Barack Obama lags in South Dakota -- and clinches his party's nomination
How odd.
The moment the final polls closed in South Dakota -- and Hillary Rodham Clinton took a solid lead in the state's Democratic presidential primary -- Barack Obama was widely acclaimed the party's 
presumptive nominee.
Perhaps it was a fitting finish to a race that both made history and defied initial expectations.
Throughout the day, enough Democratic superdelegates announced their backing for Obama that, under the party's proportional allocation of delegates picked through primaries, all he had to do was show a pulse of support in South Dakota.
That he did, overriding any focus on Clinton's lead. (Within a few minutes, though, the cable news networks declared her the winner in South Dakota, a result that should cause a bit of chagrin within the Obama camp.)
Also overridden -- at least on CNN and MSNBC -- was presumptive Republican nominee John McCain. Both cut away from McCain's speech in New Orleans, where, with the general-election lineup now clear, he took Obama to task on virtually every issue imaginable.
Fox News stuck with McCain through the end of his speech.
-- Don Frederick
Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images
Andrew Malcolm's immigrant parents repeatedly stressed the importance of active participation in a democracy. Early lessons included learning the alphabetical list of states by watching televised roll calls of national political conventions. That childhood exposure led to a lifelong fascination with politics, including 40-plus years of covering them and a brief stint practicing them as press secretary to Laura Bush in 1999-2000. A veteran foreign and national correspondent, Malcolm served on the Times Editorial Board and was a Pulitzer finalist in 2004. He is the author of 10 nonfiction books and father of four.
Johanna Neuman is a veteran Washington correspondent for both The Los Angeles Times and USA Today, having covered presidents and politics as far back as Ronald Reagan. A former president of the White House Correspondents Assn., she authored a book on media and foreign policy, “Lights, Camera, Wars.” Most recently she was co-author of the 
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lol, Barack was leading in South Dakota by at least 10 points. Will the media really avoid addressing the caucus cheating that went on by Barack Obama's side?
Really?
http://www.Hillary-Wins.com
http://www.CaucusCheating.com
http://www.CaucusConfession.com
http://www.Florida-Michigan.com
Posted by: Alessandro Machi | June 03, 2008 at 07:13 PM
Today seemed like a perfect day for Clinton and Obama to announce that they will run together. What are they waiting for??
Obama - Clinton 2008! http://www.oco8.com
Posted by: Ted Shelton | June 03, 2008 at 07:54 PM
Hillary should run on the Independent ticket and make this a real race for the white house.
Posted by: Lin Bolz | June 03, 2008 at 07:55 PM
For Barack Obama, picking BILLARY Clinton as vice presidential candidate, is like picking a spitting COBRA as a room mate!
Posted by: KYJurisDoctor | June 03, 2008 at 08:06 PM
Will die-hard Hillary supporters accept their defeat graciously and climb on-board the Obama-Express?
More shall be revealed?
Hillary, the Queen of Spin and a Legend in Her Own Mind!
http://klintons.com
Posted by: Bob | June 03, 2008 at 08:13 PM
Very Clintonian. Very crafty.
She didn't bow out. She showed her muscle.
She didn't say anything that would totally rule out a run at the convention. And she didn't offer Obama her sword.
She may be setting up the biggest rope-a-dope the world has ever seen.
Posted by: John Quimby | June 03, 2008 at 08:17 PM
This is truly a remarkable day. Mark it well. This is the beginning of historic change in the U.S. While not yet elected as President, Barack's emergence from anonymity is as much a reaction to the current Republican administration as it is the mark of significant colossal political change in the United States. It will forever change the civic landscape not only of America but the entire world geoploitically. May it mark the beginning of a renewed relationship of one of the world's greatest nations with the rest of the world. The greatest days are yet to come as once again the best of American values will be realized in this candidate November hence. As a Canadian and a world citizen, I welcome these changes as encouraging to all peoples throughout our planet who yearn for liberty, prosperity and happiness. Rest assured what has happened tonight is extremely significant and should make Americans proud of their political institutions.
Posted by: Robert Williams (Toronto, Canada) | June 03, 2008 at 08:19 PM
According to information I received some time ago, Obama really isn't black - 50% white (mother 100%), 44% arab (father 88%), 6% black (father 12%). His father officially listed himself as an arab, Obama's full name is arabic. I didn't come up with this info, can someone point me to any contradictory info, or validate the info I have? If the info I have is true, is 6% black "black"?
