Democrats Are Tied in New Poll

JACKIE CALMES in the Wall Street Journal says that a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll shows that Obama has not been hurt by his association with the racist, anti-Semitic and anti-American rants of Jeremiah Wright.

The racially charged debate over Barack Obama's relationship with his longtime pastor hasn't much changed his close contest against Hillary Clinton, or hurt him against Republican nominee-in-waiting John McCain, according to a new Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll.

Democratic pollster Peter Hart, who conducts the Journal/NBC polls with Republican pollster Bill McInturff, called the latest poll a "myth-buster" that showed the pastor controversy is "not the beginning of the end for the Obama campaign."

But then comes this:

But both Democrats, and especially New York's Sen. Clinton, are showing wounds from their prolonged and increasingly bitter nomination contest, which could weaken the ultimate nominee for the general-election showdown against Sen. McCain of Arizona.

Why should this be? Other than the Wright controversy, what would be the reason for Obama to show any "wounds?" The fact that the nomination has not been decided should not cause either candidate to lose support. So we are left with the mystery of why Hillary or Obama should be weakened. The article gives us no clue.

But there is a clue here:

Even among women, who are the base of Sen. Clinton's support, she now is viewed negatively by more voters than positively for the first time in a Journal/NBC poll.

The latest survey has the Democratic rivals in a dead heat, each with 45% support from registered Democratic voters. That is a slight improvement for Sen. Obama, though a statistically insignificant one, from the last Journal/NBC poll, two weeks ago, which had Sen. Clinton leading among Democratic voters, 47% to 43%.

While Sen. Clinton still leads among white Democrats, her edge shrank to eight points (49% to 41%) from 12 points in early March (51% to 39%). That seems to refute widespread speculation -- and fears among Sen. Obama's backers -- that he would lose white support for his bid to be the nation's first African-American president over the controversy surrounding his former pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright Jr. of Chicago

This is really a hit piece on Hillary. It is intended to show her losing support among her base and to say to the Superdelegates to the Democrat convention that it's safe to vote for Obama.

And here's the clincher:

Beyond the nomination race, in hypothetical matchups for November's election Sen. Obama still edges Sen. McCain 44% to 42%. That is nearly the same result as in the early March poll, before videos of Mr. Wright's most fiery sermons spread over the Internet. But Sen. Clinton, who likewise had a narrow advantage over Sen. McCain in the earlier survey, trails in this one by two points, 44% to his 46%.

Message to Democrats: nominate Obama and we win, nominate Hillary and we lose.

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