Democratic+Party

Indiana and North Carolina Primary
Tuesday brings another round of primary elections - Indiana and North Carolina. Both candidates are arguing gas tax and electability. It has been predicted that Obama will win N. Carolina while the more conservative Indiana will go to Clinton. Should Obama win both states, it might be the fatal blow for Clinton. But should Clinton win both, it will prove her growing gain on Obama. - Isaac +Caroline

[|MAP OF DEMOCRATIC ELECTION]

-DHL

Democratic Party
[|Here is an interactive map of the United States showing which candidates are favored for each state. ~Jess] Pew **** Center **** Facts About the Presidential Candidates ** The Pew Center is a research organization which takes polls and displays statistical data and analysis about everything from teenage computer usage to current political information. I was surfing around on the pew center page and found some very interesting facts. To find more developed ideas about the facts presented here go to [|http://pewresearch.org/.]  ·  Hillary Clinton won the Catholic vote in Pennsylvania’s Democratic primary by more than a two-to-one margin, repeating a pattern among religious voters similar to those seen in other states.  ·  A study showed that Democrats are far more engaged in campaign activities than Republicans including donating money to a candidate and attending campaign events. 23% of Democratic high income voters (people earning $100,000+ per yr) donated to a presidential candidate while only 6% of Republican high income voters donated to a presidential candidate.  ·  Out of 5,566 interviews with registered voters, 36% of people identified as Democratic compared to 27% identifying as Republican. The number of people identifying as Republican has declined since 2004. Of the people interviewed, 37% claimed no party affiliation. However, of that 37%, 15% said they lean Democratic, 10% lean Republican, and 12% have no leaning either way. ---Zoe Breitstein Matza

Here are some more statistics from the pew center: White Democrats are polled here because they seem to be the swing voters in the primaries. This chart shows how many white Democrats view Obama and Clinton. Obama appears to be thought of very positively, especially in his ability to inspire and make hopeful. On the other hand, though Clinton is thought of as making people hopeful, and being patriotic, she is also viewed as hard-to-like and not very inspiring. The pew center says its because the candidates are assessed differently. Obama is more assessed on how he makes other feel (ie. How he inspires others), while Clinton’s assessment by voters is more based on her own personal characteristics.

A little more pew: Despite the obvious disadvantages for McCain faces in this election (belonging to a party which entered our country into a controversial war, and our current Republican president has the lowest approval rating in the history of the GUP polls, and a majority of people wish to change the direction our country is moving in) according to the pew center research polls, John McCain is matching up pretty well against Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton. The Pew Research Center and CBS/New York Times polls show Obama and Clinton holding only modest leads over McCain, while another national survey by the Associated Press/Ipsos and NBC/Wall Street Journal, have McCain running about even against the Democratic candidates.

An analysis of Pew Research Center surveys conducted in late February and March finds the two Democratic candidates running about equally well against Senator McCain among voters in Florida, Ohio, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Go to this link to see a chart which shows how well the two Democratic candidates fare against McCain: http://pewresearch.org/assets/publications/803-1.png

---ZM

Democratic Party
[|Here is an interactive map of the United States showing which candidates are favored for each state. ~Jess]

Please write what you want under the correct heading =)

=OBAMA=

media type="youtube" key="H5h95s0OuEg" width="425" height="350"

http://www.nytimes.com/2008/04/24/us/politics/24obama.html?_r=1&hp=&adxnnl=1&oref=slogin&adxnnlx=1209045958-VMq4gT6ig7AxQieJPwU2KQ This is a great article from the NYT on the issue of race in the Democratic party, and what both candidates must do in order to win more voters, especially the voters outside their demographic. -Isaac Lindy

"Our troops have performed brilliantly in Iraq, but no amount of American soldiers can solve the political differences at the heart of somebody else's civil war," Obama said. "That's why I have introduced a plan to not only stop the escalation of this war, but begin a phased redeployment that can pressure the Iraqis to finally reach a political settlement and reduce the violence."
 * Obama's War Plan**

The Obama plan offers a responsible yet effective alternative to the President's failed policy of escalation. Realizing there can be no military solution in Iraq, it focuses instead on reaching a political solution in Iraq, protecting our interests in the region, and bringing this war to a responsible end. The legislation commences redeployment of U.S. forces no later than May 1, 2007 with the goal of removing all combat brigades from Iraq by March 31, 2008, a date that is consistent with the expectation of the bipartisan Iraq Study Group.

The plan allows for a limited number of U.S. troops to remain as basic force protection, to engage in counter-terrorism, and to continue the training of Iraqi security forces. If the Iraqis are successful in meeting the thirteen benchmarks for progress laid out by the Bush Administration, this plan also allows for the temporary suspension of the redeployment, provided Congress agrees that the benchmarks have been met and that the suspension is in the national security interest of the United States. "The American people have been asked to be patient too many times, too many lives have been lost and too many billions have been spent," Obama said. "It's time for a policy that can bring a responsible end to this war and bring our troops home." -Angus

media type="youtube" key="pWe7wTVbLUU&hl=en" height="355" width="425" Here is a video of Barack's speech on race, prompted by the explosive comments made by Barack's former reverend. -Isaac Lindy

[|Here is an interactive map with the results of the Pennsylvania primary]

=CLINTON=

media type="youtube" key="pc04Gj7LjkI" -DHL

Hillary Clinton has announced her plan to end the war in Iraq and urged President Bush to act immediately.

"Our message to the president is clear. It is time to begin ending this war -- not next year, not next month -- but today. "We have heard for years now that as the Iraqis stand up, our troops will stand down. Every year, we hear about how next year they may start coming home. Now we are hearing a new version of that yet again from the president as he has more troops in Iraq than ever and the Iraqi government is more fractured and ineffective than ever. "Well, the right strategy before the surge and post-escalation is the same: start bringing home America's troops now." If President Bush does not end the war, when Hillary Clinton is president, she will. Her three-step plan would bring our troops home, work to bring stability to the region, and replace military force with a new diplomatic initiative to engage countries around the world in securing Iraq's future. Hillary has been fighting every day in the Senate to force the president to change course. And today she described how she would bring the war to an end.

Hillary Clinton has announced her plan to end the war in Iraq and urged President Bush to act immediately.

"Our message to the president is clear. It is time to begin ending this war -- not next year, not next month -- but today. "We have heard for years now that as the Iraqis stand up, our troops will stand down. Every year, we hear about how next year they may start coming home. Now we are hearing a new version of that yet again from the president as he has more troops in Iraq than ever and the Iraqi government is more fractured and ineffective than ever. -DHL

The Candidates Are Similar...
Supported Bush-backed immigration reform legislation, which would have increased funding and improved border security technology, improved enforcement of existing laws, and provided a legal path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants. Voted to authorize construction of a 700-mile fence along the U.S.-Mexican border.
 * Both candidates have almost identical opinions on immigration...**

Opposes any constitutional amendment to overturn the Supreme Court's decision in Roe v Wade. Disagreed with Supreme Court ruling to uphold the "Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act." Did not cast a vote on Prohibiting Funds for Groups that Perform Abortions amendment in 2007.
 * and on abortion...**

- Caroline