Hillary Had A Net Gain Of Four Delegates On March 4

A Message from David Plouffe: "The Math"

Our projections show the most likely outcome of yesterday's elections will be that Hillary Clinton gained 187 delegates, and we gained 183.

That's a net gain of 4 delegates out of more than 370 delegates available from all the states that voted.

For comparison, that's less than half our net gain of 9 delegates from the District of Columbia alone. It's also less than our net gain of 8 from Nebraska, or 12 from Washington State. And it's considerably less than our net gain of 33 delegates from Georgia.

The task for the Clinton campaign yesterday was clear. In order to have a plausible path to the nomination, they needed to score huge delegate victories and cut into our lead.

They failed.

It's clear, though, that Senator Clinton wants to continue an increasingly desperate, increasingly negative -- and increasingly expensive -- campaign to tear us down.

That's her decision. But it's not stopping John McCain, who clinched the Republican nomination last night, from going on the offensive. He's already made news attacking Barack, and that will only become more frequent in the coming days.

Right now, it's essential for every single supporter of Barack Obama to step up and help fight this two-front battle. In the face of attacks from Hillary Clinton and John McCain, we need to be ready to take them on.

Will you make an online donation of $25 right now?

https://donate.barackobama.com/facebookmath

The chatter among pundits may have gotten better for the Clinton campaign after last night, but by failing to cut into our lead, the math -- and their chances of winning -- got considerably worse.

Today, we still have a lead of more than 150 delegates, and there are only 611 pledged delegates left to win in the upcoming contests.

By a week from today, we will have competed in Wyoming and Mississippi. Two more states and 45 more delegates will be off the table.

But if Senator Clinton wants to continue this, let's show that we're ready.

Make an online donation of $25 now to show you're willing to fight for this:

https://donate.barackobama.com/facebookmath

Thank you,

David

David Plouffe
Campaign Manager

In The News

The obvious strategy for Obama: A subtle attack on Hillary's tax ... San Diego Union Tribune The delegate count and the dynamics of the race still make Barack Obama the strong favorite to win the Dem nomination, but the chances that Hillary Clinton can credibly take the fight all the way to the party's convention in Denver appear far higher after her wins Tuesday in Texas and Ohio. ..... A revote in Michigan would probably favor Hillary, and perhaps Florida, too. ...... He needs to preserve his image as a sunny, positive idealist.

Obama Moves to Sharpen His Critique of Clinton New York Times Instead of answering questions about Mr. Rezko, Mr. Obama said, Mr. Obama had chosen to “lash out.” ..... Mr. Obama has 1,456.5 delegates compared to 1,370 for Mrs. Clinton ..... Mr. Obama would fare better against Mr. McCain than Mrs. Clinton would.
Obama gets tough after Clinton comeback The Age
Facebook fills No. 2 post with former Google exec San Jose Mercury News
Buffett topples Gates as world's richest person MarketWatch
Microsoft Details Internet Explorer 8.0, Introduces Beta InformationWeek
Is America Ready for a Gay 'Idol'? The Associated Press

Who Is This Hillary Person? And Why Does She Keep Coming At Us?

Hillary, Fighter

Who is this Hillary person? And why does she keep coming at us?

The answer is Hillary really, really, really wants to be our Vice President. That is why she is so very relentless. Think about it. If she had lost New Hampshire, she would have been out before January was over. And then we Obama people would have been asking, so who do we want on the ticket? Edwards, the fighter? Spitzer, the fighter? Or Hillary the fighter? Fighter because she did start the Iraq War, did she not?

But Hillary would not have none of that. She was not about to get on Obama's short list of candidates. She wanted to be the only person on the list. And she dug hard and fought hard.

I am at a point now when I am beginning to think Hillary might be the one. Through January and February and now going into March, I have really had a chance to take a very close look at her. And so I am no longer wondering if someone else might look good on the ticket. The primary contests have served their purpose.

Who Is This Bill Clinton Guy? And Why Will He Not Go Away? On A Vacation?

Bill Clinton will be around on the political scene for a few more decades in various capacities, and I will not have it any other way. But I would like it if this guy went to the Bahamas for the next few months. I would be happy to organize a fundraiser to that effect if he were to express interest. He can call up his wife as much he wants from there. It is not like he does not get to talk politics.

Bill Clinton has been more of a nuisance than is becoming someone of his age, maturity and world renown. Instead of acting the elderly statesman, he has really gone down and dirty this campaign season, has he not?

Hillary Is A Good Looking Woman

It will be great to have her much on TV, which is where she will be as Vice President.

We Won Nevada, We Won Texas

This nomination fight is a race for delegates and we won both states.

Going Negative Worked For Clinton 08

It was the same playbook in New Hampshire. It was the same in Ohio. They dug up Rezko this time.

All attacks have to be answered. You don't have to get mean, you don't have to engage in the politics of personal destruction, but you do have to answer all attacks, especially the negative ones. Obama 08 missed out on this basic lesson in New Hampshire and again for March 4.

When You Get Hit, You Hit Back

The new kind of politics changes how you hit back, but it does not change that you do hit back.

NAFTA: We Did Not Handle It Well

Even people in Ohio who have suffered from the loss of manufacturing jobs realize the old days are not coming back. There is no going back. How better to manage the transition when the economy necessarily morphs? How to better handle retraining?

This is a really tough one. The suffering is real. The changes are inevitable. But the solutions, hard and elusive they might be, but they are all forward looking.

Takes Two Arms And Two Legs To Swim

Poor Rapid Response Mechanism

Obama 08 top campaign people are going to have to plug this hole, or the Clinton boys are going to keep going negative, and those negative attacks are going to keep working for them.

If Obama 08 does not plug this big, gaping hole, we might as well lose. Our guy ends up Vice President. What we need is a war room, a rapid response mechanism. Let no attack go unanswered.

In The News

Advisers for Clinton Plan the Endgame New York Times ground game, advertising budgets and a confidence-brimming outreach strategy ...... with her victories in Texas and Ohio last night, she can convince superdelegates to stand with her after a Pennsylvania victory. ...... Pennsylvania, which has 188 delegates at stake, could set up a powerful one-two punch two weeks later in the Indiana and North Carolina primaries, which have a combined 218 delegates ...... the final contest on June 7 in Puerto Rico, where 63 delegates will be at stake. ..... the Clinton campaign’s chief objective was not to sully Mr. Obama’s image or record, but to cast a spotlight on lightly examined or unknown aspects of both.

Clinton Sees New Race; Obama Talks Tough The Associated Press Obama blamed negative attacks by the former first lady for his defeats and quickly made good on a promise to sharpen his criticism of her. ...... Obama gained endorsements from superdelegates in Georgia, Vermont, Ohio, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico. ...... talk of arranging for makeup primaries or caucuses in Michigan and Florida ...... Obama, on a long flight home to Chicago from Texas, told reporters he believed criticism like that helped send him to defeat.
Obama camp claims TX delegate victory MSNBC there are 611 delegates left to win in the Democratic race, and Clinton needs to win 60% of them to erase Obama's lead ..... Obama's campaign has less support in Pennsylvania than Clinton and more ground to make up.

Hillary discusses Clinton-Obama ticket for election Newsday, USA Clinton's victories yesterday "barely" put a "dent" in his lead. .... voters who made up their minds in the last three days voted overwhelmingly for her.