Harold Ickes and Mark Penn have just released a Clinton memo titled “The Path to the Presidency.” The document doesn’t bother to address the issue of how Clinton can overtake Obama in the delegate race, but instead provides us with an idea of the types of arguments Clinton will make to superdelegates. It also suggests that the Clinton campaign is more than willing to play the Florida and Michigan cards, arguing that they are two crucial swing states, and if the voters there cannot have their say, it will significantly impair the Democrats ability to win the states in November.
The memo is long, but among some of the arguements it makes:
–Ohio is a baromoter state.
–The cumulative popular vote is close (the campaign’s numbers include Florida and Michigan, even though Obama wasn’t even on the ballot in the latter).
–Clinton has won the battleground states, Obama has won solid red states that Democrats cannot win in November.
–Clinton is stronger among core Democratic constituencies “women, Hispanic, labor, elderly, and under $75,000” (roughly translated into, racists won’t vote for the black guy).
–Clinton is better prepared to compete with John McCain on the commander in chief question and economic issues.
–Clinton has “the resources she needs to compete between now and the Convention.”
This thing is not ending anytime soon.