Obama Campaign Says Rush Affected Indiana Vote

By Jeralyn, Section Elections 2008
Posted on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:36:05 PM EST
Tags: Indiana '08 (all tags)

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Graceless loser?

Via Fox: David Axlerod attributes Hillary's better numbers in Indiana to Rush Limbaugh.

It was an open primary. 11% of voters in the Democratic primary said they were Republicans -- half of those said they voted for Hillary. There's no support for the theory that this 5.5% listened to Rush. It's just as likely they are sick of Bush and don't like McCain and prefer Hillary to Obama. 5.5% voted for Obama. Maybe they listened to Rush but decided Obama is the more unelectable against McCain and wanted him to be the nominee to help McCain win in November. Six of one, half dozen of the other.

Obama urged Republicans and Independents to register as Dems and vote for him in earlier open caucuses and primaries. I guess what's good for the goose isn't good for the gander in Obama's world.

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Obama Campaign Says Rush Affected Indiana Vote | 44 comments (44 topical)

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Doesn't mean that mean (5.00 / 1) (#2)
by bjorn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:43:04 PM EST

he got the other half? What is crying about?

Pretty Petty... (5.00 / 1) (#4)
by TomStewart on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:44:08 PM EST

response for the campaign that's supposed to be changing politics. Sorry, but if Rush had that much pull with the Repubs these days, McCain would not be the nominee.

CNN (5.00 / 1) (#10)
by DJ on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:48:08 PM EST

saying Gary just came in with 25% of vote and it is 20k vote gain for Obama. This just stinks.

For goodness sakes... (5.00 / 1) (#20)
by OrangeFur on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:52:04 PM EST

Can't they ever concede people might vote for someone else for valid reasons? Not because they're racist, or are clinging to guns or religion, or because they're androids sent out by Rush Limbaugh. There's always some belittling reason.

Gary's mayor (5.00 / 1) (#29)
by miriam on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:56:00 PM EST

is an Obama supporter. I sincerely hope the Clinton campaign has observers and lawyers in Lake County, Indiana. CNN saying it's highly unusual for NO results to be coming yet from there.

Axelrod is Penn is Rove. (none / 0) (#1)
by Joelarama on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:42:56 PM EST

I don't credit a word that comes out of their mouths.

Obama didn't mind all the republican crossover (none / 0) (#3)
by Angel on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:43:47 PM EST

votes he got in the states he won. What a hypocrite.

Unbelievable (none / 0) (#5)
by janarchy on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:45:44 PM EST

Half isn't enough. It's all or nothing?

Meanwhile, there has not been one single solitary vote from Lake County reported in the past 5 hours. If something smells rotten in Gary (which it always does!), is it okay as long as the votes go for Obama?

Big chunk just came in.... (5.00 / 1) (#9)
by oldpro on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:48:05 PM EST

cut her lead in half.

Looks like he can overtake her lead...if this trend holds.


something is really wrong there. (5.00 / 1) (#12)
by DJ on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:48:50 PM EST

: The delay in reporting (5.00 / 1) (#19)
by oldpro on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:51:56 PM EST

the vote is certainly suspicious.
There should be Hillary poll watchers monitoring those counts...and reporting any abuses or anomalies...

: This is so strange (none / 0) (#26)
by kayla on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:55:05 PM EST

I'm not trying to say something unethical is going on, but the atmosphere was changing for her, I thought. I mean, I live in VA, but a lot of the people I know who voted for him during our primary have told me that they regret that vote having seen Hillary's last debate performance and her on Bill and her apparant energy has been great for her, I thought. Even the news media has been a little bit more fair to her lately.
So, I'm just utterly shocked by these results. Just shocked.

Gulp (5.00 / 4) (#18)
by andgarden on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:51:26 PM EST

Chicago called. . .


are they saying when the other chunk will come in? (none / 0) (#14)
by bjorn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:50:28 PM EST

Oh wait, they probably have to call Obama first and check with him.


Hmmm... (none / 0) (#6)
by Leisa on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:46:21 PM EST

is AX saying that a Democrat for a day is no longer a good thing?

