Today in Politics

Before I get into the 2008 election, I want to take a moment to wish all the best to Sen. Ted Kennedy for his struggles ahead. Sen. Kennedy today was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor, which could "affect Kennedy's ability to speak and understand speech, as well as the strength on the right side of his body," according to CNN's Dr. Sanjay Gupta. This will be a difficult time for the senator and his family, and I wish them all the best, and will keep them in my prayers.
Unfortunately I couldn't blog earlier as all this was initially going on because I was at work, but this late hour does give me the opportunity to review what has gone on in the past few hours.
Aaaand...basically, everybody who yesterday predicted the approximate outcome of today's primaries was right.
With 100% of precincts reporting in Kentucky, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton won decisively, 65% to 30% over Sen. Barack Obama. Exit polls suggest, as you might expect, that HRC trounced Obama in almost every category, including lower-income workers, college graduates, and suburbs, small towns, and rural areas. More analysis on the impact of this to come in the next couple of days.
In Oregon, with 50% of precints reporting, Sen. Barack Obama won by a fairly significant margin-- currently, 58% to 42%, but frequently being updated. Not too much to be said yet on what's happened, since not all the numbers are in, but expect more information and analysis over the next couple of days.
Tonight in speeches: Hillary Clinton thanks Kentucky voters for their "overwhelming vote of confidence" and declares that she'll "never give up on you." In Iowa [??], Barack Obama declares that the nomination is within reach. I'll post links to the full speeches as soon as they're up on YouTube.
So, no major surprises tonight, but what has happened is significant to both candidates still in the race. Barack Obama moves closer to the nomination, but some significant voters move farther away from him; conversely, Hillary Clinton is garnering some important Democratic votes, but her chances of defeating Barack Obama and getting the nomination still clock in at "slim to none." Current state of affairs for HRC: she has no real motivation to get out; but there's not much in the way of practical reasons to stay in either. Current state of affairs for Barack Obama: full speed ahead to the nomination...but better start working to get back in the good graces of the working class.