As I was pumping gas today at a Chevron station in the Roanoke, Va., area, I decided to go inside to pay so I could get a bottled beverage. And, whose voice did I hear on the store radio? None other than Rush Limbaugh!
Like other Democrats who've grown up in red states, I am a bit more vocal about my views than I might be if I had grown up in Worchester, Mass. So, I told the clerk that people like Limbaugh were the main reason why I was a Democrat (well, actually it's the late Jerry Falwell), and that I was glad to see Hillary win last night (she won primaries in Texas, Rhode Island and Ohio over Barack Obama, for those of you who don't follow politics or live in Uzbekistan).
He responded by calling her a socialist. I responded: "She's not a socialist!" I then ignored what else he had to say, which was probably a good thing.
Of course, one has to respect a gas station clerk even if this particular one was a bit on the fringe side. I would certainly not want to be one in Danville, Va. (the city had some 70 armed gas station robberies last year!).
But, whether right wing gas station clerks or Obama supporters disdain her or not, the truth is momentum is clearly on Hillary's side right now.
I checked the web site of "The Akron Beacon-Journal" web site to see how voters there saw the race. Akron, Ohio, is an interesting city as it is both industrial and intellectual in nature as it is known for a tire plant (someone from Akron can tell me if it's indeed still running) and The University of Akron.
The city which is some 40 miles south of Cleveland also has a AA minor league baseball team in the Akron Aeros, and a respectable art museum. I visited there in 2000, and I was especially impressed with Canal Park where the Aeros play. Along with a smaller stadium in Frederick, Md., I think it's the best minor league baseball park I've ever been to.
Carol Biliczky and Jim Carney of "The Akron Beacon-Journal" reported that Clinton fans in Akron were happy while Obama supporters still feel optimistic.
Clinton supporter Nancy Ulrich said she felt 'superfantastic,' while Geri Ashby, 59, of Akron said she has been waiting for a woman to become president since she was a teenager.
The Washington Post ran an interesting feature story today on rural Ohio politics in which one elderly lady said that a woman should not be president since 'it is a man's job.' The article said that Clinton carried the rural parts of Ohio by a 55-37 percent margin over Obama yesterday.
But, as "The Post" pointed out that George W. Bush carried small towns like West Alexandria, Ohio (near Dayton) by winning as much as 70 percent of the vote in such places so there will still be challenges ahead for the Democratic candidate in the Buckeye State come November.
However, there also seem to be several Ohio voters who are ready for a 'change.' Anthony Konecny voted for Bush twice, but he is now a vocal supporter of Obama. Konecny was among the Obama supporters at the Highland Theatre in West Akron, according to "The Journal." He has been spending 15-20 hours per week volunteering for the Illinois senator and has made about 300 phone calls for Obama in the process.
Some supporters of both Democratic candidates traveled quite far to be in Ohio.
They included Soppo Ngalle, 46, who came all the way from the central African nation of Cameroon to campaign for Clinton in Akron. Ngalle met the New York senator when she was first lady at a conference for women in China in 1995.
Clinton won Summit County, which includes Akron en route to a convincing victory over Obama in Ohio.
All this means the North Carolina Democratic Primary, which is not until May 6, may actually mean something! Indiana votes on that same day.
One has to wonder given both states' obsession with hoops if the arrangements were made so there was no interference with college basketball season.....though Obama has held at least one rally in a Carolina college basketball town as he stumped at North Carolina Central University in Durham back in November.
Useful Links:
http://www.ohio.com (Akron Beacon-Journal's web site)
http://www.washingtonpost.com
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