England for Obama

Another red state turns blue… and my friend Jack wins some money.

Barack Obama has won North Carolina - and is the first Democratic candidate to do so since 1976.

This makes the electoral vote tally Obama 364, McCain 163.

Missouri is the only remaining state to be called. And despite it not making any difference to the outcome of the presidential election, of course, here’s why the result matters to Missourians.

Incredibly moving, Barack speaking about the loss of his grandmother, ‘Toot’, at the rally in North Carolina today:

She may not have lived to see her grandson become President - but she raised an incredible man, and will live on through him. Thank you, Toot.

Sorry, sort of an aside - but I can’t let this sentence on The Huffington Post pass without comment. I’d heard about this story, but reading this takes the proverbial:

“Some said fresh polling in North Carolina suggested that incumbent GOP Elizabeth Dole had fallen further behind since airing an ad that tried to tie Democratic rival Kay Hagan to atheists.”

WTF? Tying someone to atheism? So we atheists are up there with terrorists now, are we?

This makes me so angry. Honestly. In terms of all the things that are on their way out after eight years, can we not also make ‘fear and hatred of atheism’ one of them, please? Can we perhaps move to the acceptance that it’s perfectly possible to lead a moral and good life without believing in a supernatural being?

And people wonder why Richard Dawkins gets so fired up. Arrggghh.

(Here’s the background to the story, btw. Apparently, calling someone atheist is also “one hell of a charge”. I give up. No, wait! I don’t. I remain hopeful.)

Here was Chucky on Meet The Press this morning:

That’s what Democratic strategists are cautiously predicting. Here’s what to watch out for on the night of November 4th:

“Four large states John McCain once seemed well-positioned to win — Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio and Florida — have in recent weeks shifted toward Obama. If Obama were to win those four states — a scenario that would represent a remarkable turn of events — he would likely surpass 350 electoral votes.

Under almost any feasible scenario, McCain cannot win the presidency if he loses any of those four states. And if Obama actually captured all four states, it would almost certainly signal a strong electoral tide that would likely sweep the Southwestern swing states — Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada — not to mention battlegrounds from New Hampshire to Iowa to Missouri.”

This is good. From the blog Politicalwire.com:

“A new Public Policy Polling survey in North Carolina finds Sen. Barack Obama has taken the lead over Sen. John McCain for the first time, 47% to 45%.

Key finding: ‘Over the last year there’s been a strong relationship between the number of North Carolinians listing the economy as their biggest concern, and Obama’s standing in the polls. In January when just 39% of voters said it was their biggest issue John McCain led by 14 points. In August with it up to 48% Obama trailed by just three. Last week with 58% listing it number one the race was tied, and now with the number up to a record 64% Obama has taken a small lead. He is up 55-38 among respondents citing the economy as their main concern’.'”

Also not helping McCain: A dramatic decline in approval of running mate Sarah Palin.”

Note: North Carolina isn’t on everyone’s list of swing states - probably because, according to the Wikipedia entry on the 2008 presidential election, “North Carolina has been considered a “safe” Republican state for decades. It last supported a Democratic presidential candidate in 1976.”

A breakthrough in the South would be something indeed…

Obama and Biden hit the post-debate stump in North Carolina today. Here was part of Senator O’s speech: