Barack Obama cruised to an easy victory in Wisconsin and Hawaii on Tuesday extending his winning streak to 10 primaries and caucuses and demonstrating he can weather sharp attacks from both Democrats and Republicans.
Exit polls in Wisconsin showed Obama and Clinton splitting blocs of voters that had previously trended toward Clinton, including women, union members, people making less than $50,000 a year and those seeking a qualified commander in chief.
Although Clinton handily won among senior citizens and voters who valued experience, Obama crushed her, 63 to 34 percent, among independents, who comprised 27 percent of the electorate. Obama also won among men (66 to 32 percent), young voters (59-39) and voters concerned about electability (63-47).
“Houston, I think we’ve achieved liftoff,” Obama told a pumped-up crowd at a victory rally in Texas, which votes March 4.
“The change we seek is still miles away, and we need the good people of Texas to help us get there,” he told a throng at the Toyota Center in Houston.
Obama’s victorious night came on the heels of a dustup that had some critics calling into question the patriotism of his wife, Michelle.
“For the first time in my adult lifetime, I am proud of my country,” she told supporters Monday at a political rally in Milwaukee.
That prompted a sharp retort from Republican presidential candidate John McCain’s wife, Cindy.
“I’m proud of my country. I don’t know about you,” she said in Brookfield, Wis., on Tuesday.
Meanwhile, Barack Obama was accused of plagiarism by the Clinton campaign, which said he lifted lines from the speeches of Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick.
Yet Obama still prevailed, leaving Clinton just two weeks to turn around her campaign. She is banking on winning delegate-rich Texas and Ohio, which also votes on March 4, and then using the resulting momentum to propel her to an April 22 victory in Pennsylvania.
But for now, the momentum belongs to Obama, whose performance Tuesday allowed him to pad his leads over Clinton in delegates, states won and raw votes. He also appears to be gaining in Ohio and Texas against Clinton, whose double-digit leads in the polls have dwindled to single digits in recent days.
Clinton vowed to fight on. “It’s about picking a president who relies not just on words – but on work, hard work,” she told supporters in Youngstown, Ohio.
On the Republican side, McCain won Tuesday in Wisconsin, bringing himself another step closer to eliminating Mike Huckabee. At his victory rally, McCain slammed Obama by warning against “the confused leadership of an inexperienced candidate.”
