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77-544: Schoenberg was inspired to write the American Symphony by the 2008 U.S. Presidential election , about which he wrote, "...both parties asked the people to embrace change and make a difference. I was both excited and honored about ushering in this new era in our nation's history, and for the first time, I truly understood what it meant to be American." The composer cited Aaron Copland 's Symphony No. 3 , which Schoenberg described as "the quintessential American symphony," as

154-425: A "Beltway insider". However, media interviews suggested that Palin lacked knowledge on certain key issues, and they cast doubt among many voters about her qualifications to be vice president or president. In this regard, her inexperience was also a liability when McCain's age and health were factored in—there was a higher-than-normal probability of Palin succeeding to the presidency. "One 72-year-old heartbeat away from

231-418: A National Health Insurance Exchange that would include both private insurance plans and a Medicare-like government run option. Coverage would be guaranteed regardless of health status, and premiums would not vary based on health status either. It would have required parents to cover their children, but did not require adults to buy insurance. Critics of McCain's plan argued that it would not significantly reduce

308-632: A San Francisco fundraiser that small-town Americans "cling" to guns and religion drew sharp criticism from the Clinton campaign and may have hurt his chances in the Keystone State. In addition, Clinton had several advantages in Pennsylvania. Throughout the primary process, she relied on the support of older, white, working class voters. Pennsylvania held a closed primary, which means that only registered Democrats could vote, and, according to Ron Elving of NPR ,

385-461: A council member and mayor of Wasilla . The choice of Palin was controversial; however, it appeared to solve two pressing concerns—McCain's age and health (since a youthful vice president would succeed him to office if he died or became incapacitated) and appealing to right-wing conservatives, a group that had been comparatively unmoved by McCain. Palin also came off as more down-to-earth and relatable to average Americans than McCain, widely criticized as

462-627: A fight to seat all the Florida and Michigan delegates. There was some speculation that the fight over the delegates could last until the convention in August. On May 31, 2008, the Rules and Bylaws Committee of the Democratic Party reached a compromise on the Florida and Michigan delegate situation. The committee decided to seat delegates from Michigan and Florida at the convention in August, but to only award each

539-501: A half-vote. The major political party nomination process (technically) continues through June of an election year. In previous cycles, the candidates were effectively chosen by the end of the primaries held in March, but, in this cycle, Barack Obama did not win enough delegates to secure the nomination until June 3, after a 17-month campaign against Hillary Clinton. He had a wide lead in states won, while Clinton had won majorities in several of

616-567: A large number of delegates to the candidates. Obama trailed in the California polling by an average of 6.0% before the primary; he ended up losing that state by 8.3% of the vote. Some analysts cited a large Latino turnout that voted for Clinton as the deciding factor. The Louisiana , Nebraska , Hawaii , Wisconsin , U.S. Virgin Islands , the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia primaries and

693-603: A larger and more important victory over Romney in Florida , which held a closed primary on January 29. By this time, after several scandals, no success in the early primaries, and a third-place finish in Florida, Giuliani conceded the nomination and endorsed John McCain the next day. McCain was also endorsed in February by California Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger before the California primary took place on Super Tuesday. This gave him

770-500: A liability against the youthful Senator Obama, who was the first Generation Xer to run for president on a major party ticket. McCain for comparison was born before World War II and belonged to the Silent Generation . Much like Bob Dole, McCain attempted to counter these charges by releasing all of his medical records, something Obama did not do. McCain's wife Cindy dismissed concerns about his health by arguing that "We went hiking

847-583: A long primary season, Obama secured the Democratic nomination in June 2008. Early campaigning focused heavily on the Iraq War and Bush's unpopularity . McCain supported the war, as well as a troop surge that had begun in 2007, while Obama strongly opposed the war. Bush endorsed McCain, but the two did not campaign together, and Bush did not appear in person at the 2008 Republican National Convention . Obama campaigned on

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924-459: A morning rally in Jacksonville, Florida , McCain declared that "the fundamentals of our economy are strong," despite what he described as "tremendous turmoil in our financial markets and Wall Street." With the perception among voters to the contrary, the comment appeared to cost McCain politically. On September 24, 2008, after the onset of the 2007–2008 financial crisis , McCain announced that he

