09 June 2008
Clinton Concedes, Encourages Supporters to Back Obama
McCain, Obama focus on how they will “change” the United States
Washington -- New York Senator Hillary Clinton ended her campaign to become the first female U.S. president June 7, saying she fully supports her Democratic opponent Barack Obama.
In a speech in Washington, Clinton thanked her supporters and encouraged them to support Illinois Senator Obama, who has enough delegates to be his party's presumed presidential nominee.
"Now, when I started this race, I intended to win back the White House and make sure we have a president who puts our country back on the path to peace, prosperity and progress. And that's exactly what we're going to do by ensuring that Barack Obama walks through the doors of the Oval Office on January 20th, 2009," Clinton said.
"I ask all of you to join me in working as hard for Barack Obama as you have for me," Clinton said. "The way to continue our fight now to accomplish the goals for which we stand is to take our energy, our passion, our strength, and do all we can to help elect Barack Obama the next president of the United States."
Clinton discussed the significance of being the United States’ first viable female candidate for president. "Think how much progress we've already made. When we first started, people everywhere asked the same questions. Could a woman really serve as commander in chief?" Clinton said. "And although we weren't able to shatter that highest, hardest glass ceiling this time, thanks to you, it's got about 18 million cracks in it."
"You can be so proud that from now on it will be unremarkable for a woman to win primary state victories, unremarkable to have a woman in a close race to be our nominee, unremarkable to think that a woman can be the president of the United States." She also cited the 2008 race’s significance as the first to produce a major party nomination of an African-American presidential candidate.
In the wake of the final state nominating contests June 3, Obama claimed victory in the race for the Democratic nomination, but also lauded Clinton on her campaign, saying, “Our party and our country are better off because of her, and I am a better candidate for having had the honor to compete with Hillary Rodham Clinton.”
Neither Democratic candidate has earned enough pledged delegates to guarantee the nomination, but Obama is the presumed Democratic nominee because enough superdelegates -- party leaders who cast votes -- have indicated they will vote for Obama at the Democratic National Convention in Denver this August to give him more than the 2,118 votes needed to earn the nomination. (See “Presidential Campaign Enters New Phase as Primaries End.”)
GENERAL ELECTION BEGINS WITH BATTLE OVER CHANGE
With the primaries behind them, presumed Democratic nominee Barack Obama and presumed Republican nominee John McCain now are focusing their efforts on convincing the American people that each is the better choice for president.
When it comes to their political backgrounds and personal style, the two presidential candidates are quite different. Arizona Senator McCain, who if elected would be the oldest U.S. president when taking office, has a 25-year congressional career and has been called a “maverick” for his willingness to go against his own party for causes in which he believes. Obama, 25 years younger than McCain, is serving his first term in the U.S. Senate but already has gained broad support from voters in both political parties -- many of whom show up in large numbers to hear the Illinois senator speak. (See “Meet the 2008 Presidential Candidates.”)
Judging by the speeches both candidates gave June 3, the night many Americans believe the general election began, “change” will likely be a word both McCain and Obama will mention again and again on the campaign trail.
“Change we can believe in” is a campaign slogan Obama and his supporters have used frequently in the past few months and signs with that message are often seen at the Democratic candidate’s rallies.
In his speech in St. Paul, Minnesota, Obama defined change as “a foreign policy that doesn’t begin and end with a war that should’ve never been authorized. … Change is realizing that meeting today’s threats requires not just our firepower, but the power of our diplomacy.”
Obama said McCain’s support of the Bush administration’s troops surge in Iraq shows the Arizona senator will not bring change.
“While John McCain can legitimately tout moments of independence from his party in the past, such independence has not been the hallmark of his presidential campaign. … It’s not change when John McCain decided to stand with George Bush 95 percent of the time, as he did in the Senate last year.”
In his speech in Kenner, Louisiana, McCain rejected Obama’s claims. “Why does Senator Obama believe it’s so important to repeat that idea over and over again? Because he knows it’s very difficult to get Americans to believe something they know is false,” McCain said.
McCain said he shared Obama’s view that “this is indeed a change election. No matter who wins this election, the direction of this country is going to change dramatically.”
“But, the choice is between the right change and the wrong change, between going forward and going backward,” the Republican candidate said.
Discussing the importance of restructuring the U.S. military, improving law enforcement agencies, strengthening alliances and improving capabilities for responding to disasters, McCain said, “The wrong change looks not to the future but to the past for solutions that have failed us before and will surely fail us again.”
“I have a few years on my opponent, so I am surprised that a young man has bought into so many failed ideas,” McCain said. McCain accused Obama of supporting unnecessary government programs that would use up resources and restrict Americans’ choices.
The candidates will get to address each other in debates in the fall, and possibly even sooner. McCain has proposed the candidates meet for a series of town hall meetings, to be held between now and the national conventions. Obama’s campaign says it is open to such an idea, but no final decision has been made.
