No more blue and red states. The new wedge issue will be race.

[rhett o rick]

Now the republicans and their media will try to divide this country into black and white states.

The current cabal of neocons, right wingnut Christians and greedy Corp bosses won't go down without a huge fight. They had complete power and will do absolutely anything to retain it. I don't rule out a marshall law take over.

For sure race will be the big issue. I predict it is going to get very nasty. They will try to split this country between black and white.

[Bonobo]

1. It never stopped being that.

Look at the 2004 electoral map (Red/Blue) compared to the map of the North/South split during Civil War.

Nearly identical and scary. I will try to find.

Here:

http://sensoryoverload.typepad.com/sensory_overload/2004/11/free_states_vs_.html

or

http://bigpicture.typepad.com/writing/2004/11/voting_free_ves.html

[gateley]

2. Agree, sadly. nt

[havocmom]

4. Be heartened by the huge crowds Obama got in Idaho, ND, Wy

Places Havocdad & I affectionately call 'white bread land' seemed to get it that the message, vision, mission is more important than any skin.

[Benhurst]

11. The only polls I've seen of Idaho, ND and Wy show them remaIning

red states in the general election. Do you have a link to any more encouraging ones?

[havocmom]

12. Obama beat HRC in those states

I hear lots of life long Republicans in my VERY red county in Eastern Montana saying there is no way in hell they are voting for McCain... UNLESS Hillary is the DEM nominee. Lots of chatter about what a good leader 'that Obama guy' is. If he is making a dent in the habits of MY neighbors, there are no red/blue states. There is America.

[rhett o rick]

14. Please don't under estimate the power and resources of the republicans.

Propaganda works.

[havocmom]

16. People here are being forced to face reality and they know the nation is suffering

that bush/cheney are puppets of large corporations what want independent food producers out of business and want the Bill of Rights revoked. This time, their paranoia is working for us. All the shit they feared, they see being caused by those they used to believe in.

I don't think the propaganda works beyond the 29% that is just plain nuts.

[rhett o rick]

17. During the build up to the I-War, propaganda convinced over 70% of this country

of the need to illegally invade Iraq. In 2004 some of us sadly underestimated the power of propaganda and millions reelected Bush the war criminal. Propaganda is a very powerful tool, especially with the huge financial backing of the fascist corporations and media.

I see the powerful fascist right wing propaganda machine making this election one huge Willie Horton event. Race is probably the easiest wedge issue.

[havocmom]

18. BUSH DIDN'T WIN in 04

Ohio was 'delivered'

[rhett o rick]

19. I don't disagree. But my point was that there were millions of voters that were swayed

by the right wing propaganda machine. I can happen again.

[Benhurst]

15. I fear too much is made of how the primaries went.

Obama won in Utah; but I have little doubt we shall, as usual, lose it in the general election.

At the same time, he lost states he will probably carry in the general election, New York and California being prime example.

I hope you are right; but I fear we shall lose most of the red states, my own included.

[Useful Idiot]

23. The great Wright Hope

All those states Obama won early on are hardly a big deal cause they are red states and will continue to be this election cycle. In addition most of those victories were pre-Rev. Wright. If you did them over again now things would look very different. Plus in the caucus states with out-in-the-open roll call voting the "bradley effect" did not have the opportunity to manifest itself. It no doubt will in the general election.

Do not think for a minute that California is a safe state for Dems this year and will not be in play if Obama is the nominee. I live here and sans Bay Area, Californians are leery of how the Democrats cannot get their house in order. McCain as a moderate Republican is well known and liked as a consequence of being right next door. He has the support of the also well known and and liked moderate Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger. McCain has already said he will campaign heavily here cause he knows his opponite (whoever it is) must win CA to have any chance in the general election.

Lost amid all this Black/eggheads/latte sippers vs working class whites split in the Dem party at the moment is the fact that Hispanic voters do not care much for Obama either. Which is one of the reasons he does not want a "do-over" in Florida. McCain on ther other hand is well liked, because of his common sense approach toward immigration, Spanish language campaign literature/website, and high-visibility as a borderlands state politician. Watch Obama get stomped in Puerto Rico (which will be be a case of piling on after he gets stomped in Kentucky and West Virginia) in two weeks and you will see what I mean.

