Obama Intellegencer 2008 June 12

Clinton Effect and Endorsements
Senator Hillary Clinton suspended her campaign and officially endorsed Obama on June 7, 2008. There is speculation about what level of support, if any, Clinton supporters will provide to Obama (Political bulletin).

Swing States: Florida, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania; Economic Policy and Health Care
Obama launched a tour of 17 swing states on June 9, 2008. He was expected to speak about economic issues including the price of health care and gas prices (Ward & Luce).

Vice-Presidential Speculation
Montana Governor Napolitano and Kansas Governor Kathleen Sibelius have been mentioned as potential running mates for Obama (Bigger battles ahead).

Vote Groups: Moderate and Evangelical Christians
Obama’s campaign plans to add a full-time staffer to concentration on evangelicals. They hope to draw moderates by addressing some of the newer issues of concern to these groups (Luo).

War in Iraq
The “surge” in Iraq appears to be having good results: fewer American casualties and greater stability of the government. This would seem to improve the standing of McCain, who supported the surge. However, it is expected that Obama will emphasize the lack of political progress, even in light of the military successes (Baram).

Obama has consistently opposed the war in Iraq. He made this an issue in the Democratic primaries and caucuses, particularly in contrasting himself with Clinton.

Resources
Baram, M. (2008, June 9). Will good news in Iraq affect Obama vs. McCain? ABC News. http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Vote2008/Story?id=5017532&page=1, accessed June 9, 2008.

Bigger battles ahead. (2008, June 9). Economist. http://www.economist.com/world/na/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11524787, accessed June 9, 2008.

Luo, M. (2008, June 9). McCain extends his outreach, but Evangelicals are still wary. New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/09/us/politics/09mccain.html?_r=1&ref=us&oref=slogin, accessed June 9, 2008.

Political bulletin. (2008, June 9). U.S. News & World Report. http://www.usnews.com/usnews/politics/bulletin/bulletin_080609.htm, accessed June 9, 2008.

Ward, A., & Luce, E. (2008, June 8). Obama embarks on tour of swing states. Financial Times. http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/2950b7b4-358d-11dd-998d-0000779fd2ac.html?nclick_check=1, accessed June 9, 2008.