Clinton Faces D-Day in Oregon - Obama to Declare Victory

Clinton Campaign says Obama’s plan to declare himself the Democratic nominee Tuesday night in Iowa is a slap in the face to the millions of voters in the remaining primary states.

(SALEM, Ore. ) - Sen. Hillary Clinton and her supporters are hoping today to pull a miracle upset in Oregon.

If she can't, she may have to face reality -- swallow her pride -- and admit that while she put on a good fight -- Sen. Barack Obama will be the Democrats' choice to take on Republican Sen. John McCain in November. Obama is expected to win the Beaver State by double-digits, while Clinton, is expected to win Kentucky -- which also votes on Tuesday -- by the same margin.

An estimated 77,000 Obama supporters jammed Tom McCall Waterfront Park in downtown Portland during a rally Sunday afternoon. At about the same time, former President Bill Clinton along with daughter Chelsea, were in Salem holding a rally at Riverfront Park. An estimated 1,200 attended the event. Chelsea continued to campaign for her mother Monday in Oregon. One of her stops was at the Boys & Girls Club of Albany where she met and talked with both parents and kids. She finished the day thanking supporters at the Portland campaign office in old town.

Obama told reporters after the Portland rally when asked if he was going to declare victory on Tuesday after the Oregon vote: “We think we will have a majority of pledged delegates at that point and that’s a pretty significant mark.” On Saturday night during a campaign fundraiser in Portland, Obama said in order for Democrats to win in Novemeber it will require a unified Party and that means all of you have to be nice to Clinton supporters.

The Clinton Campaign fired back saying: Senator Obama’s plan to declare himself the Democratic nominee Tuesday night in Iowa is a slap in the face to the millions of voters in the remaining primary states and to Senator Clinton’s 17 million supporters. There is no scenario under the rules of the Democratic National Committee by which Senator Obama will be able to claim the nomination tomorrow night. He will not have 2210 delegates, the number needed with Florida and Michigan included in the process, nor will he have 2025 delegates, the number needed to secure the nomination without Florida and Michigan. Premature victory laps and false declarations of victory are unwarranted. Declaring mission accomplished does not make it so. Last week, Clinton won the West Virginia primary, however on Monday, Robert Byrd, the state's longtime senior senator, endorsed Obama.

According to both campaign's, neither candidate will be in Oregon on Tuesday. Clinton is expected to be in Kentucky, which has 51 delegates at stake, while Obama, is scheduled to be in Des Moines, Iowa for a rally in the state who's caucuses first established him as a viable contender for the nomination.

2,026 delegates are needed to get the Democratic nomination. Barack Obama has 1,909 to 1,718 for Clinton. That means Obama needs only 117 more delegates in the next five contests (Kentucky, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Dakota, and Montana) to become the nominee. There are 260-plus superdelegates who are yet to be claimed and are not bound by the outcome of any state's vote. Oregon has 52 delegates at stake, but it is not a winner take all. Clinton is also trying to make a case that if the results of disputed primaries in Michigan and Florida are included, she would lead Obama in the overall popular vote.

According to Rasmussen Reports daily presidential tracking poll, Obama and McCain are running neck-and-neck. In Monday's poll, McCain was just ahead of Obama -- 45 percent to 44 percent.

As of Monday, 36 percent of the 2,028,254 registered voters in Oregon had cast a ballot in the state's unique vote-by-mail system. Also polls released today show Obama with an 11 point lead in Oregon, while Clinton has a massive 30 point lead in the Bluegrass State.

Stay With Salem-News.com Throughout The Day For Compelete Coverage Of National And Statewide Election Results.

Oregon for Obama Election Night Party Portland Obama for America Office 3016 SE Division Portland, Oregon Doors open 8:00 PM 2. Eugene

Lane County Elections and Lane Events Center host Election Watch Party Lane County Fairgrounds Performance Hall - Convention Center 796 West 13th Avenue Eugene, Oregon Doors open at 8:00 PM 3. Medford

Donnelly’s Bar and Grill Lava Lanes 2980 Crater Lake Highway Medford, Oregon Doors open 8:00 PM 4. Bend

Deschutes County Democratic Party Watch Party 1036 NE 5th St. Bend, Oregon Doors open 8 PM 5. Salem

Magoo’s Sports Bar 275 Commercial St. SE Salem, Oregon Doors open 8:30 PM 6. Pendleton

Pendleton Area Obama Supporter Watch Party Hamley Steakhouse 8 SE Court Pendleton, OR Doors open 8:00 PM

So far, Salem-News.com has not been advised as to Clinton Campaign Oregon watch parties.