I thought that repugs were people for the great O!?!

just 2 points now.. he may win.. then no rush (none / 0) (#7)
by TalkRight on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:47:13 PM EST

factor..

graceless (none / 0) (#8)
by Heather on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:47:50 PM EST

is when the worst politics has to offer, tells his minions to interfere in dem elections. nothing to be proud of..nothing worth defending

they're stealing (none / 0) (#13)
by tnjen on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:49:25 PM EST

jeezus christ this seals it. they're gonna try to make it a tie -- "finding votes". Bush jr. is a g++Dmn thief. NO WAY AM I EVER VOTING OBAMA.

what are the talking heads (none / 0) (#16)
by bjorn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:51:19 PM EST

saying?


Chicago (5.00 / 2) (#22)
by tnjen on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:52:47 PM EST

old school way of 'counting votes.' We're watching theft and the talking heads are calling it suspicious like the way votes used to come in under Daley.


: thank god at least they are calling it (5.00 / 1) (#24)
by bjorn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:53:53 PM EST

suspicious

If the trend in Gary continues, he will win. (5.00 / 1) (#23)
by Teresa on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:53:07 PM EST

CNN is a bit suspicious and says the Clinton campaign is too.


if they think (none / 0) (#30)
by tnjen on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:56:05 PM EST

Clinton supporters don't know exactly what's happening and will "forgive" and forget they've got another thing coming. This is ALL OUT WAR.


More details, please? (none / 0) (#31)
by OrangeFur on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:57:35 PM EST

Who's suspicious?


: it's sinking in (none / 0) (#33)
by tnjen on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:02:08 PM EST

Toobin and now the others on CNN. Fox and MSNBC have mentioned how strange it was overall. Roland seems to have figured out that this is VERY bad for Obama b/c he's trying to soften things.

Beg to Differ (none / 0) (#15)
by dell on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:50:52 PM EST

I canvassed for Obama in my precinct, and convinced 3 Repubs who had had it with Bush to come over. They voted, and, being in Texas also caucused Obama--and I know because I saw them there. I sure hope they're along for the ride to stay, but they were voting genuinely on March 4. That's what Obama is encouraging.

And it is qualitatively different than the caller on Rush today who reported voting for Clinton and then laughed with Rush about how much he hated her.

There were some.

I agree that Rush is full of sh-- and will try to take credit. With the likely margin in Indiana, the decisive element could just as well have been people who were impressed when Barack sank that 3-pointer.

: Well (5.00 / 1) (#42)
by Steve M on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:21:35 PM EST

Surely you acknowledge that there are also Republicans who are legitimately crossing over for Hillary, and also that there are Republicans who are voting for Obama solely because they hate Hillary and will never vote for a Democrat in November.
There are indisputably people in all these categories. No one can quantify how many, and that's why it's offensive to argue that MY crossovers are legitimate, while YOURS are just mischief-makers.

: Or Republican (none / 0) (#25)
by oldpro on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:54:34 PM EST

pro-choice women voting for Hillary...

The Mayor seems to be coming through for (none / 0) (#17)
by Teresa on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:51:25 PM EST

Obama. This is very fishy.

Axelrod is something else, isn't he (5.00 / 1) (#21)
by andgarden on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:52:36 PM EST

Distract everyone else with Rush while his friends in Lake County vote everyone Obama?


: Yeah. We don't count the votes we should (none / 0) (#27)
by Teresa on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:55:15 PM EST

and we may be counting some we shouldn't?

Let's wait a second... (none / 0) (#28)
by OrangeFur on Tue May 06, 2008 at 10:55:23 PM EST

There's more to Lake County than Gary.

Obama-gri-gri (none / 0) (#35)
by NO2WONDERBOY on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:05:14 PM EST

is throwing witch dust to get his way, maybe his people from the other side of the ocean worked their "stuff" to put him over the top.
Nothing else can justify the logic of this win, besides the inclement, repugnant and despicable personal bashing-thrashing of Hillary.

: Oh please..that is so lame.. (none / 0) (#41)
by FlaDemFem on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:20:07 PM EST

it's not gri-gri or whatever..it's the old Chicago politics..vote early and vote often. They just haven't finished the "oftens" yet.

CNN now grilling Mayor (none / 0) (#36)
by bjorn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:06:42 PM EST

from Hammond. He got his votes in at 6:30...tension building that most cities in Lake County got their results in early but no results were passed to CNN until moments ago. Focus on why Lake County not reporting.

