By Big Tent Democrat

Speaking for me only

Harold Ickes is supposed to be a pro. He did not demonstrate that in his interview with Greg Sargent:

[Ickes] [c]onfirmed that the Hillary campaign could still try to woo super-dels even if she lost the popular vote, with Michigan and Florida counted.

Just ridiculous. Hillary Clinton is out there arguing in favor of counting the votes in all 50 states and here is Ickes saying that the RESULT of those votes will not matter to the Clinton campaign. This is inexcusable, harmful, stupid and reprehensible. There are other issues in Sargent's interview that others will certainly take issue with, but that statement is, to me, the worst of all. If it is true, I will be the first in line denouncing the Clinton campaign when the time comes.

By Big Tent Democrat

SUSA Indiana Poll:

In a Democratic Primary in Indiana today, 04/01/08, 5 weeks until votes are counted, Hillary Clinton defeats Barack Obama 52% to 43%, according to a SurveyUSA poll conducted for WHAS-TV Louisville and WCPO-TV Cincinnati. Obama leads 3:2 among the youngest voters. Clinton leads 2:1 among the oldest voters. Clinton leads by 21 points among whites. Obama leads by 58 points among blacks.

It is encouraging that the racial divide is not as pronounced in Indiana.

By Big Tent Democrat

Speaking for me only

Apparently, Michael Stickings did not understand my post. More likely Clinton Derangement Syndrome took over. Stickings writes:

Indeed, the view of the media as supporting Obama over Hillary is a popular one among Hillary supporters — see Taylor Marsh and TalkLeft’s Big Tent Democrat, for example, both of whom, believe it or not, argue that Rendell is right. Here’s the latest Clintonian trend: suck up to the right-wing media. . . I’ll let Steve Benen translate: “Rendell’s argument seemed to be that Fox News is more negative towards Obama than the credible cable news networks, which therefore makes Fox News ‘fair,’ ‘objective,’ and ‘balanced.’”

Stickings denies the Media favors Obama over Clinton? Well, what more do you need to know about where his mind has gone. But it is a shame to see that Steve Benen suffers from the same Clinton hating disease. Let me explain to Benen and Stickings one more time. The argument is NOT that Fox is fair to Dems. It is not. It is unbelievably unfair and biased against Dems. We all know this. The point is that the Obama News Network (NBC) is so in the tank for Obama, and so anti-Hillary, that Fox is fair by comparison to NBC. Now they KNOW this was the point. But they ignored the NBC point of Rendell's comments. It's sad really what Clinton hate can do to once fine minds. More . . .

By Big Tent Democrat

Speaking for me only

TPM wakes up to its and other Obama supporters' errors:

That Hillary is now pushing this line [that Obama surrogates have called for her to drop out] suggests that her advisers believe Obama surrogates erred in giving her an opening to galvanize her supporters and play the feisty underdog -- something the Obama campaign may recognize, too, judging by its efforts to rapidly dial back the calls for her to leave the race.

Um, duh. And Josh Marshall's own laughable attempts to retract his negative campaign against Clinton's continuing in the race demonstrates TPM "erred" in its campaign for its favored candidate, Barack Obama. More . . .

It's very funny. Any other April Fools' stuff out there?

By Big Tent Democrat

Speaking for me only

While Obama fans like John Cole of Balloon Juice (A little reminder for Cole, who seems to forget when he is outraged and "trolled" Talk Left (yes, irony IS dead)) are aghast that Hillary Clinton is fighting for revotes in Michigan and Florida, I wonder what they think of Obama fighting for uncommitted delegates in Michigan? Chris Bowers writes:

Given that Obama already leads by nine delegates even with Michigan and Florida included, the situation could be particularly grim for Clinton on April 19th, when most of the 55 uncommitteed [sic] Michigan delegates are selected. Assuming continued superdelegate gains and that Obama wins the clear majority of the uncommitted Michigan delegates, by May 7th Obama could be ahead by 60-70 delegates even with Michigan and Florida included.

(Emphasis supplied.) Obama win the majority of the uncommitted Michigan delegates? How exactly is he going to do that? Is Obama gonna act like the Michigan delegation will be seated? But but but, what will John Cole say?

More . . .

Survey USA has Hillary ahead by 12 points in PA. She's down 2 points from three weeks ago, Obama is up 5. Where is he making the gains?

[P]articularly in cities like Pittsburgh and Philadelphia, and among older voters, men and conservative Democrats.....There is also movement to Obama from conservative and anti-abortion Democrats.

