By Nedra Pickler | The Associated Press 7:43 AM EDT, May 14, 2008
WASHINGTON - Barack Obama is in hot pursuit of general election voters, hoping America won't notice he got his head handed to him in West Virginia.
The Illinois senator virtually pretended the primary didn't happen Tuesday, with no election night speech or any public appearance at all after the polls closed and gave Hillary Clinton a more than 2-1 victory even though her candidacy is likely doomed.
At Obama's Chicago headquarters, advisers said there was no reason to worry -- West Virginia was demographically suited to Clinton and won't be part of their general election plans. It's also true that Clinton's win is unlikely to slow his march toward the nomination -- Obama picked up 30 superdelegates this week, more than the 28 total pledged delegates up for grabs in West Virginia.
But maybe the Obama camp should be more worried. The voters who went against Obama Tuesday night -- white, rural, older, low-income and without college degrees -- don't just live in West Virginia. They live everywhere in the country, in places Obama needs to win.