Party Fears Racial Divide

Every now and then you'll hear rumblings about the scenario where if these "fabled" superdelegates veto the will of Democratic voters and instead of handing the nomination to Sen. Obama they hand it off to Sen. Clinton. So when you see stories like this one shouldn't be surprised at who this affects...

The protracted and increasingly acrimonious fight for the Democratic presidential nomination is unnerving core constituencies -- African Americans and wealthy liberals -- who are becoming convinced that the party could suffer irreversible harm if Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton maintains her sharp line of attack against Sen. Barack Obama.

Clinton's solid win in the Pennsylvania primary exposed a quandary for the party. Her backers may be convinced that only she can win the white, working-class voters that the Democratic nominee will need in the general election, but many African American leaders say a Clinton nomination -- handed to her by superdelegates -- would result in a disastrous breach with black voters.

"If this party is perceived by people as having gone into a back room somewhere and brokered a nominee, that would not be good for our party," House Majority Whip James E. Clyburn (S.C.), the highest ranking African American in Congress, warned yesterday. "I'm telling you, if this continues on its current course, [the damage] is going to be irreparable."

That fear, plus a more general sense that Clinton's only route to victory would be through tearing down her opponent, has led even some black Democrats who are officially neutral in the race, such as Clyburn, to speak out.

Clinton's camp has a vastly different interpretation, arguing that the most recent primary demonstrated that Democrats remain very interested in seeing the contest continue.

If this does happen then I can see an opportunity for the Republican Party, though I sincerely hope that blacks won't be totally beholden to one party any longer. I suppose that could be one possible upside to the scenario of a breach between black voters and the Democratic party. On that however this is something that we'll have to see.

Besides I had no idea until this year's campaign that black voters tend to break late anyway.

Article via Newsalert.