Three Reasons to Believe that Clinton and Obama are Electable

[susankh4]

A conversation among Democrats about whether Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton is better positioned to win the general election can get very slippery very fast. The starting point is fixed: the upcoming race against John McCain. But the polls aren't helpful in showing which candidate has the edge. Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama perform the same, statistically, against John McCain. In the latest Gallup poll, Clinton is running two points ahead of McCain, 47 percent to 45 percent, while Obama is running one point behind, 45 percent to 46 percent.

Without clarity in the numbers, the terrain quickly shifts to what it means for Clinton to have won big states versus Obama's greater collection of little states; or the value of caucuses versus primaries; or states that count versus Michigan and Florida, which don't. To help us out of the woods, here is a list of the top-three talking points for each of the two democratic candidates.



http://www.slate.com/id/2190040/