: there's a thread up on this (none / 0) (#40)
by Jeralyn on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:17:32 PM EST

please comment there.

CNN saying (none / 0) (#38)
by miriam on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:09:24 PM EST

this is very odd, hours after the polls close, to not have ANY results yet. Wolf Blitzer seems incredulous. They're all speculating without saying the obvious. I guess the Chicago machine is as powerful as it's said to be. (And if this district weren't so close to Chicago I wouldn't be suspicious.)

Hear, hear! (none / 0) (#39)
by NO2WONDERBOY on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:16:24 PM EST

Hillary won't ask us. On the contrary, Obama himself last night unashamedly and unabashedly (in his reverend wright's words)asked republicans and independents outright to vote for him because he was desperate.
In none of the televised speeches of his has he put forth any agenda, virtually silch be it not for whining about what Hillary does or says or not. I ask you what are the people thinking!

And WHO was it that said (none / 0) (#43)
by txpolitico67 on Tue May 06, 2008 at 11:26:13 PM EST

SOMEONE will win at ALL costs?

I am so disgusted with Barack Obama. Completely and thoroughly disgusted. He's no different than Bush 43.

Republicans do think Obama is a weaker candidate (none / 0) (#44)
by josephm on Wed May 07, 2008 at 12:58:47 AM EST

Republicans prefer running against with Obama. He can't win white votes. Hillary can gain black voters.

Obama camp just love to think .... (none / 0) (#45)
by josephm on Wed May 07, 2008 at 01:01:57 AM EST

Obama camp is so arrogant that it just love to think that Hillary votes aren't real. Well, I cast my vote for Hillary, and it is REAL.

Wow (none / 0) (#46)
by Melchizedek on Wed May 07, 2008 at 06:48:15 AM EST

Obama's Kenyan relatives are changing this election with gri-gri? It's definitely being "stolen", and you'll elect McCain because of this "all-out war"?

And we wonder why Democrats can't take control of the political majority in this country.

The Obama campaign should not have floated this "Rush" influence, if only for the fact that it gives him satisfaction. But please, folks, don't lose your head. This is politics, just like revising the number of delegates needed to win the nomination, or pushing, in direct contradiction to your previous statements, to count the votes and seat delegates from Michigan.

the pot calling the kettle an iron (none / 0) (#47)
by karen for Clinton on Wed May 07, 2008 at 08:36:47 AM EST

They know exactly what Rush is saying yet in Obama's letter to his supporters (for more $) last night he said Rush thinks Hillary is the easier candidate to beat.

Not at all. Rush's whole theory is to keep her in for disruption. The republicans know very well who they have a mountain of real evidence on.

Obama is gonna get spanked hard and long.

If anything, Hillary sticking around this long is deflecting the hit job sure to happen to him.

If they attack him as they soon will full force it helps her to get closer to the nomination and that is what really makes them quake in their boots.

At the same time, speaking to republicans and reading the enemy boards occasionally, they are also entirely universal in their absolute resolve to never let that sham in the White House.

As posted in another thread -

From CNN, Clinton voters agree with the pugs:

A third of Clinton voters said they would pick McCain over Obama, while 17 percent said they would not vote at all. Forty-eight percent of Clinton supporters said they would back Obama in November.

Obama got even less support from Clinton backers in North Carolina, where 45 percent of Clinton supporters said they would vote for him over McCain. Thirty-eight percent of Clinton supporters said they would vote for McCain while 12 percent said they would not vote.

Obama voters appear to be more willing to support Clinton in November. In Indiana, 59 percent of Obama backers said they'd vote for Clinton, and 70 percent of Obama backers in North Carolina said vote for her against McCain.

He is just as unelectable as ever, even moreso with the Gary, Indiana stunt.

And one more thing, there is a comment on one of the threads about Dogwhistles from "Independent something or other, maybe thinker?" and I'd like to add his calling her a whiner. The way he said it cut right through me at that debate.

He is the whiner and the weiner.

Attributions are what they are.... (none / 0) (#48)
by VJCMAJD on Wed May 07, 2008 at 05:59:16 PM EST

"Via Fox: David Axlerod attributes Hillary's better numbers in Indiana to Rush Limbaugh."

I attribute Obama's hanging on [to a slight loss] in Indiana to the black vote in Gary.