Today, voters in Texas, Ohio, Vermont and Rhode Island will finally get a chance to vote for the person they see can best run this country. While the Republican nomination is pretty much set with John McCain, the democratic primary has heated up for an old-fashioned Texas shoot-out. With Barack Obama ahead in both the delegate and popular vote count, the candidates are deadlocked in the lone star-state, and are looking to eek out a victory in the delegate rich state.So with few policy differences between them it really comes down to one thing...
Will you vote for the candidate of Destiny, or Dynasty?
With all of the momentum in the world, and his message of change resonating with people of all
ages, races and religions Barack Obama seems to believe that he's the candidate of destiny. That notion is incredible despite the obstacles and barriers he has had to overcome since childhood.Nevertheless, Obama came out of nowhere to shock the Clintons, and has staged one of the biggest political upsets in recent memory. So how did he do it, and what does he have to do to win Texas?
Obama has run a seamlessly efficient campaign that would surprise most pundits. He has raised more money than any other candidate targeting a wide audience. To date, over one million people have donated to his campaign.
He has also appealed to people's emotions, with his powerful speeches. Wherever Obama goes, h
e draws huge crowds, filling up 20,000 seat arenas. That kind of energy seems to be contagious and has changed the democratic electorate to a younger demographic.His vehement opposition to the war, has also propelled his argument, that he has better judgment than his rivals.
In order to win Texas, Obama has to hope for a huge turnout in large cities like Dallas and Houston. Combined, these two cities send more delegates to the convention than any other city in Texas combined. Over the past month, Obama has tried to get more specific, hoping to attract the older voters, and the all important undecided voters.
However, Obama's close ties to Tony Rezko, who is undergoing federal charges of extortion, money laundering, and fraud, could hurt him in the long run. When Obama purchased his house in Chicago, the real-estate agent insisted that he buy the piece of land next to it. He declined to purchase it, but Rezko bought the land at the same time Barack closed the deal on his house. Later on Rezko sold a portion of the land back to Obama, it's easy to see why people are raising their eye-brows over the deal. Obama called his handling of the purchase of his home, "a mistake," additionally he has said,
"With respect to the purchase of my home, I am confident that everything was handled ethically and above board. But I regret that while I tried to pay close attention to the specific requirements of ethical conduct, I misgauged the appearance presented by my purchase of the additional land from Mr. Rezko,"
We'll see tonight if this developing story stops Obama's momentum of 11 straight victories.
On the other side of the democratic race is Hillary Clinton, the candidate of dynasty:
Hillary Clinton has had an equally impressive campaign. For the better part of the 80's and 90's the Clintons built a powerful political machine that has stood the test of time. Since 1988, there
has never been a point where there wasn't either a Bush or a Clinton elected in the White House. You can make up your own mind if that's a bad thing.Hillary Clinton has always been a fighter, which is partly the reason why she is the first viable female presidential candidate. Although, she under-estimated Barack Obama, she has still run a fairly competitive campaign, heading into tonights contest. She has appealed to rural, blue collar-type workers, mainly because of that "fighter" mentality.
Having served the country for 8 years as first lady has also helped her campaign and her message of experience. There's no question that Clinton is the most experienced candidate in the democratic field, however Hillary has failed to tap into the imaginations' of the voters and inspire them like Obama has. She has also taken more money from federal lobbyists than anyone else running for president, fueling the argument that she will do anything to win. Even if it means sacrificing her own values. So now the question is, how long will he stay in the race?
That all depends on what happens here tonight. If Clinton looses in both Texas and Ohio, people have suggested that she may drop out of the race. However if she wins either Texas or Ohio, she will continue her fight to the primary in Pennsylvania on April 22nd. Wherever she wins, she has to win by big margins to be able to catch up to Obama's delegate lead.Personally, I have already voted (for Obama) and plan to caucus later on tonight. No matter who you are leaning towards voting for, I sincerely hope that you do go out and vote. To check your polling place go to DallasNews.com there is a link there where you can put in your zip, and find your nearst place to vote.
Good luck, and good voting
