Thursday, May 08, 2008

Is Hillary done?

Sure seems like it's over now, doesn't it? I still think she's more likely to win in November than is Obama, but I also don't think there's anyway she can get the nomination now. Right?

Well, yeah, she's done. I can't see how she can carry on now. She has nothing going her direction. She probably could (and should) demand something be done about Michigan and Florida, but even those two states won't change the fact that she's behind in delegates and the popular vote. She can't win.

But, can Obama still lose? Well, there's always the possibility that the superdelegates will decide that Obama just won't win enough white votes in Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida and elsewhere to win in November. It's possible, but not probable.

What I find really interesting when I look at the popular votes is the number of states where Obama won more than 60% of the votes. Mississippi, Wyoming, Hawaii Virginia, Maryland, DC, Nebraska, Illinois, Georgia, Minnesota, Colorado, Kansas, North Dakota, Idaho and Nebraska. And Hillary won exactly one with greater than 60% of the vote: Arkansas. Yet in the overall totals Obama has won 49.6% of the votes and Hillary 47.3% (excluding IA, NV, ME, WA, FL & MI).

If you're a superdelegate this sort of information has to give pause for thought. Why did Obama win by such large margins in those 14 states and yet fall short in California, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Ohio? Any superdelegate worth his salt would want an answer to that question.