Where is Hillary stronger? On Obama's signature issue, the war in Iraq. And the economy and health care.

Rasmussen also has a PA poll that finds Hillary ahead by 5 points over Obama, and Obama leading by 17 points on Iraq. Very different numbers.

Rasmussen's daily tracking poll has Obama at 46% and Hillary at 45%.

In Kentucky, Survey USA shows Hillary leads Obama 2:1, 58% to 21%.

• Thanks to Paul Krugman for citing TalkLeft on his blog yesterday.

• Another Gitmo detainee has been charged with a death-penalty eligible crime.

• In Denver, an ICE agent is on trial for improperly accessing the NCIC database and providing the information to the unsuccessful gubernatorial campaign of former Rep. Bob Beauprez.

This is an open thread? You can pick the topics, just keep it civil.

Speaking in Philadelphia today, Hillary Clinton says she's like Rocky Balboa -- he wouldn't quit and neither will she. From her prepared speech:

One thing you know about me is that when I say I’ll fight for you, I’ll fight for you. I know that there will be hurdles and setbacks between now and November. But I also know that I’m ready. I know what it’s like to stumble. I know what it means to get knocked down. But I’ve never stayed down, and I never will.

....[J]ust as it’s getting time to vote here in Pennsylvania, Senator Obama says he’s getting tired of it. His supporters say they want it to end. Well, could you imagine if Rocky Balboa had gotten half way up those Art Museum steps and said, “Well, I guess that’s about far enough?”

More...

One of the complaints I've had with Barack Obama is the difficulty trying to pin him down on issues. His positions too often seem to shift over time.

Politico has a doozy today. Remember the questionnaire that Obama submitted -- the one where he later said he didn't mean some of the answers, but a staffer had filled it out incorrectly?

Turns out, the questionnaire has turned up, with his handwriting on it. There's the issue of parental notification for abortions. But to me, its the ones on the death penalty and gun control that stand out.

During his first run for elected office, Barack Obama played a greater role than his aides now acknowledge in crafting liberal stands on gun control, the death penalty and abortion — positions that appear at odds with the more moderate image he has projected during his presidential campaign.

The evidence comes from an amended version of an Illinois voter group’s detailed questionnaire, filed under his name during his 1996 bid for a state Senate seat.

Late last year, in response to a Politico story about Obama’s answers to the original questionnaire, his aides said he “never saw or approved” the questionnaire.

They asserted the responses were filled out by a campaign aide who “unintentionally mischaracterize[d] his position.”

But a Politico examination determined that Obama was actually interviewed about the issues on the questionnaire by the liberal Chicago nonprofit group that issued it. And it found that Obama — the day after sitting for the interview — filed an amended version of the questionnaire, which appears to contain Obama’s own handwritten notes added to one answer.

More...

Update: 10:30 pm MT: She's over $3 million now. That's $85,000.00 in the past hour alone. Thanks in part go to TL readers who contributed (see comments below), you helped push her over the top.

***

For the past three days, Hillary Clinton has been fundraising online with a goal of raising $3 million by midnight, the end of the fundraising quarter. Right now, she's at $2,915,000. $1 million a day for someone the media is counting as down and out isn't bad.

Maya Angelou has a new post up at Hillary's site as part of part of a series in celebration of Women's History Month. The theme: Rise, Hillary, Rise.

She begins with a poem:

You may write me down in history
With your bitter, twisted lies,
You may trod me in the very dirt
But still, like dust, I’ll rise.

She adds,

This is not the first time you have seen Hillary Clinton seemingly at her wits end, but she has always risen, always risen, much to the dismay of her adversaries and the delight of her friends.

More...

We all know that by the time the Supreme Court got done with Bush v. Gore, President Bush won Florida by 537 votes.

The Wall St. Journal (free link) reports that requests for restoration of voting rights is up in Florida.

Republican Gov. Charlie Crist went against his party a year ago and made it easier for felons to regain their voting rights. The process has been slow, however -- stirring controversy in a state expected to be closely fought in this fall's elections.

Florida's clemency board has restored voting rights to nearly 75,000 residents. But nearly 96,000 requests are pending, according to information through March 20. Activists say there might be an additional 400,000 people who have been rejected without explanation, making it impossible for them to be reinstated.

It's not just Florida. Across the country, there are 5.3 million people who have lost the right to vote due to felony convictions. The Brennan Center reports that 4 million of them are no longer in prison. [More...]