McCain's Last Stand

Everyone seems to think that Obama has the 2008 election locked up, and seeing McCain abandon states a few weeks ago showed nothing but despair for the Republican Party.  McCain has recently redirected his campaign to Pennsylvania, a likely Democratic voting state, but a state that many believe McCain has a chance to win.  The 21 electoral votes that Pennsylvania holds is now seen as an essential answer to any chance McCain has to winning the election.  Hillary Clinton campaign fundraiser Lynn Forester de Rothschild is quoted saying, "Pennsylvania is a conservative Democratic state, and John McCain can win it.  We are targeting independents and Democrats, and they're just not comfortable with Barack Obama's plan for America, because it's outside of the mainstream.  This is the most important thing I've done in politics.  The election could turn right here."  Hillary Clinton won Pennsylvania in the Democratic primaries because of Obama's inability to win over the working class whites in Pennsylvania, and because Pennsylvania doesn't partake in early voting, it gives McCain a little bit more time to attempt to persuade voters where Obama failed (Saslow, MSNBC).   Obama's campaign manager David Plouffe evaluated the situation by saying, "As unlikely as it is for them to succeed [in Pennsylvania], we've got to take that seriously, and we will."  

Aside from Pennsylvania, Hillary Clinton won votes in the states with greater numbers of electoral votes, such as California, New York, Florida, and Ohio.  Therefore, there is something about Obama's campaign that didn't fit with all the Democratic voters. If McCain can somehow play to the crowds in a way that Obama couldn't, he may have a shot at winning it all.  And right now his focus is on Pennsylvania asserting that "We need to win in Pennsylvania on November the 4th."  It's his way of saying, I may be down, but I'm definitely not out.

Source:

Slaslow, Eli. "True Believers in McCain flock to Pennsylvania".  MSNBC. 1 November 2008 Washingtonpost.com. 

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/27482344/