1001-413: A musical influence on the work. He wrote, "Quite serendipitously, I heard Copland's 3rd three nights after President Obama was elected and, seeing that our country and world had needs similar to those of Copland's time, I was inspired to make a difference. I set out to write a modern American symphony that paid homage to our past and looked forward to a brighter future." Despite this, Shoenberg described

1078-511: A particular candidate. The party's delegates then officially nominate a candidate to run on the party's behalf. The general election in November is also an indirect election, where voters cast ballots for a slate of members of the Electoral College ; these electors in turn directly elect the president and vice president. President George W. Bush , a Republican and former Governor of Texas ,

1155-600: A peacetime presence like the United States maintained in Germany and Japan after World War II , his statement that the United States could be in Iraq for as much as the next 50 to 100 years would prove costly. Obama used it against him as part of his strategy to tie him to the unpopular President Bush. John McCain's support for the troop 'surge' employed by General David Petraeus , which was one of several factors credited with improving

1232-454: A sharp contest between Obama and the initial front-runner, former first lady and Senator Hillary Clinton , as well as other challengers who dropped out before most of the primaries were held, including Senators John Edwards and Obama's future running mate, Joe Biden . Clinton's victory in the New Hampshire primary made her the first woman to win a major party's presidential primary. After

1309-634: A significant boost in the polls for the state's primary, which awarded the greatest number of delegates of all the states. On Super Tuesday, McCain won his home state of Arizona, taking all 53 delegates. He also won nearly all of California's 173 delegates, the largest of the Super Tuesday prizes. McCain also scored wins in seven other states, picking up 574 delegates. Huckabee was the "surprise performer", winning 5 states and 218 delegates. Romney won 7 states and 231 delegates. Two days later, Romney suspended his presidential campaign, saying that if he stayed in

1386-500: A victory scenario that envisioned the former first lady wrapping up the Democratic presidential nomination by Super Tuesday on Feb. 5." In what is considered a turning point for her campaign, Clinton had a strong performance at the Saint Anselm College , ABC , and Facebook debates several days before the New Hampshire primary as well as an emotional interview in a public broadcast live on TV. Clinton won that primary by 2% of

1463-673: Is a chronological listing of the United States senators from Delaware . U.S. senators were originally elected by the Delaware General Assembly for designated six-year terms beginning March 4. Frequently portions of the term would remain only upon a U.S. senator's death or resignation. From 1914 and the enforcement of the Seventeenth Amendment to the United States Constitution , adopted in 1913 but rejected by

1540-413: Is scored for a large orchestra consisting of three flutes (third doubling piccolo ), three oboes (third doubling cor anglais ), three clarinets (third doubling bass clarinet ), three bassoons (third doubling contrabassoon ), four horns , three trumpets , three trombones , tuba , harp , piano (doubling celesta ), timpani , four percussionists, and strings . Reviewing the world premiere,

1617-410: The American Symphony as "not a patriotic work," adding, "the symphony reflects a respect and responsibility for the great potential of our nation and a hunger to affect positive change. It is about our collective ability to restore hope within ourselves and our neighbors, both here and around the world." The symphony has a duration of approximately 24 minutes and is cast in five movements : The work

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1694-593: The Grand Canyon last summer and [John] did great and had no trouble keeping up with us." McCain also appeared at several campaign stops with his still-active 95-year-old mother. In a speech on the House floor, Pennsylvania Congressman John Murtha criticized McCain's age by saying "Seven presidents have come and gone since I've been in Congress, and I saw the toll the job took on each one of them." If elected, McCain would have been

1771-629: The Iraq War , the Sixteenth Amendment , Roe v. Wade , the IRS , and the Federal Reserve . The Green Party nominated former Democratic representative Cynthia McKinney from Georgia for president, and political activist Rosa Clemente from New York for vice president. McKinney campaigned on a platform that supported single-payer universal health care , the withdrawal of American troops from Iraq and Afghanistan, reparations for African Americans, and

