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June 4, 2008
VIDEO SUMMARY:
After months of caucuses and primary voting, play NewsHour video the Democratic Party’s history-making nomination battle between Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama has reached its long-awaited conclusion. In this video report, NewsHour’s Judy Woodruff and a panel of political reporters, analysts and historians look back at the long primary season, assess how it’s ending, and discuss possible after-effects on the general election in November.

SELECTED QUOTES:

“This is a historic moment, no matter what happens from here on out, nobody can take this away from Barack Obama. He has achieved something many people thought America was not ready for. ” - Clarence Page, Chicago Tribune
“What Hillary Clinton was doing this year was she was referring to what she knew in her own experience, which was ‘96 and 2000: raise a lot of money, scare everyone by saying, ‘You can’t compete with my $100 million, and I’m famous, I know the rules, I know all these people all over the country.’ And it didn’t work, because Barack Obama ran against her. She wasn’t able to lock it up early. She had no back-up plan.” - Michael Beschloss, presidential historian
“Hillary Clinton’s loss is not necessarily a repudiation of Hillary Clinton or of her message. Remember, she’ll come out of this with 48 percent of the popular vote.” - Amy Walter, The Hotline, National Journal
“If Senator Clinton goes out and actively campaigns for Barack Obama, especially in places like Ohio, Michigan and Florida, I think she can really help him there.” - Chris Cillizza, WashingtonPost

WARM-UP QUESTIONS:
How do you think it feels to lose an election? How would you handle it, if you lost? How was this year’s Democratic nomination process historic?

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS:
What makes Barack Obama’s victory historic? Do you think American is ready for an African-American president, why or why not? Do you think Hillary Clinton will campaign for Barack Obama? Do you think he will choose her as his vice president? What would you do if you were in their shoes? From the discussion, do you think the long, drawn-out primary process was good for the Democratic Party or bad? Explain why.
Talk to voting-aged adult family members or friends, will they vote for Barack Obama? Why or why not? Would they have voted for Hillary Clinton? Why might a Hillary supporter vote for Obama? Why wouldn’t they? Make a prediction for the November presidential election, what do you think will happen?

RESOURCES:
Clinton-Obama Race Proved an Epic, Historic Political Journey Transcript
Vote 2008 - In-Depth Coverage

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