CBS, indica que Obama tem o apoio de 50% dos eleitores democratas, contra 38% para Hillary Clinton. Na quarta-feira passada, em plena controvérsia com o pastor Wright, as sondagens davam uma vantagem de apenas cinco pontos a Obama.A sondagem indica que se as presidenciais de Novembro fossem agora, Obama bateria o republicano John McCain por 51 contra 40%, enquanto, na semana passada, os dois estavam empatados. No entanto, se o confronto fosse entre Hillary Clinton e John McCain, a senadora venceria por 53 contra 41%.Na terça-feira, Obama e Hillary defrontam-se em mais duas primárias, na Carolina do Norte, onde Obama é favorito, e no Indiana, onde se aponta para um empate técnico.Diário Digital / Lusa
Obama wins most delegates in Tuesday's primariesBy STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press WriterWed May 7, 1:32 AM ETSen. Barack Obama won the most delegates in Tuesday's primaries, moving within 200 delegates of securing the Democratic nomination for president.Obama won at least 94 delegates in the North Carolina and Indiana primaries, according to an analysis of election returns by The Associated Press. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won at least 75 delegates, with 18 still to be awarded.Sixteen of the outstanding delegates were from North Carolina and two were from Indiana.In the overall race for the nomination, Obama led with 1,840.5 delegates, including separately chosen party and elected officials known as superdelegates. Clinton had 1,684.Obama was 184.5 delegates shy of the 2,025 needed to secure the Democratic nomination.There are 217 delegates at stake in the final six contests. Also, about 270 superdelegates are yet to be claimed.Superdelegates are the party and elected officials who will automatically attend the national convention and can support whomever they choose, regardless of what happens in the primaries and caucuses.Obama is on pace to reach a majority of the pledged delegates won in primaries and caucuses in two weeks, when Kentucky and Oregon vote. Obama had a 171-delegate lead among pledged delegates.Obama has argued for months that superdelegates should support the candidate who wins the most pledged delegates. Clinton argues that superdelegates should exercise independent judgment.Clinton leads in superdelegate endorsements, 270.5 to 256, though Obama has been chipping away at her lead since the Super Tuesday contests on Feb. 5. Both candidates picked up a superdelegate endorsement Tuesday.Nearly 800 superdelegates will attend the national convention. About 220 remain undecided and about 50 others will be named at state party conventions and meetings throughout the spring.The AP tracks the delegate races by calculating the number of national convention delegates won by candidates in each presidential primary or caucus, based on state and national party rules, and by interviewing unpledged delegates to obtain their preferences.Most primaries and some caucuses are binding, meaning delegates won by the candidates are pledged to support that candidate at the national conventions this summer.Political parties in some states, however, use multistep procedures to award national delegates. Typically, such states use local caucuses to elect delegates to state or congressional district conventions, where national delegates are selected. In these states, the AP uses the results from local caucuses to calculate the number of national delegates each candidate will win, if the candidate's level of support at the caucus doesn't change.
Obama Wins North Carolina Decisively; Clinton Takes Indiana by Slim MarginSenator Barack Obama won a commanding victory in the North Carolina primary on Tuesday and lost narrowly to Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton in Indiana, an outcome that injected a boost of momentum to Mr. Obama’s candidacy as the Democratic nominating contest entered its final month.The results from the two primaries, the largest remaining Democratic ones, assured that Mr. Obama would widen his lead in pledged delegates over Mrs. Clinton, providing him with new ammunition as he seeks to persuade Democratic leaders to coalesce around his campaign. He also increased his lead in the popular vote in winning North Carolina by more than 200,000 votes.“Don’t ever forget that we have a choice in this country,” Mr. Obama said in an address in Raleigh, N.C., that carried the unity themes of a convention speech. “We can choose not to be divided; that we can choose not to be afraid; that we can still choose this moment to finally come together and solve the problems we’ve talked about all those other years in all those other elections.”In winning North Carolina by 14 percentage points, Mr. Obama — whose campaign had been embattled by controversy over the incendiary remarks of his former pastor — recorded his first primary victory in nearly two months. His campaign was preparing to open a new front in his battle with Mrs. Clinton, intensifying the argument to uncommitted Democratic superdelegates that he weathered a storm and that the time was dawning for the party to concentrate on the general election.But as Mrs. Clinton addressed her supporters at a rally in Indianapolis on Tuesday evening, it was clear the fight was not over. In the first three minutes of her address, she asked supporters to contribute money, saying, “Tonight, I need your help to continue this journey.”Clinton advisers acknowledged that the results of the primaries were far less than they had hoped, and said they were likely to face new pleas even from some of their own supporters for her to quit the race. They said they expected fund-raising to become even harder; one adviser said the campaign was essentially broke, and several others refused to say whether Mrs. Clinton had lent the campaign money from her personal account to keep it afloat.The advisers said they were dispirited over