Several contributers at MSNBC seemed to be suggesting that race was a factor in New Hampshire voting, specifically Chris Matthews whom I heard on Morning Joe and Andrea Mitchell whom I heard on a later news report. I also have read Tim Russert suggested it. Specifically the charge was that white voters were lying to pollsters about their willingness to vote for a black candidate. They seem to disregard the percentage of voters who also told pollsters they were undecided the weekend before the vote.
The Obama campaign hadn’t officially suggested that this might be the case. However an Obama co-chair, Jesse Jackson, Jr., questioning Clinton’s impromptu tear-filled moment the day before the primary and linking it into Hurricane Katrina in such a way that seems to suggest race.
TPM Election Central has the quotes and video:
But those tears also have to be analyzed. They have to be looked at very, very carefully in light of Katrina, in light of other things that Mrs. Clinton did not cry for, particularly as we head to South Carolina where 45% of African-Americans who participate in the Democratic contest, and they see real hope in Barack Obama.
We saw something very clever in the last week of this campaign coming out of Iowa, going into New Hampshire, we saw a sensitivity factor. Something that Mrs. Clinton has not been able to do with voters that she tried in New Hampshire.
Not in response to voters — not in response to Katrina, not in response to other issues that have devastated the American people, the war in Iraq, we saw tears in response to her appearance. So her appearance brought her to tears, but not hurricane Katrina.
After a few days of commentators on MSNBC praising Barack Obama’s strategy of not using race to divide the electorate, host Chris Matthews appeared on the networks Morning Joe program and claimed New Hampshire voters lied to pollsters because they were afraid to admit their racist feelings about voting for an african american. What are they putting in the water over there?
It wasn’t the only odd bit of logic or outrageous claim made by Matthews this morning. Rapid City Journal also saw the broadcast and recapped it quite well.
“She didn’t win on her merit,” Matthews said. “It was about the humiliation of Bill Clinton.”
Well,OK. But it doesn’t say much about Hillary, or New York voters.
Nor does Matthews’ position on the alleged polling lies say much about the strong turnout of women voters for Hillary in New Hampshire. But Matthews has it figured: Dumb voters in New York. Racists liars in New Hampshire. And a woman who isn’t even qualified for the Senate now back in the race for president. It beats simply saying you were wrong, I guess.
Matthews also said that from now on Obama would have to take 10% “off the white vote” in remaining states when looking at polls.
It is almost impossible to convey just how wrong everyone, including me, got it wrong in New Hampshire. Just dead wrong! Goes to show what any of us know.
When it comes to Senator Clinton I have to say this. I have never seen anyone take such a massive beating in the press, on the blogs, by her opponents, by the people themselves showing up to boo and protest, than she took after Iowa. When people asked me what the signifigance was going to be from Iowa I did not say it was delegates, I did not say it was a sense of the electorate, I did not say it was anything substantial when it comes to voting. I said it would be the media that would go on to crown the winner the victor and pummel the opposition. Boy was that an understatement.