ABSTRACT
The Pennsylvania primary (April 22) was extremely hard fought and, with Senator Edwards out of contention, it was a major test for Senator Obama. He lost by a difference of about 9.6 percent. The media and the Clinton campaign rounded this figure up to 10 percent, a number that had been touted before as the “magical number” that would purportedly indicate that Senator Obama was greatly weakening (Rutenberg 2008). The Pennsylvania campaign included a barrage of negative ads, as well as many changes in position from the Clinton side, depending on where the rallies were held; old-style politics at its worst.
