BBC NEWS | The Reporters

The end game?

Gavin Hewitt
5 Nov 08, 02:41 AM GMT

Suddenly Ohio may be the end game. Having lost there and in Pennsylvania, McCain's path to the White House is all but closed.

The crowd here knows it and are waiting to give the biggest cheer of the night.

Crowd in Grant Park, Chicago

One observation about Pennsylvania. When we were there we were told again and again that the white working class would not vote for him. There were warnings that race would play a part. Doesn't seem to have happened.

Comments

1. At 04:09am on 05 Nov 2008, CastawayCay wrote:
Gavin, whenever you make a comment about race you should always hold a mirror to make sure that what you say works in both directions. The truth here is that race DID play a part - exit polls show that overwhelmingly black voters broke for Obama in vastly greater numbers than white voters voted for McCain. So race DID play a part ... POSITIVELY for Obama's campaign.

Complain about this comment
2. At 04:18am on 05 Nov 2008, BarryHaley wrote:
This is the endgame, even if all other states flip McCain, Obama will sweep the West Coast. It is a Fait'e comple. (sorry, bad French). He is now our President.
"Hail to the Chief."

Complain about this comment
3. At 04:32am on 05 Nov 2008, royalcourtier wrote:
But race did play a part. Something like 90% of black Americans voted for Obama. The black mandate will be enough to give the Democrats the White House. If that isn't racism, I don't know what is.

Complain about this comment
4. At 05:39am on 05 Nov 2008, Joe_Pen wrote:
royalcourtier wrote:

"Something like 90% of black Americans voted for Obama."

So justice has finally been done.

royalcourtier wrote:
"If that isn't racism, I don't know what is."

Justice has finally been done.

Complain about this comment
5. At 11:16am on 05 Nov 2008, Vivienleejensen wrote:
Many Afro-Americans may have voted for Obama BECAUSE he is black, but many other ethnic groups also must have voted for him DESPITE his name or colour.
There are high hopes and expectations pinned on this president-elect, and he might suffer the same fate as Icarus did. However, after hearing his speech at the Grant Park rally on the BBC, I am confident that he won't.
GO-bama!

Complain about this comment
6. At 12:35pm on 05 Nov 2008, kbwong wrote:
It would be naive to think that race didn't play a part in this election. It did -- both from black Americans who turned out in droves to support someone they perceive to be more like them than any previous American candidate, and white Americans who were determined not to let race be something that would keep them from voting by the issues. And vice versa -- there were black Americans who were determined not to let the fact that Obama is half-black keep them from voting on the issues as well, and white Americans who voted for Obama simply because they felt that voting for a man who was black was simply fair play (and figuring that someone who got where he's been already was just as bad/good as any other politician anyway).

People are pretty much the same wherever, given differences in culture. Americans are far more varied in outlook than you might think from looking at your televisions.

What it came down to with the race between Obama and McCain was that this time the "black" man was also educated, so intelligent it made your brain hurt, and politically savvy...to me, he embodies the pinnacle of someone who can move fairly successfully in both extremes of the world of politics race on the terms both sides.

Personally, I didn't so much vote for Obama and I didn't care a toss that he was half-black (to some people, any bit of you being black must mean that you're black, period, for good or ill, but I couldn't care less, personally), although I was relieved to see that he was both educated and smarter than me or most of the people I know. Mainly, I voted to keep Sarah Palin out of the White House. We've had enough of that kind of pandering to the worst elements of the US.

Complain about this comment
7. At 2:14pm on 06 Nov 2008, Goonerview wrote:
"I voted to keep Sarah Palin out of the White House. We've had enough of that kind of pandering to the worst elements of the US."

I like how alot of people are very quick criticise "Fox news" for distorting the image of Barack Obama, however when the mainstream (left wing) media shift to make republicans look like idiots, no-one says anything!

Palin is a very capable candidate, but was an "easy-target", by a liberal media hell bent on making Obama win and sabotaging the opposition,

... I am not denying that Fox news is not biased on the right wing (Fox news dont deny it), but liberal media has made this campaign hell for McCain and Palin and no-one criticises it!

everyone is caught up in the moment, and hasn't stopped to think!

Complain about this comment
8. At 2:19pm on 06 Nov 2008, Goonerview wrote:
A few examples, the liberal media has been backing Obama since the primaries!!,

Hillary Clinton suffered, everytime she "laughed" (cackled in her case) or "cried", the news pundits jumped on it stating that she was being machiavelen and doing it to gain support! (it was ridiculous, cant a person laugh anymore).

You Tube.com has alot to answer aswell, being overwhelmingly Pro-Obama and making a joke out of anything Clinton or McCain said in their speeches!

Palin, is the newest victim of this media (prank phonecalls etc.) backlash, and now everyone thinks shes a dumbass and its not really her fault.

Complain about this comment
9. At 2:48pm on 06 Nov 2008, Goonerview wrote:
Moreover, people voted for Obama because:

1. He can change the world.

2. I want poverty to end, especially in Africa!!

3. I want a safer country to live in.

4. I want to be happier

5. I want all the wars in the world to end.

6. I dont want to use any oil from the middle east

7. I want better relations with every country in the world.

8. a cleaner earth,

9. better furture for my children

10. save the environment,

11. world without fear

12. end all wars

etc.etc.etc.

summed up in this video (just one of many): http://jp.youtube.com/watch?v=ghSJsEVf0pU&feature=related (the vidio gives him "messiah" like status)

And thats great IF Obama can deliver on all of that, then fair play to him!!, I wish him all the best,

But, people need to realise that being president does not endow him with omnipotency!, there are somethings that presidents can not change!

...therefore promising to do so, is irresponsible and hey, maybe he just said it to get votes, you never know (politicians dont lie, do they?)

People need to read between the lines, before merely pointing out the "evils" of fox news, they need to criticise their own media.

Complain about this comment