Posted by: lightnin | June 03, 2008 at 08:33 PM
Dear Commenters:
Who will get Hillary's supporters?
Obama or McCain?
Of the three speeches toinght... I would say McCain is looking good.
I can't believe the Democratic Party screwed the pooch... once again.
Posted by: Randy | June 03, 2008 at 08:38 PM
Quimby - I suggest if she has a sword, Obama keeps his distance!
Doctor - make that 16' salt-water crocodile.
Williams - If Obama wins in Nov., it will mean what it turns out to mean, possibly not what you think. If Obama loses, it will mean that the democrats are 0 for 3.
Posted by: lightnin | June 03, 2008 at 08:43 PM
If I were Hillary... I would feel totally betrayed by the treatment she has received via the media and by her own party.
Hey Hill, "they used you and they want to use you again..."
"First time, shame on me... Next time, shame on you".
Barack is now trying to "suck up" to the Clintons because he needs their help.... Hey Barry, "it's lonely at the top".
Posted by: Randy | June 03, 2008 at 08:44 PM
The Clintons played every conceivable effort to place them selves back into the White House. They have always been trash, and to tell any and every lie to obtain their goals. Those people who support them are either naive or just as evil and greedy as the Clintons. I have no doubts they will still attempt to gain the presidency, and Obama will need the most protection ever to be provided a president, so to prevent the slime king and queen from adding Obama to thier already long body count.
Posted by: Reschev | June 03, 2008 at 08:53 PM
This has been a hard fight, and both sides have said things that they should regret; several of the posts I'm reading on this page fall into that category.
If Barack can't bring Hillary's supporters on board, he's doomed - he needs the white female vote. If she runs as an independent, she's just as doomed; there would be no possibility of a do-over in 2012 - she needs the african american vote. They would never forgive her.
Four more years of McCain, as satisfying as it might be for some to try and bring about, isn't worth the cost to our children, our soldiers, our economy, and our environment. Unless we figure out some way to work this out, we all lose.
Please stop shouting and start talking. It's the only way to win.
Posted by: Brian | June 04, 2008 at 12:24 AM
Obama is a younger Baby Boomer, like me. He beat an older Boomer, which means that we finally got out from under the older Boomers' shadow! It's time for the media to realize that the Baby Boom isn't only the 60s generation. It is also those of us who grew up in the '70s. Some commentator on CNN last night was saying Obama wasn't a Boomer. Wrong!
Posted by: tlsmith1963 | June 04, 2008 at 05:22 AM
"Photo credit: AFP/Getty Images":
Hey, nice **completely unbiased** choice of Obama images. I'm sure it's a complete concidence that BELIEVE IN appear immediately above Obama. I guess there wasn't room for version that read, WE CAN BELIEVE IN Obama?
What's the matter? No "halo Obama" images to be had that day?
Hillary may complain too much about (what I view as) phantom "sexism," but I do agree that the press, including photogs (or at least photo editors) have shown palpable pro-Obama bias in choosing, among thousands and thousands of images of the man, almost exclusively messianic or otherwise plainly pro-Obama examples.
I Hope that this will Change. Hope and Change!
Posted by: Gromit | June 04, 2008 at 10:12 AM
I agree that the Obama-Clinton ticket is highly unlikely, but the Obama Campaign is going to need to find a way to convert die hard Hillary supporters over to the Obama camp.
http://www.greenfaucet.com/hanlons-pub/aipac-speech-highlights-a-big-obama-problem
He's missing senior citizens and blue collar workers, in addition to the typically Democratic voting block of Jewish voters and those concerned with Israeli Security.
Concerns mount for the left...
Posted by: jmr09 | June 04, 2008 at 12:55 PM
Heard on the news a couple of days ago that, over the past 15 years, while "Rev." Wright has been spewing his hate-filled, racist, anti-American, anti-white speeches, and Obama has "not-heard" any of that, their "church", which recently gave a Lifetime Achievement award to Louis Farrakhan, has quietly been the recipient of $15,000,000 of our tax dollars! They are probably still getting it!
How'd they arrange to get that much of our tax money, who set that up, do you think? Separation of church and state? Has that been repealed? Do you think anybody should ask Obama if he had anything to do with getting that "church" this money? If he didn't, who did? Shouldn't we know?
Posted by: lightnin | June 04, 2008 at 07:54 PM