Quantcast
Crucial victory – Metro US

Crucial victory

Hillary Clinton brushed past Barack Obama to take the Pennsylvania primary yesterday after a fierce battle to remain in the Democratic presidential nomination race.
It was a crucial victory for Clinton since a loss would likely have led to the collapse of her cash-strapped campaign for the White House.
The win, on the strength of women, white men and blue-collar voters, keeps her in the game at least until the next votes in Indiana and North Carolina in two weeks.
The margin of victory was still unclear. Clinton was taking 54 per cent of the vote with 35 per cent of the returns counted, compared with 46 per cent for Obama.
She was aiming for a resounding win to bolster her argument that Obama can’t deliver crucial states in this fall’s election campaign against Republican John McCain.
Clinton needs to convince superdelegates — legislators and party insiders who will likely end up deciding the race — that she’s best poised to beat McCain.
“A win is a win,” Clinton said earlier yesterday. “I don’t think the margin matters.
“I think maybe the question ought to be: ‘Why can’t he close the deal with his extraordinary financial advantage?’” she told reporters.
“The road to Pennsylvania Avenue for a Democrat goes right through Pennsylvania. So I think the burden is on him.”
Obama, who’s been outspending Clinton by more than two to one during an intense, bitter six-week campaign, predicted she’d beat him, but not by much.
“It’s an uphill battle,” he said at a Pittsburgh diner.
“I have come to the conclusion that this race will continue until the last primary or caucus vote is cast. And that’s not far away.”
There’s enormous pressure on Clinton to perform if she is to retain any kind of shot at the Oval Office.
After nearly four months of voting, Obama is still beating her in the number of states won, awarded delegates for the party convention in August and the popular vote.