1848-554: The U.S. Congress . Early polls taken before anyone had announced a candidacy had shown Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama as the most popular potential Democratic candidates. Nevertheless, the media speculated on several other candidates, including Al Gore , the runner-up in the 2000 election ; John Kerry , the runner-up in the 2004 election ; John Edwards , Kerry's running mate in 2004; Delaware Senator Joe Biden ; New Mexico Governor Bill Richardson ; Iowa Governor Tom Vilsack ; and Indiana Senator Evan Bayh . Edwards

1925-496: The United States on November 4, 2008. The Democratic ticket of Barack Obama , the junior senator from Illinois , and Joe Biden , the senior senator from Delaware , defeated the Republican ticket of John McCain , the senior senator from Arizona , and Sarah Palin , the governor of Alaska . Obama became the first African American to be elected to the presidency. This was the first election since 1952 in which neither

2002-465: The Washington and Maine caucuses all took place after Super Tuesday in February. Obama won all of them, giving him 10 consecutive victories after Super Tuesday. On March 4, Hillary Clinton carried Ohio and Rhode Island in the Democratic primaries; some considered these wins, especially Ohio, a "surprise upset" by 10%, although she did lead in the polling averages in both states. She also carried

2079-524: The primary in Texas , but Obama won the Texas caucuses held the same day and netted more delegates from the state than Clinton. Only one state held a primary in April. This was Pennsylvania , on April 22. Although Obama made a strong effort to win Pennsylvania, Hillary Clinton won that primary by nearly 10%, with approximately 55% of the vote. Obama had outspent Clinton three to one in Pennsylvania, but his comment at

2156-428: The Democratic nomination for president, with the help of multiple super delegate endorsements (most of the super delegates had refused to declare their support for either candidate until the primaries were completed). He was the first African American to win the nomination of a major political party in the United States. For several days, Clinton refused to concede the race, although she signaled her presidential campaign

2233-690: The Democratic presidential candidate since 1976 (North Carolina) and 1964 (Indiana, Virginia, and Nebraska's 2nd congressional district). Obama received the largest share of the popular vote won by a Democrat since Lyndon B. Johnson in 1964 and was the first Democrat to win an outright majority of the popular vote since Jimmy Carter in 1976 . Obama won every state in the Great Lakes region and flipped nine states that had voted Republican in 2004 : Colorado , Florida , Indiana , Iowa , Nevada , New Mexico , North Carolina , Ohio , and Virginia , as well as Nebraska's 2nd congressional district . This marked

2310-451: The Democrats, about potential Republican candidates for president in 2008. In November 2006, former New York City Mayor Rudolph Giuliani led in the polls, followed closely by Arizona Senator John McCain . The media speculated that Giuliani's pro-choice stance on abortion and McCain's age and support of the unpopular Iraq War would be detriments to their candidacies. Giuliani remained

2387-499: The House. He eventually decided to attend the first presidential debate on September 26, despite Congress' lack of immediate action on the bill. His ineffectiveness in the negotiations and his reversal in decision to attend the debates were seized upon to portray McCain as erratic in his response to the economy. Days later, a second version of the original bailout bill was passed by both the House and Senate, with Obama, his vice presidential running mate Joe Biden , and McCain all voting for

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2464-502: The Iowa caucus, Biden and Connecticut Senator Chris Dodd withdrew from the nomination contest. Obama became the new front runner in New Hampshire, when his poll numbers skyrocketed after his Iowa victory. The Clinton campaign was struggling after a huge loss in Iowa and no strategy beyond the early primaries and caucuses. According to The Vancouver Sun , campaign strategists had "mapped

2541-425: The United States for a period of at least 14 years. Candidates for the presidency typically seek the nomination of one of the political parties, in which case each party devises a method (such as a primary election ) to choose the candidate the party deems best suited to run for the position. Traditionally, the primary elections are indirect elections where voters cast ballots for a slate of party delegates pledged to

2618-635: The Washington caucuses over Huckabee and Paul, who amassed a large showing. The Virgin Islands and Puerto Rico closed February for the Republicans. After Super Tuesday, John McCain had become the clear front runner, but by the end of February, he still had not acquired enough delegates to secure the nomination. In March, John McCain clinched the Republican nomination after sweeping all four primaries, Texas , Ohio , Vermont , and Rhode Island , putting him over

