CNN shows results from the West Virginia primary this morning with 100 percent of the precincts reporting: Clinton received 239,062 votes or 67% compared to Obama’s 91,652 votes or 26%. Clinton won every county in the Mountain State.
Although pundits largely avoided naming race as a major factor in Obama’s important win in North Carolina, where a heavy black population helped put him over the top, they have been quick to point out that West Virginia’s large white working class population was critical to Clinton’s landslide victory.
In its coverage of Hillary’s big win, The New York Times first took pains to remind readers of the Obama camp’s most recent attempt to twist Hillary Clinton’s words and smear her as racist for mentioning the working class component of her base that also includes Hispanics, Asians, Catholics, and seniors.
The Times eventually got around to reporting other important factors in Hillary’s win:
“Nearly two-thirds of West Virginia voters said that the economy was the most important issue facing the country, and they backed Mrs. Clinton by a margin of 2 to 1. About 9 in 10 voters say they were affected by the current economic slowdown, including nearly half who said they were affected a great deal. Mrs. Clinton was supported by about three-quarters of those most affected.
“She also won the support of most voters under age 30, a group that has typically voted heavily for Mr. Obama throughout this election. She also edged out Mr. Obama among college graduates and higher-income voters, also groups Mr. Obama has relied on.
“Some of the exit poll results showed deep mistrust about Mr. Obama, a relatively rare finding in Democratic primary contests. Half of voters, for instance, said they believed that Mr. Obama shared the controversial views of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Half said Mr. Obama was not honest and trustworthy and half said he did not share their values.
“When asked to select from a list of four candidate qualities that mattered most to the voters in deciding how they would vote, nearly half of the voters said the candidate’s ability to bring about change was paramount, while about a quarter said having the right experience was most important. About 1 in 5 chose the fact that the candidate cared about people like them and 1 in 10 decided based on the candidate’s ability to win in November.
“Voters were most apt to say they were looking for a candidate who can bring about change, and as in previous contests, Mr. Obama won most of them. But Mrs. Clinton won more of them than she typically does, and she overwhelmingly won voters looking for someone with experience, someone who cares about them or someone who can win in November.
“Bill Clinton’s campaigning in the state on behalf of his wife was a boost. About 6 in 10 voters said his campaigning was important in their vote, and they overwhelmingly backed Mrs. Clinton.”
Note: One of my readers, “GeekLove,” has created a video posted at YouTube portraying the repeated sexist attacks against Hillary Clinton throughout the Democratic primary by Obama supporters presented against the backdrop of Clinton’s famous speech on equal rights in Beijing, China.
GeekLove understandably questions Obama’s silence on the issue of sexism in his campaign.
Although pundits largely avoided naming race as a major factor in Obama’s important win in North Carolina, where a heavy black population helped put him over the top, they have been quick to point out that West Virginia’s large white working class population was critical to Clinton’s landslide victory.
In its coverage of Hillary’s big win, The New York Times first took pains to remind readers of the Obama camp’s most recent attempt to twist Hillary Clinton’s words and smear her as racist for mentioning the working class component of her base that also includes Hispanics, Asians, Catholics, and seniors.
The Times eventually got around to reporting other important factors in Hillary’s win:
“Nearly two-thirds of West Virginia voters said that the economy was the most important issue facing the country, and they backed Mrs. Clinton by a margin of 2 to 1. About 9 in 10 voters say they were affected by the current economic slowdown, including nearly half who said they were affected a great deal. Mrs. Clinton was supported by about three-quarters of those most affected.
“She also won the support of most voters under age 30, a group that has typically voted heavily for Mr. Obama throughout this election. She also edged out Mr. Obama among college graduates and higher-income voters, also groups Mr. Obama has relied on.
“Some of the exit poll results showed deep mistrust about Mr. Obama, a relatively rare finding in Democratic primary contests. Half of voters, for instance, said they believed that Mr. Obama shared the controversial views of his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah A. Wright Jr. Half said Mr. Obama was not honest and trustworthy and half said he did not share their values.
“When asked to select from a list of four candidate qualities that mattered most to the voters in deciding how they would vote, nearly half of the voters said the candidate’s ability to bring about change was paramount, while about a quarter said having the right experience was most important. About 1 in 5 chose the fact that the candidate cared about people like them and 1 in 10 decided based on the candidate’s ability to win in November.
“Voters were most apt to say they were looking for a candidate who can bring about change, and as in previous contests, Mr. Obama won most of them. But Mrs. Clinton won more of them than she typically does, and she overwhelmingly won voters looking for someone with experience, someone who cares about them or someone who can win in November.
“Bill Clinton’s campaigning in the state on behalf of his wife was a boost. About 6 in 10 voters said his campaigning was important in their vote, and they overwhelmingly backed Mrs. Clinton.”
Note: One of my readers, “GeekLove,” has created a video posted at YouTube portraying the repeated sexist attacks against Hillary Clinton throughout the Democratic primary by Obama supporters presented against the backdrop of Clinton’s famous speech on equal rights in Beijing, China.
GeekLove understandably questions Obama’s silence on the issue of sexism in his campaign.
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