the loss in North Carolina, after her campaign — now working off a shoestring budget as spending outpaces fund-raising — decided to allocate millions of dollars and full days of the candidate and her husband in the state. Even with her investment, Mr. Obama outspent Mrs. Clinton in both states.For several hours, incomplete results from Lake County in Indiana — home to the city of Gary, just across the state line from Chicago — left the statewide tally in doubt. The delay meant that Mrs. Clinton did not appear on television until well after Mr. Obama, allowing him to put his stamp of victory on the evening.With six primaries remaining on the Democratic calendar, the fight between Mr. Obama and Mrs. Clinton now turns to Washington. The Obama campaign was poised to present a new cache of superdelegates — the party officials who may have to settle the nominating fight — as early as Wednesday to press its case that the results from Tuesday are reason enough to back his candidacy and end the torturous nominating fight.In his speech earlier in the evening, Mr. Obama, of Illinois, congratulated Mrs. Clinton “for what appears to be her victory in the great state of Indiana.” Then, he used his televised forum to deliver a speech highlighting how he was likely to come under attack. In doing so, he made an argument for his viability in a general election, which his rivals believe has been damaged because of his association with his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr..“Yes, we know what’s coming; I’m not naïve,” Mr. Obama said, adding, “The attempts to play on our fears and exploit our differences, to turn us against each other for political gain, to slice and dice this country into red states and blue states; blue-collar and white-collar; white, black, brown; young, old; rich, poor.”“This is the race we expect” regardless of who is the Democratic nominee, he went on. “The question, then, is not what kind of campaign they will run; it’s what kind of campaign we will run.”Democrats said they expect to see more superdelegates flow to Mr. Obama in the next few days, including perhaps some now aligned with Mrs. Clinton.Senator Claire McCaskill, an Obama supporter from Missouri, called the results “a big, big night” for Mr. Obama given the Wright episode. “This shows he can take major blows and kind of rise above it,” Ms. McCaskill said. “I think there was a sense that she has some momentum, and I think it has just ground to a screeching halt tonight.”Despite Mrs. Clinton’s performance, she pledged to take her campaign to West Virginia, Kentucky and the other states remaining on the primary calendar. And the campaign has been pushing the cause of seating disputed delegates from Florida and Michigan, states that were penalized for holding primaries before party rules allowed.“You know it seems, it would be a little strange to have a nominee chosen by 48 states,” she told her supporters in Indianapolis. “We’ve got a long road ahead, but were going to keep fighting on that path because America is worth fighting for.”The Rules and Bylaws Committee of the Democratic National Committee will convene on May 31 to settle the issue of whether to seat the delegates from those two states.Going forward, both candidates intend to spend time in Washington, courting superdelegates and party officials.Senator Ben Nelson of Nebraska, an Obama supporter, said the candidate accomplished what he needed to by outperforming expectations in both states and showing that Mr. Wright was not driving off voters en masse. “The next question will be what happens with the undecided superdelegates,” Mr. Nelson said. “Will they begin to come his way? I don’t see anything to suggest they should start going her way.”In North Carolina, Mr. Obama’s performance was bolstered by a strong black vote. He captured more than 90 percent of those voters in that state, where blacks accounted for one in three voters. But over all, Mrs. Clinton continued to draw strong support among whites, particularly older women.The voting in Indiana and North Carolina came at the conclusion of an acrimonious two-week campaign that found Mr. Obama on the defensive over incendiary remarks by Mr. Wright. Yet there was little evidence either argument caused significant shifts in electoral patterns of previous states, with most Clinton voters saying the Wright episode affected their vote and Obama backers saying it had not.Once again, Mrs. Clinton drew most of her support from women and older voters. Mr. Obama held onto his mainstays of support — blacks, young voters and liberals — and made small gains in Indiana with lower-income white voters who have eluded him in the past.In both states, the candidates’ final arguments centered on a summertime suspension of the federal gasoline tax, which Mrs. Clinton proposed as an economic lift for voters and Mr. Obama derided as a political gimmick.At this stage in the nominating fight, most voters seemed to have settled on their preferences before the battle intensified. Only a quarter of voters in Indiana decided whom to support in the last week, and a majority backed Mrs. Clinton, while one in five voters in North Carolina also decided late, and most of them backed Mr. Obama.The country’s economic condition was listed as the chief concern of the Democratic primary voters. About 9 in 10 voters in Indiana and 8 in 10 voters in North Carolina said the economic slowdown had affected their family at least somewhat.At least three in five voters in both states said the economy was the most important problem facing the country, according to surveys of voters leaving polling places that were conducted in both states by Edison/Mitofsky for the television networks and The Associated Press.In Indiana, about 8 in 10 voters were white and about 15 percent were black. Six in 10 of the whites voted for Mrs. Clinton; about 9 in 10 blacks favored Mr. Obama.
