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Political Analyst Earl Ofari Hutchinson New Book How Obama Won Dissects Obama’s White House Victory

Description: In his new book, How Obama Won, political analyst Earl Ofari Hutchinson gives a behind the scene political look at the forces, events, and players that shaped President-elect Barack Obama’s historic White House victory. In How Obama Won Hutchinson captures the full political drama and impact the Obama campaign had on the American electorate and political establishment.

Political analyst and Huffington Post columnist Earl Ofari Hutchinson’s new book How Obama Won is the first book out the box of the many books that will be forthcoming on the historic White House win of Barack Obama. Hutchinson presents a provocative, hard hitting critical assessment of the issues, events, forces, politics, pressures and controversy, and the key players that shaped and ensnared Obama during the political game changing 2008 presidential campaign.

Hutchinson examines the impact of race and gender, campaign strategy, the major political players, the nature of presidential politics, the changes in the Democratic and Republicans parties, the importance of the black, Hispanic, youth, women, blue collar white worker and middle class vote, the role of corporation and special interests in the campaign as well as in American politics.

How Obama Won answers the one big question that dominated the political campaign. That is did Obama’s win really show that America had turned the corner on race?

Hutchinson assesses how Obama’s administration will deal with the crisis of the war and the economy, whether it can effectively fulfill the campaign promise of hope and change, and what world leaders can expect from his administration.

Finally, How Obama Won tells what the first African-American to win the White House means to America and the world.

Earl Ofari Hutchinson is an author and political analyst and a Huffington Post columnist. He is the author of The Ethnic Presidency: How Race Decides the Race to the White House (Middle Passage Press, February, 2008).

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Earl Ofari Hutchinson

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How Obama Won - Excerpt from the Introduction

Introduction

How Obama Won the White House

A Pew Research Poll Center Poll in May 2008 found that "inspiring," “fresh," "change," and "visionary" were not the words that voters said best described Democratic presidential contender Barack Obama. The word was "inexperienced." Republican presidential rival John McCain made this and the boast that he was the best on national security, the terrorist fight and defense preparedness his attack mantra against Obama.

Obama had to parry the attack by turning the table and proclaiming that his lack of national and especially international experience was a positive. That he'd bring fresh ideas and approaches to statecraft to replace the old, tired, and failed polices of recent times. But that was not enough. He had to choose and choose carefully a vice presidential running mate who was every bit as hard nosed on national security, the war on terrorism and defense preparedness that McCain claimed to be. Then he had to convince voters that he would back up his pledge to bring an honorable and workable end to the Iraq war.

But it was still Bush and the GOP’s domestic fumbles that were potentially his biggest selling point.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 3

3.

It Was Still the Economy Stupid

In a two minute nationally paid campaign broadcast billed as a "presidential style" talk to the nation in mid September, 2008, Obama talked about one issue, and one issue only, the economy. There wasn't much new in his talk. But it really didn’t have to be anything new. Polls by then showed the economy; or rather the train wreck of the economy was really the only thing on voter’s minds.

Obama again vowed to cut taxes for the middle-class, clean up Wall Street's mess, and create lots of jobs for everybody. He aimed to firmly seize back the high ground on the defining issue of economic misery of the middle and working class, the Bush-GOP caused economic misery that is. This was widely regarded as his sure fire ticket to the White House. It was a play on the old political truism that it's the economy stupid that wins or loses presidential elections.

From day one of campaign 2008 the enshrined article of political faith was that voters were so furious at Bush for causing massive plant closings, farm failures, corporate bungling, fraud and corruption, the housing collapse, soaring gas prices, and the wholesale flight of jobs to the far corners of the planet, that all a Democratic presidential contender had to do to win was pass the breath test on Election Day. It of course wasn’t quite that simple.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 5

5.

The Catch 22 Black Vote

In exit polls before the May 6, 2008 North Carolina Democratic presidential primary nearly a quarter of black voters flatly said that race was the biggest factor in their vote. Obviously that meant race motivated them to vote for Obama. The percent of them who said race drove them to Obama dwarfed the percent of whites who said that race was a factor, and presumably that meant that they voted for Clinton.

