By Ronald Baygents, KUNA
Washington : US senators John McCain and Barack Obama emerged from victories in the Wisconsin primary on Tuesday night with McCain virtually assured of the Republican presidential nomination and Obama poised to possibly end the presidential bid of former first lady Hillary Clinton when Texas and Ohio vote in two weeks.
McCain, in a Wisconsin victory speech that clearly targeted Obama, said, “I will fight every moment of every day in this campaign to make sure Americans are not deceived by an eloquent but empty call for change.” The former US Air Force fighter pilot and prisoner of war in Vietnam spoke about the need to fight radical Islamic extremism, and touched on key foreign policy issues in Iraq, Iran, Venezuela and Cuba, again taking a dig at Obama by saying that while he may not be the youngest candidate, he is the “most experienced.” McCain, 71, defeated former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee, 52, in Wisconsin by 55 percent to 37 percent. With the victory, plus a possible win later in the evening among Republicans in Washington state, which had 56 delegates at stake, McCain was expected to be close to the 1,191 delegates to seal the nomination.
However, Huckabee, who is popular among conservatives and evangelicals, again said he would continue his campaign until the Republican nomination was in hand.
Obama, who is vying to become the first African-American US president, defeated Clinton, who is trying to become the first woman president, in Wisconsin by 56 percent to 43 percent. It was his ninth consecutive primary victory, and pushed Clinton to the brink in her battle to revive her candidacy.
Obama began the night with about 1,116 delegates and Clinton with 986. It will take 2,025 to win Democratic nomination for president. Wisconsin offered 74 delegates.
Speaking Tuesday night in Houston, Texas, Obama, 46, said, “The change we seek is still months and miles away. It is going to take more than big rallies. It is going to require more than rousing speeches.
“It is going to require something more because the problem that we face in America today is not the lack of good ideas; it is that Washington has become a place where good ideas go to die.” Obama again called for bringing home US troops from Iraq, and closing the US military prison at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, because he said he understands and believes in the US Constitution.
Clinton, 60, addressing a crowd on Tuesday night in Youngstown, Ohio, said, “Both Senator Obama and I would make history. But only one of us is ready on day one to be commander in chief, ready to manage our economy, and ready to defeat the Republicans.
“Only one of us has spent 35 years being a doer, a fighter, and a champion for those who need a voice.” Results from the Democratic caucus in Hawaii, which offered 20 delegates, would not be known until Wednesday morning. Obama was born in Hawaii.
In a sign of continuing and growing trouble for Clinton, Obama made inroads in Wisconsin into Clinton’s support among white voters and men, adding to his base among African-American and younger voters.
Obama even tied Clinton among white women, Clinton’s core group, according to Wisconsin exit polls. Only white women older then 50 appeared to be sticking substantially with Clinton.
Obama also showed his appeal to independent voters, who had a choice of parties in Wisconsin’s open primary. He won the votes of 6 in 10 self-described independents, while he tied Clinton among self-described Democrats, exit polls showed.
If these trends continue, and Obama wins in either of the populous states of Ohio or Texas on March 4, political analysts say it may spell the end of the Clinton campaign.