McGovern, former Clinton backer, urges her to drop outFormer Sen. George McGovern, an early supporter of Hillary Rodham Clinton, urged her to drop out of the Democratic presidential race and endorsed her rival, Barack Obama.After watching the returns from the North Carolina and Indiana primaries Tuesday night, McGovern said Wednesday it's virtually impossible for Clinton to win the nomination. The 1972 Democratic presidential nominee said he had a call in to former President Clinton to tell him of the decision, adding that he remains close friends with the Clintons."I will hold them in affection and admiration all of my days," he said of the Clintons.McGovern's announcement comes a day before Clinton was scheduled to travel to South Dakota to campaign. The state holds its primary June 3 with 15 pledged delegates at stake.McGovern said he had no regrets about endorsing Hillary Clinton months ago, even before the Iowa caucuses."She has run a valiant campaign. And she will remain an influential voice in the American future," he said.But Obama has won the nomination "by any practical test" and is very close to a majority of the pledged delegates, said McGovern, who is 85. Obama moved within 200 delegates of clinching the nomination with his split decision on Tuesday of a win in North Carolina and a narrow loss in Indiana.It's time to unite the Democratic Party, he said."Hillary, of course, will make the decision as to if and when she ends her campaign. But I hope that she reaches that decision soon so that we can concentrate on a unified party capable of winning the White House next November," he said.McGovern is not a superdelegate, one of the prominent Democrats who has a vote at the national convention.
Nigeria: Militants May Suspend Attacks After Obama's PleaThe Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) has said it is considering a temporary cessation of hostilities in the oil-producing region based on an appeal by United States presidential hopeful, Senator Barack Obama.MEND also said in an e-mail that its ceasefire was to enable the federal government to have a rethink over the way it has handled the matter concerning its leader, Mr. Henry Okah.The spate of attacks in the last two weeks has led to more volatility in the crude oil market with substantial production cuts in Nigeria.The militant group also advanced reasons why it carried out several attacks on pipelines in the South-south region, saying it was "in chief" to prove to the oil companies and the Federal Government that they could not protect facilities by the "force of gunboats"."The MEND command is seriously considering a temporary ceasefire appeal by Senator Barack Obama. Obama is someone we respect and hold in high esteem. The period of halting attacks, we hope, when considered, will afford the Nigerian government the opportunity to address the issues with Henry Okah, including improving his living conditions and having access to a bible which he has requested for but was denied," they said.On the reasons why they stepped up attacks, especially in the last one week, on Shell facilities in Bayelsa State, MEND said: "This attack was prompted by four factors. (1) To support small cells like the ones that attacked Chevron in Delta state. (2) To let the oil companies know that we consider the military gunboats and soldiers guarding their facilities as mere ornaments and can confront them at will. (3) To dispel the assurances of ensuring peace by some compromised militants who have sold their birth rights. (4) The kangaroo court ruling insisting on a secret trial for Henry Okah".In the statement signed by Gbomo Jomo, the militant group admitted that the man who led the attack on Chevron facility in Delta State, one Emmanuel Awala, died from injuries he sustained in the attack.They however denied any involvement of its men in the kidnap of 56-year-old Mrs. Margaret Idisi, saying it is a taboo to take women into MEND camps where they perform their war rites, maintaining that they were not interested in taking local hostages.They alleged that most kidnappings had "insider" involvement.Meanwhile, Azuka, wife of Henry Okah, has said the refusal of her husband to concede to other means of settling the Niger Delta problem led to his being "set up" and incarcerated.According to a statement she sent to THISDAY through the official e-mail address of MEND, said in an effort to resolve the problem, Vice- President Goodluck Jonathan, had met him at the Sheraton Hotel, Pretoria, South Africa on July 7, 2007 where her husband insisted in 50 per cent derivation "or nothing".According to her, some other influential Nigerians also met and tried to represent Okah in the negotiations, but she said her husband rejected offers of oil blocks to abandon the campaign.She wrote: "The vice-president of the Federal Republic of Nigeria in a presidential jet with other top government officials and other Niger Delta stakeholders visited my husband on the 7th of July 2007. They had a four-hour long meeting at Sheraton Hotel in Pretoria. There is a disparity between this visit and my husband's arrest at 1400hrs on the 3rd of Sept in Luanda, Angola, and the reason for his illegal extradition to Nigeria."Sometime in August 2007, before he travelled, my husband informed me that President Yar'Adua phoned him in [on] finding a lasting solution to the Niger Delta crisis. My husband will also avail [unveil] at the main trial, the taped telephone conversation he had on him on that fateful day the 7th of July 2007 in Pretoria South Africa and every taped telephone conversation he held with all politicians and stakeholders of the Niger Delta. He has instructed me that this must be done to avail [unveil] the political cloud that befalls him unjustly."My husband had told me back then that the discussion having hinged on the Niger Delta crisis, that he had bluntly refused any and all monetary inducement, including oil blocks. He stated that the lasting solution for him was fiscal federalism and the 50% derivation as obtained in the 1960/1963 Nigerian constitutions."The world, Nigerians, politicians and everyone concerned on this matter should know that this is a Northern agenda to keep on milking perpetually the resources of the oppressed Niger Delta minorities without any protest. This is my testament."