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Henry Ruark May 22, 2008 3:25 pm (Pacific time)

andersen et al: See ? Inattention leads to serious error, well beyond what the polls allow for in their computer programs. You state "the media and pundits started this whole race and gender thing". But if you check you will find that both m-and-p's were reacting, as is their safe wont these days, to candidate references from both McCain and the Clintons, some in coded language, but well and clearly understood where that message was intended to go. SO perhaps you have been working from imperfect, or even impure (!), "intel" all along...if so, not too late to change...you can always begin informed support for Obama.

Henry Ruark May 22, 2008 8:50 am (Pacific time)

andersen et al: That may reveal your large error, since polls now much improved, tested, since heavy dollar-flow has come to depend primarily on their results --which has way of guarantee for solidity or rapid change to get it ! FYI, daily press/tv-news now must depend on them as main tools since there is no other way to possibly "cover" the facts, short of huge mass interview situation now no longer possible via costs involved. SO computer-driven and also fully-tested poll-procedures are now in place, nearly now perfected since earlier errors were so costly both in dollars spent wrongly and in impacts on public view of media, now playing out with very dire consequences for all. Count on it, friend-a, the polls are now close to really on-target, at least the best of them, always under further test by pundit-demand to put their punditry into "safe" territory --where "ratings" cannot destroy "image". Believe me, that's major part of media-game these days, learned hard way by both own participation and current family involvement in working levels of tv-news.

andersen May 21, 2008 4:13 pm (Pacific time)

The media and the pundits started this whole race and gender thing. I don't pay much attention to exit polls. My attention is focused on the best candidate to win in November and take the White House back.

Henry Ruark May 21, 2008 10:38 am (Pacific time)

andersen et al: "All but" may be demanded nicety here, but did you note that in exit-polls, Kentucky voters took race into account 1 in5, while Oregon's number was 1 in 10. Do you really believe that high proportionally will STILL do so in November ? IF so, we have huge educational demand ahead of us for ANY possible continuation of democratic promise ALREADY vaunted for more than 200 years. Tht's true also of negative prejudice re feminism, too, in Hillary's case, but noone ever cites that fact re her chances in final vote. What kind of nation ARE we, really ? We are about to find out, right out there in the eyes of the whole world, right when what we DO NOW may make a huge difference in what we CAN DO to spread democracy wisely, if we choose well-and-strongly in this revealing situation. Simple fact: We gotta DO what we SAY and have PROMISED we will --and should !--DO, for each and every American, regardless of past prejudices now prolonging our total promises for 21st Century progress.

andersen May 21, 2008 9:28 am (Pacific time)

Obama thumped again in Kentucky: 65%-30%. This is not over!

Henry Ruark May 20, 2008 12:40 pm (Pacific time)

Hopefully: You got it all right except that last about "rich" ! Your participation richly appreciated, too...

Hopefully May 20, 2008 11:45 am (Pacific time)

I'm 100% sure that Obama will not win this November, and if there is true justice he and his puppeteer racist boss, the white-hating Wright will be prosecuted for capital crimes against caucasians and the appropriate penalty will be carried out with all legalized and sanctioned speed. The real tragedy is the apathetic and uninformed lemmings out there who do not know how to spot the pimps and hustlers! That's all they are, as you will soon see, "with your own eyes" and contact Normie for my stacks of pdf documents! Decades of stacks coupled with millions of words going back to the Mayflower landing. Hundreds of editors paid me big bucks for my clear cogent analyses, and that's why I'm rich now.

Henry Ruark May 20, 2008 11:14 am (Pacific time)

To all: Now, inevitably, we'll see who is ready to aid us win the decisive victory our democracy deserves --and who is "driven by arrogance", "lobbyist-money and direction",and"overweening sense of self-importance." Please note that applies equally to ALL THREE Presidental candidates, and catechism comes directly from wildly diverse Comments in these columns ! Appreciate this honest, straight-story report, too.

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Clinton Faces D-Day in Oregon - Obama to Declare Victory

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