Too close to call in Florida

FLORIDA: TOO CLOSE TO CALL

It's Romney or McCain tonight unless the polls have got it badly wrong.   If McCain wins the nomination is almost certainly his.  If Romney wins there is every chance that no GOP candidate will command a majority of delegates at the end of this race.

ECONOMY IS NOW TOP ISSUE FOR VOTERS

"Forty percent (40%) of voters now see the economy as the most important voting issue of Election 2008. The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey found that nothing else comes close. Fourteen percent (14%) see health care as the top issue, 13% name the War in Iraq as the top priority, and 12% say the War on Terror is most important.  Democrats, Republicans, and unaffiliated voters all name the economy as the top issue."  Pretty conclusive polling from Rasmussen although everything would change in the event of a terrorist attack.

TED KENNEDY'S ENDORSEMENT OF BARACK OBAMA

Watch it here and read David Brooks go all gooey over Ted here.  But for real insight Gerry Baker steals the show:

"Since when did a member of the Kennedy family actually alter the course of a Democratic primary? It seems almost cruel to point it out but Ted couldn't exactly do the job for his own candidacy in 1980 so what do we think he'll really achieve for Obama?  This credulous reporting by the media, this fanciful elevation of the Senate's biggest blowhard into some Olympian figure, throwing down thunderbolts that redirect the destinies of the candidates,  is almost enough to make me feel a bit sorry for the Clintons.  Until I remember that it is the great Clinton Machine that succeeded in subtly turning this contest into a racial tussle with increasingly ugly undertones. And I doubt that they will suddenly find themselves - the safe white candidates - on the losing side."

CAN BARACK OBAMA APPEAL TO THE REAGAN DEMOCRATS?

Is Barack Obama too removed from ordinary voters?  Rich Lowry wonders if comparisons with the Bill Clinton of 1992 flatter the Illinois Senator:

"Obama isn’t yet enough like the Bill Clinton of 1992. The blessing of Ted and Caroline Kennedy gives Obama even more of the aura of Camelot, a remote and shining liberal idealism. But Obama needs less of the haute cuisine of Olympian inspiration and more of the grubby cheese fries of Bill Clinton’s emotional connection to economically distressed voters. Bill felt their pain, and — a wonk at heart — smothered them with proposals to revive the economy."

Comments

[Tony Makara]

I've heard some pretty impressive stuff from Romney over the last few days, particularly his concerns over trade dependency with China. Very interesting that Romney has used the economy to score points over McCain.

C-SPAN as ever will be offering great coverage from 01:00 GMT

http://www.c-span.org/

[Matthew Robinson]

Giuliani has thrown away a great chance to be President. I like Giuliani and felt a few months ago that he was the only candidate that could stop the either Hilary or Obama, but it seems that waiting for florida has been a momumental error. And i can't see him as a possible VP pick for McCain or Romney.

[jeff]

Exit polls are saying: McCain 34.3 percent, Romney 32.6 percent, Giuliani 15.3 percent, Huckabee 12 percent.

[Comstock]

" If Romney wins there is every chance that no GOP candidate will command a majority of delegates at the end of this race."

The obvious question being...what happens then?

[Richard]

Aren't only half the Florida delegates allowed to vote as punishment for moving the primary forward? Not as bad as the Democrats who banned all the delegates from voting!

[Ron Paul supporter]

Ghouliani has screwed up big time and is finished. Despite all the support and big donations from the neo-cons in the AEI, Weekly Standard and the Fox News empire, Benito has crashed and burned. American was never going to vote another warmongering neo-con and torture apologist as President.

[LFR]

John McCain wins all 57 delegates from Florida - Democratic candidates get none. A very disappointing 15% of the vote for Giuliani. The rumour is that Giuliani will endorse McCain Wednesday morning - whether this rumour is being stimulated by the McCain camp to put pressure on Giuliani or whether the Mayor's team are advising him to pull out is not clear. Giuliani should fight on - show the strength that has characterized his political career to date, Americans need to see a leader in spirit not just in results. The race for the Democratic nomination is still wide open - whoever you support this is a very exciting Presidential race!

[mamapajamas]

LFR, for the first time I'm actually relieved that the RNC got ticked off at Florida for holding such an early primary. We will have 57 delegates for McCain to the Republican National Convention instead of our normal 114.