Clinton’s dwindling coalition
Barack Obama cut into Hillary Clinton’s support among women and union members to soundly beat her in Wisconsin’s Democratic primary and Hawaii’s caucuses, said the AP's Ron Fournier, and that means it's "panic time" for Clinton. Don’t forget th
What happened
Barack Obama cut into Hillary Clinton’s support among women and union members to soundly beat her in Wisconsin’s Democratic primary and Hawaii’s caucuses on Tuesday. Hawaii marked the 10th consecutive win for Obama, who also pulled away low- and middle-income voters once loyal to Clinton. (The New York Times, free registration)
What the commentators said
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
It’s “panic-button time” for Clinton, said the AP’s Ron Fournier in Yahoo! News. Her advisers say her latest losses are “just a bump in the road” to “the tell-all” big-state primaries on March 4, but her crumbling coalition tells a different story. Whites, moderates, and those earning less than $50,000—“all bastions of Clinton's past strength”—favored Obama on Tuesday. And Clinton even lost her “one-time advantage” among women voters, so the nomination is now “Obama’s to lose.”
The loss of blue-collar voters hurts Clinton the most, said John Dickerson in Slate. They are a “key voting bloc” for the senator and former First Lady, and her campaign was “banking on” these “bedrock Democratic voters” for her comeback in the primaries of Ohio in early March, and Pennsylvania in April. Now that Obama has shown he can win across the board, it will be harder for Clinton to claim he’s “just the boutique fascination of young people and wealthy elites.”
Maybe, but don’t forget the most powerful part of Clinton’s coalition, said Susan Estrich in Fox News via RealClearPolitics. Superdelegates—those party insiders who could tip the party’s presidential nomination if Clinton and Obama remain in a virtual tie for pledged delegates. If Clinton wins the three looming big-state battles—Ohio, Texas, and Pennsylvania—the nomination fight could hinge on just the kind of internal wrangling the Clintons thrive on. “This is where 35 years of favors and chicken dinners and contributions get paid off.”
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
Biba: the story of a 'legendary emporium'
The Week Recommends Brand's 60th anniversary is being marked with retrospective celebrating the 'iconic shop's cultural importance'
By Adrienne Wyper, The Week UK Published
-
How the Russia-Ukraine conflict has spread to Africa
The Explainer Ukraine is attempting to strengthen its alliances on the continent to counter Russia's growing presence
By Richard Windsor, The Week UK Published
-
A history of Guantánamo Bay
The Explainer War of Terror's 'symbol of torture, rendition and indefinite detention' is subject of new Serial podcast series
By The Week UK Published
-
Trump, billions richer, is selling Bibles
Speed Read The former president is hawking a $60 "God Bless the USA Bible"
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
The debate about Biden's age and mental fitness
In Depth Some critics argue Biden is too old to run again. Does the argument have merit?
By Grayson Quay Published
-
How would a second Trump presidency affect Britain?
Today's Big Question Re-election of Republican frontrunner could threaten UK security, warns former head of secret service
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published
-
'Rwanda plan is less a deterrent and more a bluff'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By The Week UK Published
-
Henry Kissinger dies aged 100: a complicated legacy?
Talking Point Top US diplomat and Nobel Peace Prize winner remembered as both foreign policy genius and war criminal
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Last updated
-
Trump’s rhetoric: a shift to 'straight-up Nazi talk'
Why everyone's talking about Would-be president's sinister language is backed by an incendiary policy agenda, say commentators
By The Week UK Published
-
More covfefe: is the world ready for a second Donald Trump presidency?
Today's Big Question Republican's re-election would be a 'nightmare' scenario for Europe, Ukraine and the West
By Sorcha Bradley, The Week UK Published
-
Xi-Biden meeting: what's in it for both leaders?
Today's Big Question Two superpowers seek to stabilise relations amid global turmoil but core issues of security, trade and Taiwan remain
By Harriet Marsden, The Week UK Published