Super Tuesday showdown
The caucus of super-duper Tuesday with nearly half of American voters is just over. Obama put up a good fight bagging 528 delegates but Senator Clinton with 635 appears to be buoyant in the Democratic camp. Democrats are still on long shot for the magic number of 2025 delegates. McCain with 487 for minimum of 1191deligates, is slowly but surely emerging as clear frontrunner among the Republicans. Romney, his nearest rival has only 176. In many ways the race-2008 is unprecedented. Never in US has history had a woman vied for the White House, and never has an African-American dream of occupying the White House. That pushes the Fahrenheit high and controversies into shrill cries. Rumor mills, conspiracy slug shots, political grave diggers are on round the clock vigil; too early to say who will rise and who will fall. Hillary was way ahead of others for a year but Iowa delivered a shock by endorsing Illinois senator Barack Obama, New Hampshire quickly reversed it by choosing Hillary, repeated in Michigan, Florida and Arizona. She is the winner in Michigan and the big state, Florida, but without delegate as punishment for advancing the caucus for a month. Obama may make a good president one day, but democratic loyalists want a winner first. Senator Clinton is a great survivor and ruthless fighter. Democrats, pushed away from the White House in 2000, are looking for a gladiator to win. For many Democrats, Hillary has that in her. But many Democrats love to hate her too. Kennedy sister Shriver and ex presidential candidate John Kerry have endorsed Obama for personal reasons more than the party's. In the Republican camp Governor Mike Huckabee was the winner of Iowa Caucus only to come a poor third in New Hampshire and trailing ever since. Senator McCain had a slow start but emerged the winner in New Hampshire, appears on course now for nomination after Super Tuesday. Both Rudy Giuliani once a great Republican hope and democratic gentleman John Edward have not shown enough staying power and gone rather early. It is too early to say who will rise and who will fall; nomination is at stake now, race for presidency will be after the party conventions. Hillary could not hang the cultivated confidence after she come close third behind Obama and John Edwards in Iowa. Obama was surging ahead in the fiercely independent New Hampshire, taken to be in Hillary's camp all along except the week before the caucus. The pollsters were predicting Obama's stunning victory in Iowa would avalanche in New Hampshire, to the peril of Senator Clinton. In a desperate bid she emotionally charged the day before New Hampshire caucus 'may be I have liberated us to actually let women be human beings in public'. The gamble paid off. Sixteen years ago New Hampshire primary made Bill Clinton a 'comeback kid' to run straight to the White House upsetting the incumbent President Bush sr. Will Hillary run that far while fighting her protégé image of the come back kid? When Obama said he was not sure which Clinton he is running against, the shot is aimed to kill? If Bill Clinton overshadows her campaign it may cast a doubt in her leadership ability. Bill plays mostly offstage music to masquerade his visible influence on her presidential bid. It is time for the accomplished magician of American politics to repay his dearest wife for saving his presidency from the Lewinsky affair. Hope and despair runs together for the moment. Obama and Hillary are in a dead heat. After sub-prime disaster the most concern area is economy. The debate between war and economy as election issue appears to be on photo-finish now. Years of concern for the casualties of war in Iraq and failed effort to trace Bin Laden in Afghanistan, is hotly chased by the economic worries now. America is in the grip of recession. Loss of job in manufacturing and emigration are the issues of 37 million poor, besides, health care, abortion will have a say in the election. American voters appear to be not much concerned yet about environmental issues that Noble Laureate ex VP Al Gore is crusading. Lobbies are most active during election that narrowly beams on their issues that make politics fierce horse-trading. Many do not take interest in broader issues more than the vested concern. Like law of gravitation, the winner emerges from political gravitation through a grueling process of give and take. Americas are proud citizens but not unnecessarily patriotic. American voters are also going through a tough choice. With poor approval rate of Bush and without incumbency since 1928 hope for change is sticking which Obama is vigorously marketing. In the Democratic camp the choice between an Obama and a woman; apprehension is also rising in parallel to enthusiasm. It was clear from her autobiography 'Living History' published in June 2003, that she had an aspiration for the White House. I suppose she came one election too late to evade the charge that woman commander in chief is unfit to conduct wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Wars have lost glamour now; looking for reconciliation that gives Hillary a fine sense of timing. But the question still hangs- are Americans ready to send a woman to the White House? Obama has little to loose. Many already predicted he is unelectable. With a Kenyan father and Hawaiian upbringing he represents neither mainland prejudices nor skin: if that's what the American voters would eventually look for. He is also a newcomer in beltway Washington. And that's what he is selling hard as he calls -remove poison from politics of Washington. He is also claiming to be the unifying messiah who wants to demolish the barrier of colour, religion or deprivation. His key ward is change, trying to be a Nelson Mandela; but does America need one? Election is still away, for the time being he is mounting a hope to break the social barrier, selling 'change and we can do' myth with mesmerizing persuasion. When he talks, colour melts; that happened in Iowa and drove many predominantly white states towards Obama. African Americans don't like illegal immigrants dominated by the Latinos and Asians. Obama is selling less with Latinos and Asians. When Martin Luther King said, I have a dream; injustice shivered, that finally gunned him down. But his dream lived to peel off injustice, to discover talents like Jessie Jackson, Barack Obama and many like them. The brilliant Jessie Jackson pushed on to presidency that he knew he would never make. Nevertheless, like the man behind wheel of the bullock cart painted by Zainul Abedin to symbolize struggling humanity, he pushed on and on, and handed the baton over to Obama to run the race. Colin Powell meanwhile, broke the barrier to become the first Chairman of Joint Chief of Staff's Committee, then secretary of state, handed over the baton to Dr. Rice. These are inevitable changes; irreversible progress, where race and religious prejudices are fast reaching the museum of relics. Even if Obama does not make a president, he carries the torch to the Olympian heights, that somebody someday among the underprivileged will reach the White House. Along with race and religion, sovereignty and national boundaries are also fading to the cherished values of humanity. Americans are a radical society, capable of undertaking big strides. White House is symbolic; injustice is real- heartbreaking and cruel. Colour, religion and sexism must go from politics everywhere. The very fact that both Obama and Hillary are pulling big crowds with a real possibility of one of them reaching the White House is close to a revolution. The author is a freelancer.
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