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Obama Narrows Clinton Lead Ahead of Super Tuesday Vote

HeadlineFeb 04, 2008

In election news, candidates are in their last full day of campaigning before tomorrow’s Super Tuesday vote. Polls show Senator Barack Obama has narrowed Senator Hillary Clinton’s national lead to just four percent. Obama is trailing Clinton by six points or less in Missouri, New Jersey and Arizona. And he’s now ahead of Clinton in Georgia. On Sunday, Obama addressed a rally of more than 20,000 people in Wilmington, Delaware.

Sen. Barack Obama: “If you believe we have to keep the dream alive for those who still hunger for justice and still thirst for opportunity, then I promise you this: we will not just win Delaware, we will not just win on Tuesday, we will not just win this nomination, we will not just win the general election, but you and I together, we will change this country, and we will transform the world. Thank you, Delaware. I love you.”

Polls show Clinton and Obama in a dead heat in delegate-rich California. On Sunday, talk show host Oprah Winfrey and musician Stevie Wonder rallied for Obama in Los Angeles.

Oprah Winfrey: “I would never vote for anyone based on gender or race. I’m voting for Barack Obama not because he’s black, I’m voting for Barack Obama because he’s brilliant. He’s brilliant. He is brilliant.”

Stevie Wonder: “I see a time where we will have a united people of the United States, and that is why I support Barack Obama.”

Former President Bill Clinton was also in Los Angeles on Sunday. Clinton visited African American churches to dampen criticism of his racially charged comments during the campaign. Hillary Clinton, meanwhile, was in Missouri, where she addressed supporters in St. Louis.

Sen. Hillary Clinton: “You know, we got two big contests coming up. We have the Super Bowl tonight, we have Super Tuesday. I want the New York team to win both. That’s where I am focused.”

On the Republican side, Senator John McCain is enjoying a wide national lead over former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney. McCain visited Northeastern states on Sunday, including Connecticut.

Sen. John McCain:”I know our best days are ahead of us. I want Americans to serve. I know we can serve. I know this nation’s greatest days are ahead of us, and I think I’m qualified to lead, and I humbly ask for your vote next Tuesday. And thank you, and God bless you.”

Meanwhile, campaigning in Illinois, Romney criticized Barack Obama.

Mitt Romney: “I know that there’s a certain senator from this state who says he’d bring change to America, and I’m convinced he would change America, but just not in the sense you want. You saw the sign the other day. He was speaking, a huge sign behind him that said 'Change.' Just one word: 'change.' And someone remarked to me when they saw the sign and said, you know, that’s what we’d be left with if he were president, in our pockets. That’s not what America needs. That’s not the course we’re going to follow.”

The Republican contest is seen as a two-person race, with Mike Huckabee a distant third and Rudolph Giuliani departing last week. Giuliani had the worst dollar-for-delegate record in US. history. The former New York mayor spent more than $50 million on his campaign and received just one single delegate. At that rate, Giuliani would have needed to spend $60 billion to win the Republican nomination.

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