I'm going to West Virginia next weekend

I was really thinking about taking a long break from the campaigning after the 8 weeks I put in for Barack in PA however after hearing Hillary calling economist elitist I was reminded what's at stake in this election. Who the hell is she going to appoint in Treasury, Commerce, and the Fed if she doesn't like economist. Its a longshot down there but so was PA and he doesn't need to win he just needs to make the margin smaller. I'm no good on the phone and do better at people's doors anyway talking face to face. So add another boot to the ground in West Virginia. I'm reporting for duty. My grandfather and great grandfather were PA coal miners so I have a little bit of a story to talk about.

...he doesn't need to win he just needs to make the margin smaller...

Twenty points smaller, to be exact.

That's what Obama's PA effort was really about--not the win, but to get at least 45% of vote, which prevented Hillary from hitting her "magic number" of 65%. Because he succeeded, Hillary now needs 69% of the vote, and that goes even higher if Obama wins NC and gets at least 40% of IN. In other words, Jake--GO FOR IT!

:bounce:
rocknation

:patriot: Once you make that connection with the coal mining families and explain why you are working for Obama's campaign, you will make a difference - thanks again.

When I say my Grandfather died at a very young age (55) because of the working conditions in the mines and that I believe Obama would be the better person to protect miners it will resonate. He had bad lungs and a bad heart from working in those places in the 40s-late 60s.

:hug: My Dad, Grandfather and Uncles all worked in the steel mill. I'm sure if they were alive, they would support Obama too.

I'm going to drive out there from Virginia. I wanted to take a break after PA too, but ended up going to NC last weekend. I decided to actually take a break this weekend but I regret not going back there. Can't wait to go to West Virginia next weekend.

If we work hard we can cut Clinton's Lead in half!

That's all he'd need, you see: every time Hillary fails to get 69% of the vote, she has to get even more the next time around.

:headbang:
rocknation

As an aside, I'm very sorry for the loss of your Grandfather so young :(

The goal needs to be to cut Clinton's lead there in half. Which will spoil her TMA (Target Motion Analysis) solution for the rest of the month.

There is little chance for him to win in that state but if we can cut it and Kentucky in half for her she will walk away with nowhere near the delegates needed to successfully convince the supers.

So thank you and I encourage everyone to get on the phone and PHONEBANK!

http://my.barackobama.com/page/content/phonebankmap/

Obama raised Hillary's "magic number" from 65% to 69%--and reduced his to 40%. It it at all possible he could win that much in WV and KY?

:headbang:
rocknation

:applause: :applause:

:toast: :toast:

:woohoo:

People like you give me hope, thanks for your time and effort in PA and in WV. :patriot:

There's a lot of Democrats in WV.

I hope Obama does better than expected here.

Thanks a lot for your hard work!

Clinton 46, Obama 25.

With so many undecideds, does 40% of the vote for Obama sound reasonable?

:headbang:
rocknation

It's going to be a lot more than 25%.

Because at this point she needs every delegates she can get and 40 will hopefully mean Obama will win the delegate rich areas.

So far, I've seen only one Hillary sign in downtown Charleston.

(which probably just means that the Obama supporters are more motivated than the Hillary supporters, but still, it's nice to see those lovely signs)

We are bustin' a hump in Marion County. Our office officially opens on Wednesday and I had a house party on Saturday.

Been phonebanking and canvassing.

I got a great phone voice (used to be a receptionist) so I am delegated to the phones til Thursday.
Big rush to get the data in on time.

One of my fellow team leaders from PA has family down there.

I'm not sure he will win it, but I think the race will be close in that county.

I was born in Huntington (west), now live in Charleston (central), and I've lived in Martinsburg, so I know the state pretty well.

I still hate WV. I have a pellet wound to remind me of riding a bike through that white trash state.

and I am proud to be from West Virginia.

Sorry for the wound, one thing Wv'ans do have is manners, we do not hold grudges either

don't take it personal. The fact is , Obama doesn't stand a chance in your POS state. Why?

Unfortunately, the trashy folk sometimes overpower the decent people.

Oh, I remember: "IT'S FUZZY MATH!"

I lived in WV for a year and I'm not so sure about how he will do there. But more power to you :patriot: and good luck.

That's why I've been making a pest of myself asking if it's a realistic goal, LOL!

:headbang:
rocknation

At 40 he will really start to eat into Clinton delegate gain there.

I didn't pick that 40% out of a hat. Because Obama got 45% of the vote in PA, Hillary, who needed 65% of ALL the remaining contests, now needs 69%, dropping Obama's "magic number" to 40--wink wink nudge nudge, get it?

:headbang:
rocknation

Charleston has a small, privately run college, so it's not really a college town ... BUT it does have a large (for WV, I mean) black population and a lot of "liberal elite," LOL. I think Obama also may do fairly well in a couple of the Eastern Panhandle counties in which live many white-collar workers who commute to jobs in D.C.

The Southern coalfields and the Northern Panhandle are likely lost causes, though.

Obama actually could blunt his margin of loss, but he has shown a complete lack of willingness to pander to the voters of the state and their culture. You may call it pandering, you may call it insulting the intelligence of the voters, but, it is working for Hillary Clinton, and it worked for her husband too. Clinton always managed to get country music stars (the Democratic ones, like Cyrus and Buffett) out to his rallies and Gore had a few do rallies for him.

As I have said earlier, Obama could score an amazing amount of points by doing a political gesture that while corny (and while some may think would be demeaning for a man of his stature, whatever that means) could help him, especially in these areas where country music is such a big thing. If he would just learn the words to "Kiss An Angel Good Morning" and find a way to incorporate singing that into his schtick, he could gain points. Probably not enough to win WV, but enough to blunt his losses, and it would show that he is in someway in tune to working man's culture.


And yes, I chose that song because Charlie Pride sang it, and I use the example of Charlie Pride, because he was in fact a black man who became a very popular country music performer who was very popular with white Southern audiences.

One of my uncles referred to him as "the n***** country singer."

*sigh*

Finals are over this week, and everyone will be dispersing to their various scattered "hometowns" (not a lot of year-rounders in Monongalia County for sure; don't know about Marshall's makeup), and an awful lot of them to states where the primaries are past history.

Speaking with representatives from the campus groups for both Dem candidates, i made sure to suggest that in their voter registration drives, they should remind folks that if they are returning for the fall semester, they should register to vote in WV, since they will be here for the GE. Better a vote counted here (likely a 'swing state' in November) than a possibly-not-counted absentee somewhere else.

We're usually willing to at least politely listen before we tell you "No thanks." :)

stop by and see me. :)

On that note, an Obama supporter stopped by my house last week. He came all the way from Atlanta, Ga., just to stump for Obama in West Virginia!

:toast: