There was one big loser on Super Tuesday, and it was Mitt Romney.
Sure, he won Massachusetts, the state he used to govern, and Utah, with its large Mormon population. He also took North Dakota.
But it wasn’t enough to slow John McCain’s momentum. Romney dropped out the next day, leaving three candidates theoretically in the race (Ron Paul and Mike Huckabee haven’t quit) but one with the largest chunk of delegates and with conservative radio hosts beginning to make nice.
It’s funny, though, to still hear the campaign talked about in terms of McCain vs. Clinton, when it’s beginning to look more likely that Obama may be the candidate facing McCain in November.
Super Tuesday was a virtual tie, with Obama taking more states and according to estimates, a small delegate lead. But the biggest sign that the Clinton campaign is in trouble is the money issue. The Clintons put $5 million of their own money into their campaign fund, and put out what the New York Times called a “distress call” for money to supporters.
Clinton held on to her lead in California and Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey, but Obama had closed the gap in many of those states from a 20-point lead for Clinton. The longer campaign cycle seems to favor him, as his poll numbers go up the more people see of him.
This weekend will see voting in Louisiana, Nebraska and Washington State. The Democratic governor of Washington, Christine Gregoire, has just endorsed Obama, and the Senator is traveling to all of the states voting this weekend, while Clinton is said to be focusing on Texas and Ohio on March 4. But if Obama picks up wins and large numbers of delegates throughout February, this may look like a bad strategy for Clinton.
Reader mail can go to sarah.jaffe-at-gmail.com. Please include “Political Buzz” in the subject line or it may go to junk mail!
