Republicans fear John McCain defeat against Barack Obama
Senior Republicans expressed grave fears on Sunday about the prospects of Senator John McCain, their candidate, against Senator Barack Obama in November's general election.
Mr Obama appeared to be on the verge of clinching the Democratic presidential nomination after overtaking Senator Hillary Clinton in the count of party super-delegates at the weekend.
While Mr Obama and Mrs Clinton are contesting two more primaries in Oregon and West Virginia tomorrow, Republicans will be trying to hold on to a Congressional seat in a Mississippi by-election, having lost two other recent by-elections in formerly solid Republican areas.
Smarting after those defeats, Newt Gingrich, a Republican and former Speaker of the House of Representatives, said that his party faced "a real disaster" in November, when the House of Representatives and a third of the 100 Senate seats will be contested along with the presidency.
Fred Barnes, a leading Right-wing commentator, wrote in the Weekly Standard: "Conservatives won a sweeping victory in an enormously important election the week before last. Unfortunately, it happened in England. Prospects for Republicans in the 2008 election here at home look grim."
While many had thought that only Mrs Clinton would pose a serious challenge to Mr McCain, Mr Obama has now built a narrow, but consistent, three-point lead over the Republican in national polls. Experienced voices in the party are also aware that the Democrat's fundraising skills are likely to give Mr Obama approximately a three to one financial advantage in the general election.
Mr Obama was able to indulge in the luxury of a day with his family in Chicago and to peruse the considerable media speculation about who he may choose as his vice-presidential running mate.
According to Robert Novak, the columnist, the candidate's wife Michelle has ruled out placing Mrs Clinton on the ticket, after being sickened by her negative campaigning. But Ted Strickland, a Clinton supporter who is governor of Ohio, has emerged as a contender, in part because of his potential ability to deliver a vital swing state.
Spokesmen for both camps denied speculation that they were in talks about sharing the ticket, as well as ruling out suggestions that Mrs Clinton might bow out early in exchange for Mr Obama writing off her campaign debts.
But in an indication that Mrs Clinton is beginning to accept her fate, she referred to her campaign in the past tense over the weekend. Rather than repeating attacks on her opponent, she spoke of the need to unite the party.
Although the former First Lady is expected to win tomorrow's primary in West Virginia, it will not make any significant difference to Mr Obama's lead in pledged delegates, awarded in accordance with primary results, or super-delegates, the senior party members and Congressmen who will effectively decide the contest and are joining his ranks in steadily growing numbers.
With Mr Obama already turning the focus of his campaign on Mr McCain, Republicans are facing up to the highest disapproval ratings for a president, George W Bush, in living memory and a recent poll in which 80 per cent said the country was heading in the wrong direction.
____________
Stop foreclosure. Click here to stay in your home and rebuild credit.
Change settings via the Web (Yahoo! ID required)
Change settings via email: Switch delivery to Daily Digest | Switch format to Traditional
Visit Your Group | Yahoo! Groups Terms of Use | Unsubscribe
__,_._,___
