Here’s a list of the Senators and Governors that have not yet endorsed either Clinton or Obama, and my best guess for why they’re holding out.
Senators
Ken Salazar (CO)– although he prefers Clinton’s DLC style of politics, Obama won Colorado in a landslide and is ahead of McCain in the polls (while Clinton is not).
Joe Biden (DE)– I think he’s loyal to the Clintons to some degree, but I also think he fancies himself a statesman.
Tom Carper (DE)– this is the most surprising non-endorsement in the bunch. Carper is the prototypical DLC-style Clintonite politician. But Obama did win Delaware.
Tom Harkin (IA)– Harkin has hinted that he supports Obama and resents the way the Clintons have undermined the legitimacy of caucuses, but he might just feel some loyalty to the Clintons.
Mary Landrieu (LA)– Landrieu is the only Democratic senator with a competitive reelection contest this year. She can’t afford to alienate a big chunk of her supporters. In another year, she probably would have endorsed Clinton long ago.
Ben Cardin (MD)– Maybe he has a close relationship with the Clintons from his time in the House? Obama won his state in a landslide.
Carl Levin (MI)– He doesn’t want alienate either camp as he struggles to get Michigan’s delegates seated at the convention.
Max Baucus (MT)– He’s a DLC Democrat and his state hasn’t voted yet.
Jon Tester (MT)– His state hasn’t voted yet and he won this seat in a nail-biter. He can’t afford to piss off Clinton’s supporters.
Harry Reid (NV)– As Majority Leader, he is staying officially neutral.
Frank Lautenberg (NJ)– His non-endorsement is a de facto endorsement of Obama. He’s also facing a primary challenge from Rep. Rob Andrews and doesn’t want to alienate Clinton supporters.
Sherrod Brown (OH)– His state voted heavily for Clinton. Brown is a progressive and criticizes the DLC often.
Ron Wyden (OR)– I have absolutely no idea.
Jack Reed (RI)– Clinton won Rhode Island by a good margin.
Jim Webb (VA)– Won this seat in a real nail-biter and he can’t afford to alienate Clinton’s supporters.
Herb Kohl (WI)– When has Kohl expressed a strong preference for anything? I think he is friends with the Clintons.
Governors
Bill Ritter (CO)– He’s a real Clintonite centrist, but his state voted for Obama. He’s also hosting the convention and wants to maintain his neutrality.
Steve Beshear (KY)– State went hugely for Clinton.
Brian Schweitzer (MT)– State has not yet voted.
John Lynch (NH)– Clintons won the state and have cultivated the Granite State establishment for two decades.
Phil Bredeson (TN)– State went heavily for Clinton.
Joe Manchin (WV)– State went overwhelmingly for Clinton.
As you can see, most of these undecideds come from states that Clinton won but they have not endorsed her. The remainder are, for the most part, politicians that are politically vulnerable. The Montana pols are just waiting for their state to vote. I won’t do a rundown of the undecided House members but they basically fall into the same categories. They either come from districts that voted heavily for Clinton or they are too vulnerable to risk an endorsement.
45 needed to clinch. If only those could declare before May 31. – would make all those would be Clinton demonstrators at the DNC Rules Bylaws Committee meeting redundant.
Maybe Wyden will, but I don’t see any of the others doing it.
Dang it. That was the first time I’ve ever done that — I’m kinda proud.
I was going to say, I have a little trouble seeing Webb going with Clinton. He seems like more of a reform-minded iconoclast type of guy to me. And Obama won VA by a mile.
I suspect neither Baucus (because he is a weasle) nor Schweitzer (because he is relatively principled) will endorse before the primary on June 3 (we are last in the nation!). On the other hand Obama currently leads Clinton by 17 points and does substantially better against McCain than she does, though both currently lose. In Obama’s case, however, the percentage of undecideds is greater than McCain’s lead.
salazar, ritter, and udall ain’t gonna happen till it’s over…can’t say l blame udall, ritter being gov…l get that, but salazar…he’s just a weasel.
and l suspect there’s going to be a, hopefully serious, primary challenge for kenny boy when he comes up for re-election in 010.
Salazar is the consummate politician, and I don’t mean that as a compliment. Udall I can understand, and I believe he supports Obama. Ritter–who knows.
Period.
Puleeze.
Webb is disappointing too. Obama WON HIS STATE BY A MILE. Period.
Indeed he did. I’ll say it again: I still don’t see Webb going with Clinton.
“Time will tell
who has fell
and who’s been left behind
when you go your way and I go mine.” -Dylan
You know, back in the sixties we’d pull a couple of lines from a Dylan song which would then be considered common wisdom. And often it wasn’t on point. If the above doesn’t apply maybe I should scan “I Dreamed I Saw St. Augustine” for something on point.
“Oh, I awoke in anger,
So alone and terrified,
I put my fingers against the glass
And bowed my head and cried.” -Dylan
Maybe it was the weed…
Sherrod Brown is my Senator. I fully expect him to support Obama. But with Clinton winning Ohio quite handily, I do understand why he has not yet come out with an Obama endorsement. The political considerations are obvious. He has been a consistent progressive vote during his entire tenure in the Senate. I have been very pleased with him to this point. He has given me no hint that he is in any way a DLC Democrat or sympathetic to the DLC methodologies.
Wyden’s chief of staff ran Hillary’s Oregon campaign. No wonder he’s holding back.
But I do think it’s significant that people who have been Clinton supporters in the past have not endorsed. One could be cynical and say they’re just protecting their careers. But one could be hopeful and say they just want the primaries to end, and then they will do what they’ve wanted to do for months now, endorse Obama.
And I’ve just lost all patience with him.
Obama came to this state and helped him by participating in the “Unity” event after the primary. Yes, I know, Bill Clinton came and raised money, too, but it’s not the same for this reason: the symbolism of Barack Obama, right now, the nation’s only African American senator, after a primary fight w/ his main challenger, Kweisi Mfume and a general election race facing Michael Steele.
And I know people were feeling pretty bruised about it. As for me, I didn’t have a single reason to vote him other than party label. But this is how Cardin repays him.
I don’t know if Cardin is close to the Clintons or not. I really don’t remember, to tell you the truth, and I’m ashamed I don’t have more knowledge, based on who one of my former employers was, that I live there, and that I have friends that are elected.
My conjecture is that Mikulski has him by the short and curlies as the senior senator. And since they’re both from Baltimore, they listen to people there, not their DC-area constituencies.
But whatever the reason, I am really, really sore about it. Jellyfish spine.