The white and black racial divide was virtually frozen and predictable for Clinton and Obama from the start of their primary battles. More than ninety percent of blacks backed Obama and the overwhelming majority of whites backed Clinton. But it was his black support that was the most compelling and problematic for him and the Democrats.

Black Obama supporters treated has candidacy as a virtual messianic holy calling. Black church leaders came close to a dive off the deep end by shouting out his name with that of Jesus. Obama furor among blacks was so great that the not inconsiderable number of black Clinton supporters were bullied and harangued as racial traitors. Former BET founder and billionaire businessman Bob Johnson also took heavy heat from many blacks when he publicly went to bat for Clinton. The unprecedented chest thumping pride, even mania that Obama stirred among throngs of blacks was easy to understand. He was the Democrat that blacks desperately longed for to come along and wipe away the horrid taste of the Bush years. And he was a black man who they saw who could actually win the big prize.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 4

4.

Team Obama’s Money Game Changer

September 15, 2008 was a rare day for Democratic Presidential contender Barack Obama and Republican rival John McCain. They both lambasted the greedy and corrupt (their words) Wall Street wheeler dealers for wreaking financial mayhem and pain on Main Street. The tough talk grabbed headlines and made the two contenders sound like the proverbial men on the white horse populists ready to take on the Wall Street greed merchants.

There was one thing, however, conspicuously missing from their Wall Street assault. They didn't name the names of the greedy and corrupt executives or the malfeasant companies they blamed for causing the pain and suffering. In the days after the financial meltdown, they kept up their Wall Street attack, yet they still mentioned no names.

This was no politically absent minded oversight. The prime culprits in the financial mess were prime players on Team Obama and Team McCain. They were prime team players even after the roaring financial Tsushima hit.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 10

10.

How Obama Snatched the Race Card off The Presidential Table

A handful of top advisors in the McCain camp were perplexed at their boss’s flat refusal to again slam Democratic rival Barack Obama on his ties to his former pastor Jeremiah Wright. Instead they picked the race neutral target of former Weather Underground terrorist Bill Ayers, and tried to tie Obama to him. That ploy had no public or media legs.

A GOP official explained that McCain did dredge up the Wright-Obama connection because he did not want to be seen as a racist. That’s probably true. But in a close to the wire election, a candidate will grab at any weapon to get an edge, and the GOP has never flinched at using race as a weapon when it suited its purpose. And indeed McCain’s running mate Sarah Palin chomped at the bit to snatch at the Wright issue. But the word was hands off.

There are several reasons suggested why Palin and the GOP did not go for the racial jugular with Obama. One reason offered is that the GOP is smitten with racial guilt too. The idea that Obama benefits unduly from that was much talked about, and probably much overblown during the campaign.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 14

14.
The Clinton Factor

The clamor for an Obama-Clinton dream ticket started virtually the moment they started their head to head slog through the primaries and the caucuses from January through June, 2008. Top Democrats really wanted Clinton to do a full court campaign press for Obama. The idea was that Clinton as an Obama campaigner would be able to sway the millions of Democrats wavering, disgruntled, and even hostile Democrats to Obama.

However, the clamor for her as Obama's VP was absurd. The notion that she could cajole doubting Democrats to change their mind about Obama was shaky at best. First there was the notion of Clinton as VP. Obama effectively killed that when he appointed a Clinton-unfriendly committee to search out a VP pick. And it was just as well he did. A major McCain attack point against Obama was that he was a much too liberal Democrat, and an elitist, who was way out of touch with moderate-to-conservative mainstream America. Putting another liberal Democrat and a woman at that on the ticket, especially one with the towering negatives that Clinton had among ultraconservatives and Christian fundamentalists would have been the ultimate political gift from heaven to McCain.

