Obama will probably lose Hawaii--state Dem party in the tank for Clinton

[geek tragedy]

http://blogs.tnr.com/tnr/blogs/the_plank/archive/2008/02/08/is-hawaii-really-obama-country.aspx

Furthermore, he says, Hawaii's Democratic Party has been controlled by the Japanese since the 1960s, and influential Japanese-American Senator Daniel Inouye is making a high-profile trip from Washington, D.C to stump for Hillary. This is big news.

My follow-up call to a local expert, Ira Rohter from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, reveals that the Democratic establishment is aggressively working to inoculate the state against Obama--priming their warhorses, the two biggest government unions, for a major turnout effort and bringing professional organizers from the mainland.

During the 2004 primaries, Dennis Kucinich apparently caught them by surprise, coming in second place with the help of left-wing progressive organizers. Now warned, they've vowed to prevent a repeat performance by Obama. They're betting their manpower advantage will overcome Obama's effort to turn out young Hawaiians, who are legendarily apathetic about voting. Professor Rohter speculates that Hillary thinks she at has at least a chance to embarrass Obama by beating him in his home state. He says Obama, who is in Seattle today, may have to consider flying to Hawaii and making a dramatic appearance to galvanize support.

[Alexander]

1. Yep. He'll lose Hawai'i like Clinton lost Massachusetts.

:evilgrin:

[TalkAgain]

2. are you dumb?

[Bicoastal]

3. Seems like wishful thinking. If the Kennedys couldn't sway Mass,

do you think Inouye will sway Hawaii? He's way ahead there.

[Moh96]

4. who ever wrote that article is dumb as F***

[RiverStone]

5. Considering Obama has raised 7 X more $$$ than Hillary there...

I wonder WTF the OP is referring to?

http://www.kpua.net/news.php?id=13851

[THUNDER HANDS]

6. he'll win Hawaii with probably close to 65% of the vote

i think.

[ellisonz]

8. Bigger.

[ellisonz]

7. It's true that Inouye and the old guard are behind Clinton.

It is equally true that the ethnic Japanese segment of Hawaii is succeptible to racism. However, I would note that behind that blanket category of Asian you have the majority of people who are mixed Japanese, Filipino, Chinese, Hawaiian, Portuguese, and White.

Plus, it's a caucus and not a primary. Inouye's people are old and may not turn out. They also aren't that numerous.

[jackson_dem]

19. There it is again. Blame racism for any setback St. Obama faces

St. Obama is supposed to be the greatest politician/leader ever. Why the need for so many excuses? They would not be necessary if the claims made about him were true.

[ellisonz]

25. I'm not blaming racism. I'm simply dealing with facts.

:rant:

Furthermore, I didn't initially bring up race, the OP article does that. I simply expounded on why Barron Young-Smith is a dumb ass and doesn't know shit about Hawai'i, just like you. He probably asked the UH prof some simplistic question about Hillary doing well with "the Asian vote" without having the slightest clue that race in Hawai'i has a totally different dynamic from his sheltered Mainland upbringing. People here talk about race, it isn't some unspoken, "settled" power struggle that props up a bigoted status quo. God forbid he actually has to read "Dreams from my Father," he probably wouldn't get it anyway.

Case in point:

There's no way to know if Hawaii's Asian Americans will be as anti-Obama as voters in California and New York--who went for Hillary almost 3 to 1. Their psychology may be different from Asians on the mainland, since they're a local majority; their suspicion of "change" might be blunted by his local-boy roots; and if Hawaiians aren't necessarily less racist than mainlanders, they probably are racist in a more post-racial way.

I live and work in Honolulu and have lived in Los Angeles in close proximity to large Asian communities. I think I can tell what carry's over from the Mainland and what doesn't. What you have revealed in this trite post of yours is how little you understand about racism and what it means to be of a certain race in these United States.

Mark my word, Clinton will be lucky to break 25%. The truth is that the establishment politicians Barron Young-Smith is talking about are now mostly senior citizens and most of their voters are senior citizens and that these folks are less likely to caucus. Interviewing is all about asking the right questions. I expect a high-turnout, but hardly earth shattering.

Damn cold, it's making me lose my temper.

[rox63]

9. Obama is widely favored to win Hawaii

And it's one of his home states. He was born there, and spent many years there when he was growing up.

[Capt. America]

13. Hillary was born in Illinois, but that didn't really help her.

[madrchsod]

15. she left a long time ago and never looked back...

[rox63]

21. Illinois elected Obama to the Senate

Which indicates he must be pretty popular there already. Clinton has no real connections to Hawaii. Obama does, and he talks a lot about it.

[TankLV]

10. GREAT News for Hillary & Hawaii!

Thanks...

way to go Inouye - I've always liked him as MY senator!

[Alhena]

23. Uh, do you actually think that is NEWS? It's a bloggers opinion which is contrary

to the overwhelming weight of the evidence.

I think it's just someone trying to get out the Obama vote, to be honest- shake things up.

[WHEN CRABS ROAR]

11. I have a question, what about the youth vote there?

[madrchsod]

12. like he did in her home state?

[madrchsod]

14. dlc rules!!

"During the 2004 primaries, Dennis Kucinich apparently caught them by surprise, coming in second place with the help of left-wing progressives....."

oh my god, the left wing progressives!!! can`t have any "left wing progressives" in our party!

[ellisonz]

16. On edit: laughable.

[samdogmom]

17. Huh? n/t

On edit: I had the pleasure of visiting Hawaii last spring (May). Our ride in from the airport (in a cab/hotel limo) was entertaining--a local guy took charge and pointed out the sites to visit, etc. as we made our way to the hotel. He made a big point of showing us Barack's H.S. (?) school and telling us he was a "favorite son". Come on--I don't believe for one minute that Barack is going to lose Hawaii---they're all VERY proud of him there.

[Rock_Garden]

18. Good to read something about Hawaii.

[OzarkDem]

20. Heaven forbid Dems would want to support Clinton

:sarcasm:

Give us a break, the demonizing of Dems simply because they don't want to support an inexperienced candidate is ridiculous.

[rox63]

22. I don't see anyone demonizing anyone else in this thread except for you

The polls show Obama with a wide lead in Hawaii. Got any numbers to dispute that?

[Az_lefty]

24. sure Mr. Penn, keep trying...