NY Observer > Hillary Clinton

EMILY's List Trashes NARAL for Obama Endorsement

Jason Horowitz — Wed, 14 May 2008 15:01:04 -0400

EMILY's List, which supports Hillary Clinton, reacts harshly to what it calls the "tremendously disrespectful" endorsement of Barack Obama by NARAL.

The following is a statement from EMILY’s List president Ellen R. Malcolm on NARAL’s endorsement in the Democratic presidential competition: read more »

Clinton Campaign Says She Leads Popular Vote

Jason Horowitz — Wed, 14 May 2008 14:46:20 -0400

On a conference call today, the Clinton campaign argued that after her victory in West Virginia–and counting the votes in Florida and Michigan–Hillary Clinton now leads in the popular vote. "Hillary Clinton has now moved ahead in the popular vote," said campaign chairman Terry McAuliffe. (In that calculation, the Clinton campaign is not awarding any Michigan votes for the "uncommitted" choice to Obama, who was not on the ballot there.) read more »

A Big Clinton Win That Doesn't Change Anything

Steve Kornacki — Tue, 13 May 2008 22:50:10 -0400

“It is a fact,” Clinton said in her victory speech, “that no Democrat has won the White House since 1916 without winning West Virginia.”

It’s a line the Clinton campaign has been pressing relentlessly this past week in anticipation of her blowout victory there tonight.

And it’s true that no Democrat since Woodrow Wilson has won the presidency without West Virginia. But the exact same is true about Minnesota – a state where Obama crushed Clinton back on February 5. And Minnesota is every bit the swing state that West Virginia is. (Actually, it’s more of one: In 2004, George W. Bush won West Virginia by 13 points, while John Kerry won Minnesota by three. Plus, Minnesota is worth twice as many electoral votes – 10 – as West Virginia and its five.)

So what does Clinton’s argument really mean? Based on the states-we’ve-needed-since-1916 standard, Democrats would pick up West Virginia with Clinton, but wouldn’t Minnesota then be at risk – meaning a net loss of five electoral votes? read more »

Upper East Side Clinton Donors Sidle To Obama

Jason Horowitz — Tue, 13 May 2008 20:10:14 -0400

The day before Hillary Clinton racked up her emphatic—if mostly meaningless—victory in the West Virginia primary, Barack Obama’s chief strategist was in an Upper East Side apartment with dozens of political insiders, dealing with the new facts on the ground.

Surrounded by views of the East River and trays of salmon-filled pastries, sesame chicken and lobster dumplings, the strategist, David Axelrod, addressed a room of about 75 Democratic activists and fund-raisers that included a number of newly converted Clinton supporters. read more »

Kovner: Democratic Fight Is Over, On to the Main Event

Jason Horowitz — Tue, 13 May 2008 15:24:44 -0400

I just spoke to Sarah Kovner, a longstanding Clinton ally who attended a fund-raiser for Barack Obama last night.

Kovner said she had not yet made a contribution to the Obama campaign, but she added, "I certainly will, as will everyone I know."

Kovner, who said she had mostly focused her energies on Senate and Congressional races this year, is not ambiguous about her reasons for supporting Obama. read more »

Clinton Holding Fund-Raiser in L.A. on Thursday

Jason Horowitz — Tue, 13 May 2008 14:26:42 -0400

A reader sends over the following email from Los Angeles Clinton bundler Yashar Hedayat to Clinton donors, about a fund-raiser for the candidate in Century City on Thursday:

Friends

Just a reminder that this Thursday Senator Clinton will be in town for a fundraiser in Century City. With six contests left, Senator Clinton needs the resources to continue competing through June 3rd. Please see details below and if you’d like to attend, please respond to this e-mail or call XXXXXXXXX.
read more »

Clinton Ally Sarah Kovner Goes to an Obama Fund-Raiser

Jason Horowitz — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:53:35 -0400

Sarah Kovner, a longtime supporter of Hillary and Bill Clinton, a close associate of Harold Ickes and a lion of New York's liberal political establishment, attended a fund-raiser for Barack Obama last night, according to two attendees. read more »

Former Clinton Opponent Says It's (Still) About the War

Azi Paybarah — Tue, 13 May 2008 13:41:23 -0400

Here's Jonathan Tasini, Hillary Clinton’s Democratic primary opponent in the 2006 Senate race, who I saw at a Barack Obama rally in Harlem over the weekend.
read more »

Obama, West Virginia and the General Election

Steve Kornacki — Tue, 13 May 2008 01:18:45 -0400

Hillary Clinton will win the West Virginia primary on Tuesday by an overwhelming margin, perhaps rivaling her campaign-best 43-point pasting of Barack Obama in Arkansas’ Feb. 5 primary.

The state is mostly populated by voters who have formed the backbone of her large and loyal coalition this primary season, and contains scant few of those who have made up Obama’s. Moreover, Obama, in a bow to the inevitable and an effort to downplay its significance, has not exactly gone all out this past week to narrow Clinton’s wide lead. read more »

Obama Donor on 'Loss of Face' for Clinton Counterparts

Jason Horowitz — Mon, 12 May 2008 15:21:56 -0400

On a day that the flow of superdelegates to Barack Obama continues, so does the movement of mid-level Clinton fund-raisers.

"There have been discussions in the Obama camp about reaching out to Hillary people -- I have done some," said one Obama fund-raiser who will be bringing two Hillary supporters to an event tonight at the home of money manager Eric Schwartz. read more »