Record Turnouts for Primaries.

Without doubt the current season of primaries and caucases in the presidential campaign has mobilized millions. The Institute of Policy Research at the University of Cincinatti has released statistics of participating voters.

The Democrats have mobilized so far 22 million voters, what is even more astonishing is that even when appalling weather conditions hit some states; when you would think people would stay at home; people still turned out in record numbers to queue, yes queue to vote.  The Republicans have so far seen 14.1 million turn out to vote in primaries.

Clearly, the Democrats have the edge in voter turnout so far and this record breaking turnout places the Democratic Party in a good position for the presidential campaign.

Mrs Clinton’s Abuse of Experience.

History News Network has published an interesting article by T Alissa Waters and Scott Kaufman on the very issue of Mrs Clinton’ “experience’. We have only picked up a few points in the following in our own words.

As Mrs Clinton stumbles her way through rallies and debates she is very fond of repeating she is a candidate of experience. Just what does this experience constitute? Eight years of First Lady of Arkansas and then to the United States, she gained the experience of choosing wallpaper and furnishings, she may well have had breakfast with her presidential husband and tittle tattle over breakfast hardly constitutes as experience! Rosalynn Carter, First Lady to husband Jimmy Carter was involved in certain acitivies in a supporting role, attending cabinet meetings and so on, Mrs Clinton did none of this. The First Lady has no constitutional role and neither should she. Mrs Clinton was appointed by her hubby to head a taskforce on reforming health care not a success. Mrs Carter, on the hand, lead a successful commission on mental health. Mrs Carter was a far more active lady than Mrs Clinton as indeed were other First Ladies. Mrs Clinton has certainly had her share of experiences in scandals. She has of course been a Senator for New York for eight years.

She says you can’t pick up a manual for the Presidency from day one, but then this is ridiculous, George Washington and other less experienced presidents including John F. Kennedy have coped from day one and they had no use for manuals imagined or otherwise.

Senator Barak Obama has had more political experience in government; eight years in the Illinois state senate before entering the US Senate in 2004. So he has more direct political experience. He has authored 152 Bills and sponsored 820 in his career to date. Mrs Clinton has authoured 20 Bills in the US Senate, many rather trivial.

Mrs Clinton’s contribution at last night’s Cleveland Debate started by telling the media off for being unfair to her - umh. This lady wants to be president and all she can do is whinge about fairness! Her campaign is just composed of stunts, flying kites - and to use her own words - no substance. Mrs Clinton doesn’t really have presidential qualities.

Mrs Clinton Unsuitable for Presidential Office.

Mrs Clinton’s ongoing clowning casts doubt on her suitability for the most important job in the USA. Her whinging in regard to election flyers, her mocking of her rival’s campaign style in Rhode Island illustrates her immaturity and instability for office. She moves further from policy debates to stunts - perhaps a reflection on reality as her campaign hits the rocks.

If she attains the presidency, perish the thought, and behaves like this towards world leaders we may yet witness nuclear strikes. Senator Barak Obama is not a perfect candidate we would like to see more clarity with his programme although he remains the most suitable for office and would no doubt make a good president.

Ralph Nader is now once more going to act as the spoiler and his intervention will make Senator John McCain’s campaign, assuming he is the Republican Party candidate, easier. Nader really needs to think about the possible consequences of his intervention and if he really cares about the things he believes in then he really ought to be backing Senator Barak Obama.

Homicides in Los Angeles.

As we are treated to the gathering of stars, glitz and glamour of the Oscar ceremonies in Hollywood give some thought to the continuing carnage on the streets of Los Angeles. Recently, we entered an earlier posting on this subject. To today so far, since January 1st, 105 homicides have been recorded there may well be dozens more. The Los Angeles Times is recording incidents of homicide, stabbings, shootings, in the city, often gang related violence.

The victims tend to be Afro-American and Latino youths and sometimes White. These killings are draining the lifeblood of the city, youths who because of failure to find gainful employment and trapped in a cycle of poverty and drug culture, yet have we heard any real concerns from presidential candidates on how to tackle this hemorrhage of youths? Unfortunately, this subject seems to be escaping all presidential candidates, this blog just refers to L.A. and yet all major American cities witness similar events daily.

What is happening in the city of glitz, glamour and wealth is a tragedy and it is being added to everyday and yet outside the local community, the Los Angeles Police Department and the Los Angeles Times there is a deafening silence and ultimately a complete failure by all politicians to address this issue.

Texas Democratic Party Presidential Debate

Watching the debate was fascinating. Here were two strong challenges for the nomination, together at debate. Senator Barak Obama clearly had the presidential style, in contrast to Mrs Clinton’s spiteful, nit picking style that she has recently adopted. The opportunity arose to clarify the positions of both in regard to the major issues there was more agreement than disagreement, health care policy being one area of dispute.

It is a shame that Mrs Clinton has developed an unpleasant style of attack that appears to be directed at Senator Obama. We await the decision of the primaries due in March to see whether either candidate can consolidate a lead. One thing is for sure Mrs Clinton may well have a tougher fight in Texas and Ohio than she previously thought - nothing is guaranteed.

Senator Barak Obama Wins Wisconsin.

