One OpinionAfter eight years of President George W. Bush in the White House, I can safely say that I am ready for a change. However, the battle between Sen. Barack Obama and Sen. Hillary Clinton for the democratic nomination is posing a threat.
"I am very concerned," said Vermont superdelegate Sen. Patrick J. Leahy. "John McCain, who has been making one gaffe after another, is getting a free ride on it because Senator Obama and Senator Clinton have to fight with each other."
Democratic Party Chairman Howard Dean also expressed his concerns about the issue. According to the Los Angeles Times, Dean urged Obama and Clinton to reduce their rhetorical attacks because the internal fighting is hurting the party, thus hurting the chances of defeating Republican Sen. John McCain in November.
Dean also encouraged undecided super delegates to choose a candidate by July 1 in order to circumvent problems at the National Democratic Convention in August.
I agree with Leahy and Dean. The longer the fight for the nomination continues, the more votes the democrats seem to lose.
According to a new Gallup poll, 28 percent of Clinton's supporters will vote for McCain if Obama wins the democratic nomination, and 19 percent of Obama's supporters will vote for McCain if Clinton clenches the party's nomination. It's a lose-lose situation.
Currently, Obama has a lead over Clinton, accumulating 1,414 pledged delegates and 217 super delegates for a total of 1,631. Clinton trails with 1,243 pledged delegates and 245 super delegates for a total of 1,488. In order to win the democratic nomination, a candidate needs a total 2,025 delegates.
For Clinton to win the nomination, she needs 64.6 percent of the vote in the remaining primaries.
According to the American Research Group, on April 6 Obama had closed the gap on Clinton's lead in the state of Pennsylvania, and support is now hovering around 45 percent for each candidate.
Obama is favored in North Carolina, Oregon, Montana and South Dakota. It is almost impossible for Clinton to accumulate enough delegates to defeat Obama in the remaining 10 primaries.
Leahy commented on Vermont Public Radio, "There is no way that Sen. Clinton is going to win enough delegates to get the nomination."
It is clear that Clinton needs to face reality by examining the numbers and ceding to Obama before she creates an overwhelming rift in the Democratic Party.
I do not want democratic voters casting their important votes for McCain because of bitter emotions due to an overdrawn battle for the nomination. t&c;
LIANNE SIMEONE IS A SENIOR JOURNALISM AND SPEECH COMM. MAJOR AND STAFF WRITER FOR THE t&c.;
Another OpinionI am not delusional. I realize that the statistics are against Hillary Clinton. However, there are several reasons why she should stay in the race.
First, I believe that the concept that Hillary is hurting the Democratic Party is over-blown by the media; the idea that democrats in 2008 could be swayed to vote for John McCain because a nominee hasn't been secured doesn't make much sense.
After eight years of Bush's policies and the overwhelming numbers that show that the country is ready for a change.
Why would a Democrat vote for a man who basically wants to continue the tradition of an endless war? Or, whenever the economy falls into a stooper will provide a tax-cut to make us feel better about our trillion dollar deficit.
I just don't buy it. Besides, this is the way the democratic primary is designed. The democratic primary is set up so that the percentage of the vote is reflective in the number of delegates received.
The republican primary is designed so that the republican who collects the most votes wins all of the delegates. Therefore, the delegates stack up more quickly for republican candidates, thus, the nominee is usually secured much faster then the democratic nomination. It is not unusual for the democratic candidate to be undecided at this point in the race.
Secondly, it is not impossible for her to gain the votes needed to win. It may be unlikely, but unlikely does not mean impossible. She has a chance.
Personally, I voted for her in the primary and I believe she is the best candidate. I don't believe that she should be stripped of her chances just because so-called pundits want to call it a rap.
Remember, it was not so very long ago that these same pundits called Sen. John McCain out of the race and now look at who is the republican nominee. Is this ringing any bells?
I also find irony in some of the statistics. For instance, if 28 percent of Clinton supporters will vote for McCain if Obama wins the nomination, versus the 19 percent of Obama supporters that say they would do the same if Clinton won, then isn't Clinton the safer choice?
It's all about spin. Trust me, people get paid very well to spin statistics all the time. I am not saying that all statistics are spin statistics. What I am saying though, is that in this day and age of 24/7 media, one could probably find a statistic to support whatever they want it to support.
The bottom line, be skeptical. And, if you voted for Hillary in the primary and are ready to turn your back on her, maybe rethink that decision. t&c;
ALEXA LIBERT IS A JUNIOR JOURNALISM. MAJOR AND OPINION EDITOR FOR THE t&c.;