[marmar]

3. Hopefully it will fail miserably......So many people, particularly Gens X and younger.....

....have absolutely HAD IT with race, sexual orientation, ethnicity etc being used as wedge issues. I think a good deal of the groundswell for Obama is a manifestation of that "I'm sick of it and I'm not going to take it anymore" attitude.

[OregonBlue]

5. I hope you are right. I also believe that many people are past the race baiting.

[rhett o rick]

9. But as we've seen in here, it only takes a few to stir up trouble. It will be a test

to see if we can overlook the horrible attempts at race baiting. Stand by for many Willie Horton cases. Glen Beck has already come out swinging. And I think Al Sharpton will hurt more than help.

[bdamomma]

25. I hope we could rise above all this propaganda shit regarding

color, we do not need no more division.

[BlueManDude]

6. Race-baiting has long been the undercurrent of GOP campaigns - inronically

it may be less so now that the ems have nominated an African-Americam.

[napi21]

7. I hate to reference Pat Buchanan & Lionel here because neither has

many fans on DU, but one day (Thursday I think) Buchanan ws part of a panel on MSNBC and they topic was Hillary's "white hard working blue collar men". There were 4 guests, 3 who were busiy slamming Hillary. Pat asked why everyone was slamming Hillary. She just repeated what WE'VE all been saying after each of the tuesday primaries for MONTHS!

The next day, Lionel said a similar statement to Pat's, but he added that he didn't believe our racial divide would ever get better than it is if we all refuse to talk openly and honest. "There's nothing wrong with anyone saying that Obama is getting 91% of the black vote...because HE IS! There's also nothing wrong with Hillary saying she's doing much better with white voters than Obama...because SHE IS!"

Sometimes the PC Police get CRAZY! Isn't it better for each candidate to figure out what they have to do to improve THEIR OWN base with the voters who seem to be attracted to their opposition?

[rhett o rick]

10. I would have agreed with Pat if I thought he said what u indicated.

But what I heard him say was that he agree with Sen Clinton when she said her coalition of working whites, Catholics, etc. was a stronger coalition than Obama's coalition of poor blacks and uppity elitist blacks. That's what I heard.

[aquart]

8. 72 million Dems, 55 million Reps, 42 million Inds.

The 72 million Dems and the 42 million inds have known for a while that we'll be voting for a black man or a white woman. Either way, a big fat first. It isn't going to come as a shock.

Frankly, we could run a yellow rubber ducky this year and win. (But we still don't believe we could run an Asian of any kind. Remember that when you self-congratulate on your "lack" of racism.)

Over $4 a gallon for gas. The Republicans have committed suicide by oil. That's the "black" that counts in this election.

[bunkerbuster1]

26. We couldn't run an Asian of any kind?

I'm not following you. I wasn't aware any had been in the running in the first place.

Anyway, the GOP managed to get Jindal elected as Gov. of Loseranna. I don't think people are terribly averse to voting for Asians.

Maybe I'm just misunderstanding the point you're making...

[rhett o rick]

13. Do you remember how easy it was to swift boat John Kerry? Many of us will

be able to see thru the coming trumped up race issue, but millions of the gullibles won't.

How would Karl Rove do it? Start feeding the cooperative networks with race issues. Lots of coverage of black crime. Sensationalize those cases where white cops beat the hell or kill black "suspects". And pray for another Watts type riot.

Remember their budget is endless and they own all the media.

[VotesForWomen]

20. the O campaign has made its bed; it will have to lie in it. nt

[Quantess]

21. So you already posted 3 threads in GD-P.

Get the fuck outta here!

[rhett o rick]

27. Are you saying I violated some rule? Please enlighten me. nm

[conspirator]

22. Obama also has the support of rich white people, otherwise he wouldn't finish the primaries

He is a corporate light candidate, whereas Hillary is a corporate classic candidate.

[timtom]

24. The ironic and sad thing is,

Obama is black AND white.

If his mother were Jewish, HE would be Jewish, too.

If anyone buys into the race issue, they will be profoundly in error.

And, of course, that will indeed come to pass.

But...he is black AND white.

I have a granddaughter just like that.