Barack Obama is not my candidate, but he is racking up some victories of late.  Everyone expected him to win the Potomac Primary trifecta, but the margins are surprising.

I have had my problems with Senator Obama, and I currently support Senator Clinton (after initially supporting Senator Edwards).  And I still support Hillary, very much so.

But I just finished watching Barack Obama's speech in Wisconsin.  And I have to say, I was not only inspired, but I was impressed.  

Let's call them Pam, Dave, Sally and Fred. That's not their real names, but let's call them that. All four are over 50. All four have been Democrats since casting their vote for Jimmy Carter in 1976 (in one case, since McGovern in 1972). They voted for Mondale, Dukakis and Kerry. They despise Bush, always did, and oppose the Iraq war. They support universal health care and support abortion rights.

And worse, they will vote for McCain if Hillary doesn't get the Democratic nomination

 If you have any time on your hands today, please make some calls for your candidate.

We have what is considered bad weather here -- a light coating of snow and unusually cold with more wintery precipition predicted for tonight.  Believe it or not, this is enough to close some schools.People here are not use to and don't like winter weather so it could have a negative effect on turnout.  

A phone call may be all it takes to convince a voter to head out to the polls.  

this is being posted both at Daily Kos and at Raising Kaine

Tomorrow is the Potomac Primary as our three regional events are now commonly being called.

The thoughts offered below the fold are personal, a combination of anecdotal and analytical, and are probably worth less than what you pay for them, which of course is nothing.  Still, upon awakening after my first 8-hour sleep in more than a month, it is thoughts like these that are on my mind as I head for a day of school in which I do no teaching:  my AP students are in a computer lab and my regular students have a test, and school is closed tomorrow for Maryland's primary.

So if you are curious at the thoughts on my mind, come along for the ride.  Although if you are in Virginia, Maryland or DC, consider going and doing some volunteer work for your candidate - that is more important than reading me, and I don't mind if you do it for Clinton, because she will need all the help she can get.

Two Survey USA polls were released yesterday for February 12 primary states, with good news for Obama.

Virginia. 2/7-8. 588 Likely Voters. MoE 4.1%. No trend lines.

In Virginia, Clinton leads in seniors, Obama in voters under age 65. The two candidates are tied for white voters; Obama leads 7:1 among black voters. He also leads among both men and women.

Maryland. 2/7-8. 737 Likely Voters. MoE 3.7%. No trend lines.

In Maryland, the two candidates split white voters, with Obama leading 4:1 among blacks. Clinton leads among seniors by 15 points, Obama leads by 39 points among voters 35-49. SUSA cautions: "If younger voters do not vote in the numbers here forecast, Obama’s margin is overstated."

I'm a Maryland voter.  My time is running out.  I can't decide between Obama and Clinton.  So many gut-wrenching things about both candidacies, positive and negative.