The American Spectator

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Special Report

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Among the rural burgs are mostly-black cities such as Gary -- essentially a suburb of Obama's hometown of Chicago -- and areas with growing Latino populations such as Elkhart County, where they account, on average, for 30 percent of the enrollment in its two largest school districts.

And then there is the paradox that is Indianapolis, with its mix of corporate headquarters, statehouse bureaucracies, auto factories, warehouses, farming communities, and suburbs. It is one of the Republicans' few urban strongholds and one of the state's most powerful Democratic machines -- as blue-collar as is it urban sophisticate.

Though the state's political and social culture is notoriously hidebound, it can also be dynamic and cosmopolitan. Younger voters support a wide spectrum of ideas, from gay marriage to privatization of government services. This made for the kind of conditions in which Obama can compete, if not always win outright. When Obama spoke on Monday at the American Legion Mall in Indianapolis to a throng of thousands, it was clear that many Hoosiers have come to embrace him.

Obama's performance in Indiana shows that he can be competitive in the general election. So Clinton will now have to either develop a new game plan or just bow out gracefully, as she should. But she won't.

topics:
Barack Obama, Law, Military, NATO, Unions