How Obama Won - Excerpt from Chapter 19

19.
Not Black President Obama, Just President Obama

The instant that Obama tossed his hat in the presidential rink in February 2007 the twin mantra was that he could be the first black to be president and if that happened America had finally kicked its race syndrome. The twin mantra was repeated ad infinitum, and it was dead wrong about Obama and the presidency. The early hint that race was overblown and over obsessed came from Obama. He didn’t talk about it. For good reason, he was not running as a black presidential aspirant. He was running as a presidential aspirant. He had to make that crucial distinction for personal and political purposes.

The ritual preface of the word “black” in front of any and every achievement or breakthrough that an African-American makes is insulting, condescending and minimizes their achievement. It maintains and reinforces the very racial separation that much of America claims it is trying to get past. Dumping the historic burden of race on blacks measures an individual’s success or failure by a group standard.

That’s a burden whites don’t have. They succeed or fail solely as individuals.
Obama’s personal history--his bi-racial parents, his upbringing, his education, and his relative youth-- defied racial pigeonholing.

How Obama Won by Earl Hutchinson --- UPDATE

The final editing is complete and the manuscript is almost ready to go to the printer. This is one of the best places to find out the most up to date information about the release of How Obama Won.

How Obama Won will be available in ebook and print format - so you will have the option to download the content immediately or we will mail a print copy to you. The choice is yours.

We will also be asking for your thoughts and comments about the Obama campaign and the upcoming Obama presidency. We will offer the chance for many of these comments to be posted here for the world to see. More information coming soon.

Take a Peek Inside How Obama Won by Earl Ofari Hutchinson

To give you an idea of the topics that are covered within the pages of How Obama Won by Earl Ofari Hutchinson, we are giving you a look at the table of contents ---

Table of Contents

Introduction

How Obama Won the White House

1. Win Iowa or Lose the Nomination

2. The Four Lessons of Iowa

3. It Was Still the Economy Stupid

4. Team Obama’s Money Game Changer

5. The Catch 22 Black Vote

6. Oprah’s Obama Nudge

7. The Bradley Non-Effect

8. Jesse’s Obama Hit Was a Blessing in Disguise

9. The Reverend Wright Question Mark

10. How Obama Snatched the Race Card off the Presidential Table

11. si se puede

12. Obama the Racial Exception?

13. Exorcising the GOP’s Obama demon

14. The Clinton Factor

15. Shoring up the Vice Presidential Flank

16. The Palin Gamble

17. Colin Powell’s GOP Payback

18. Overcoming Obama’s Blue Collar Blues

19. Not Black president Obama, Just President Obama

20. What to Expect from an Obama White House

How Obama Won by Earl Ofari Hutchinson (Available January 2009)

How Obama Won

By Earl Ofari Hutchinson

Middle Passage Press, Los Angeles

January 2009

How Obama Won is a provocative, hard hitting critical assessment of the issues, events, forces, politics, pressures and controversy that shaped and ensnared Barack Obama in his historic 2008 presidential campaign.

Political analyst Earl Ofari Hutchinson examines the impact of race and gender, campaign strategy, the key political players, the nature of presidential politics, the changes in the Democratic and Republicans parties, the importance of the black, Hispanic, youth, women and blue collar white worker votes, the role of corporation and special interests in American politics.

Hutchinson tells what the first African-American to win the White House means to America and the world.

How Obama Won

Hutchinson tells why:

• Race was not a factor in Obama’s win




• The Iraq war and the terrorism were not compelling issues in the campaign




• Sarah Palin hurt McCain




• Many blue collar whites and rural voters supported Obama




• Obama was able to top McCain in fundraising




• Ultraconservatives did not unite behind McCain




• The economy ultimately sunk McCain




• Obama’s win will and won’t change politics in America
  
  
  
  

Earl Ofari Hutchinson is a nationally acclaimed author and political analyst.

He is a frequent guest analyst on:

The John Gibson Show

O'Reilly Show

Hannity & Colmes

Glenn Beck Show

PBS Lehrer Report,

NPR's Talk of the Nation

Various CNN News Shows.

He is the National Political Writer for New America Media and a regular contributor to: the Huffington Post, and BlackAmericaWeb.Com