Senator Barak Obama has beaten Mrs Clinton again, despite the attempt by Mrs Clinton to undermine Obama’s campaign by initiating nasty personal attacks . Senator Obama’s campaign is winning over white women; working class Democrats; independents as well as the youth vote. He is winning the type of voter Mrs Clinton would have regarded as hers. Clearly, Mrs Clinton’s nasty campaign has gone off the tracks.

Mrs Clinton Gets Nasty.

Mrs Clinton’s campaign has taken on a new bitterness as having lost the momentum she begins to initiate personal attack on Senator Barak Obama. Her latest outburst concerns a charge of plagiarism against Obama’s speeches; she claims it’s all  words. Obama’s response was basically to illustrate that words are important whether from the Constitution of speeches of former Democratic presidents. He gave quotes in response from the Consitution, FDR, JFK and so on, since then others have pointed out that he appeared to be using quotes formerly heard from Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick, who apparently has raised no objection to Senator Obama borrowing his phrases. Mrs Clinton has also stolen some of Senator Obama’s  phrases: ” fired up and ready to go” being one.  It is very much an unpleasant storm in a tea cup but it illustrates Mrs Clinton’s in trouble as her campaign is in a shambles and she is getting personal about her main opponent.

Mrs Clinton has also stormed into another row in claiming victory in primaries  held in Florida and  Michigan but these primaries broke the party rules in that they were held outside the timetabled schedule, all Democratic Party presidential candidates agreed not to campaign. The subsequent primaries are also in dispute as Senator Obama’s name was absent on the circulated papers, Mrs Clinton claims victory went to her and she wants the delegates but to do so would clearly be wrong and unfair.

If this is how Mrs Clinton behaves as a candidate then it casts doubt on her qualities for the most important job in the USA.

The Apologists for Imperial China.

One feels a torrent of anger when hearing government ministers who embrace the idea that we need to support Imperial China whatever happens: it’s the Saudi syndrome. we attach ourselves to despotic regimes and when those regimes come under international criticism our ministers react to defend reactionary regimes.

Tessa Jowell has already rushed to defend the Olympic games in Imperial China - the people of Darfur it seems don’t matter, last night on BBC TVs Any Questions it was the turn of Caroline Flint to rush to Imperial China’s aid.

Nobel Prize Winners led by Archbishop Desmond Tutu are right to call for an international boycott of the Olymbic games. It is a disgrace that the games are given to a despicable one party fascist state that ignores international opinion.

This is not only a matter of making a stand for the human rights of the people of Darfur it also a matter of human rights for the Chinese people, many of whom have and are suffering from the building projects for the games in Beijing.

Barak Obama Sweeps Up Three More States.

The news from the US is astonishing, Barak Obama has now gathered the majority of delegates in three more states and Mrs Clinton is clearly losing the momentum. What is even more amazing are the numbers of people turning up to vote in the primaries: record numbers. Even in freezing Maine last week people battled inclement weather to vote. That is a tribute to Barak Obama’s style of leadership.

Mrs Clinton seems to be pinning her hopes on Texas and Ohio due to big numbers of delegates but having lost the momentum there is no guarantee she will achieve the large numbers she wants. Barak Obama could still seize the nomination with the delegate numbers required, and he may well do so.

Very exciting this race for the nomination this year.

Barak Obama Sweeps Up More States.

Barak Obama has scored more delegates for the nomination sweeping up in his grasp: Washington, Nebraska and Louisiana. Mrs Clinton has lost the momentum and is showing signs of weariness. This is clearly the most interesting US primaries season for years. Barak Obama’s campaign has created amazing interest and mobilized many into political decision making.

We note the response from “shmoo on the run” we are rather puzzled as to why he is keen to place importance on the Luo connection in Senator Barak Obama’s family: shmoo appears to see the Luos of Kenya and their cross border relatives as blood thirsty monsters and therefore? We still fail to see the significance of this line of thought and we would be disturbed if this sort of measuring stick were applied to others. Many English people, being of Anglo-Saxon, Viking  or Norman origin have also ancestors who engaged in questionable activities but do we blame the sons for their father’s alleged violence or in this case even the unknown, remotest distant relatives?

A sad digression:

We have been saddened this week of the news that lone shooters have killed 24 people in the US: a man gunned down five at a city council meeting in Missouri; in Los Angeles, the death rate we recently highlighted in a recent posting, saw four family members and a police officer killed; at Louisiana Tech, a nursing student killed two other students before killing herself; in Maryland a gunmen killed three in a restaurant; in Chicago five were killed at a store. This appetite for mass murder that lone killers have is total madness.

One expert has suggested that the loners involved in mass homicide are seeking attention and that the media should deny that attention, maybe there is something in that but we cannot imagine the mass media missing out on headline stories involving mass murder.

Contributors to news media web sites appear to avoid blaming the possession and acquisition of guns indeed anything but guns is blamed. The right to bear arms was never meant by the founding fathers as a means to kill your neighbours, known or unknown. Even the founding fathers would have been amazed of the power of modern weapons and if they had foreseen the problem of this constitutional right may have erred in their keeness of the right to bear arms.

In the end something must be done to more firmly scrutinize the mental abilities of those who possess guns or wish to buy: the laws need toughening.

In about a month’s time, we shall be setting off in our own long, voyage of discovery to the USA in a grand tour including a prolonged holiday in a western state. We hope to gather more on the ground information as to the current political campaigns and the state of the union.