The recent spate of victories by Barack Obama represents something of a breakthrough in what had been a demographics-based campaign on the Democratic side of the presidential campaign. We knew that blacks were backing Obama over Hillary Clinton in a big way. In the so-called "Potomac Primaries," Obama also won over whites, fueled by an 18-point margin of caucasian males in Virginia.
In fact, according to ABC News, Obama has won white males in the past 12 states to vote.
Apparently white guys like the Illinois senator. More likely, they dislike the lady from New York. Males of all stripes really haven't cared much for Mrs. Clinton since she came upon the national scene 16 years ago, something which has drawn considerable scorn from feminists.
The question is why. The subject came up on the one segment of Rush Limbaugh's radio program this morning while I drove to work. He came up with the basics: that Hillary Clinton possesses female traits that men hate most, that she comes off as Nurse Ratched or the Mother-in-Law from hell.
The feminists answer for all these years has been that men are afraid of newly liberated, strong women.
I think Rush's comments have some merit, but the feminists are just being defensive.
My take is that the reason why men dislike Hillary is that she's a fraud. Since most men either enjoy watching sports or are at least socialized enough to be aware of what's going on with the players and teams, we know how to spot frauds. How many times does a player come over to your favorite baseball team, either through trade, free agency or a promotion from the minor leagues, get a big buildup about how great he is, and then hit .215? Fans hate that.
On the other hand, the semi-talented who come in to be a late-inning defensive replacement or long reliever, well, we understand their limitations. We wish we were that guy.
We certainly go crazy with frustration over the big supposed star who can't hit his weight. Even acclaimed superstars like Alex Rodriguez with the Yankees, and Barry Bonds when he was with the Pirates, drew the ire of fans because when they got to the big stage -- the World Series or playoffs -- they'd stink. If they're so good and make the big bucks, post-season is when you're supposed to deliver. Neither Rodriguez nor Bonds, who was disliked for this long before steroids become an issue, have been productive in October.
Now, back to Hillary. Her supporters for years told us she's the smartest woman on earth. Well, at least the smartest woman in politics.
But look at her record. There's very little to indicate that she can convert all those smarts to productive action. She bungled nearly everything she touched while her husband was in the White House and as senator has basically accomplished nothing, other than to become this year's biggest earmarker.
Big buildup. No production. It drives people nuts, and that's why guys, the first to spot this, don't like her.
Now, women are going for Obama in greater numbers, which accounted for his huge victory totals in Virginia, Maryland and the District of Columbia. Females, who watched each other closely, can spot frauds among their own better than we men can, that's for sure.
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In a recent post, I mentioned that McCain was going to have to adjust his general election campaign to attract a different kind of non-Republican if he's going to have a chance to win.
Obama has much the same problem. He's going to have to find a replacement for these white men who are voting for him, and the ones going for Hillary. Many of the Obama supporters are casting anti-Hillary votes and, without John Edwards around, have nowhere else to place their vote. In November, they'll size up Barack Obama as he really is and will have McCain as their alternative. Many will stay with Obama. Many others will not.
The divide between supporters of Obama and Hillary is also one of social class. As it's frequently explained in shorthand, Obama gets the wine-and-cheese set and Clinton picks up the blue collar guys. If McCain makes the recommended adjustments, he'll pick up many of the male Clinton supporters, too.