2695-540: The White House, but did not make a single appearance for McCain during the campaign. Bush appeared at the 2008 GOP convention only through a live video broadcast. He chose not to appear in person due to disaster events in the Gulf of Mexico in the aftermath of Hurricane Gustav . Although he supported the war in Iraq, McCain made an effort to show that he had disagreed with Bush on many other key issues such as climate change. During

2772-626: The ability to bring change, respectively, remained steady through the November 4 election. However, final pre-election polling found that voters considered Obama's inexperience less of an impediment than McCain's association with sitting president George W. Bush, an association which was rhetorically framed by the Obama campaign throughout the election season as "more of the same". McCain appeared to undercut his line of attack by picking first-term Alaska governor Sarah Palin to be his running mate. Palin had been governor only since 2006, and before that had been

2849-517: The creation of a Department of Peace. The Libertarian Party nominated former Republican representative Bob Barr from Georgia for president, and his former rival for the Libertarian nomination Wayne Allyn Root from Nevada, for vice president. During the 2008 presidential campaign, Barr advocated a reworking or abolition of the income tax and opposed the war in Iraq and the Patriot Act . Until

2926-447: The entire general election campaign, Obama countered by pointing out in ads and at numerous campaign rallies that McCain had claimed in an interview that he voted with Bush 90% of the time, and congressional voting records supported this for the years Bush was in office. Similar to Senator Bob Dole 's 1996 presidential campaign, one of the more widely leveled charges against McCain was the issue of his age—he turned 72 in August and there

3003-516: The established Democratic electorate "was older, whiter, more Catholic and more working-class than in most of the primaries to date." After Pennsylvania, Obama had a higher number of delegates and popular votes than Clinton did and was still in a stronger position to win the nomination. Clinton, however, had received the endorsement of more superdelegates than Obama. On May 6, North Carolina and Indiana held their Democratic presidential primaries. Clinton and Obama campaigned aggressively there before

3080-580: The feud between the Clintons and [Newt Gingrich] unfold during the 1990s, I was reminded of old quarrels started on college campuses long ago. It's time for a new generation to take over." Obama's active use of a Blackberry and other modern technology also stood in contrast to the Arizona Senator's admission that he did not use a computer or a cell phone. McCain's service in Vietnam, while marketable to baby boomers,

3157-539: The finale felt prolix in proportion to the overall length of the symphony, the piece revealed the soul of a strong musician with a natural sense of melody, a playful knack for rhythm and a serious approach to orchestration." Reviewing a later performance of the piece with the Waterloo-Cedar Falls Symphony, George Day of The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier observed, "Its five movements are mostly brisk, sometimes noisy, but always engaging. The music speaks of

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3234-422: The first president born in the 1930s. McCain ultimately died in 2018, just one year after the completion of Obama's second term. Like the Clinton campaign in 1996, Obama avoided discussing McCain's age directly, instead preferring to simply call his ideas and message "old" and "old hat". He also made a strong appeal to youth voters and back during his primary contest with Hillary Clinton, had stated "When I watched

3311-518: The front runner in New Hampshire . McCain staged a turnaround victory, having been written off by the pundits and polling in single digits less than a month before the race. With the Republicans stripping Michigan and Florida of half their delegates for moving their primaries into January 2008 against party rules, the race for the nomination was based there. McCain meanwhile managed a small victory over Huckabee in South Carolina , setting him up for

3388-474: The frontrunner in the polls throughout most of 2007, with McCain and former Tennessee Senator Fred Thompson fighting for second place. Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee , Giuliani, former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney , and Texas Representative Ron Paul announced their candidacies on January 28, February 5, February 13, and March 12, respectively. McCain officially announced his candidacy on March 1, 2007, after several informal announcements. In

3465-404: The general election, but it was also the first time since the 1928 election that neither sought his party's nomination for president; as Bush was term-limited from seeking another nomination, the unique aspect was Vice President Cheney's decision not to seek the Republican nomination. The 2008 election was also the third presidential election since 1896 in which neither the incumbent president,

3542-563: The growing unpopularity of the Iraq War domestically and internationally, as well as Bush's handling of the 2007–2008 financial crisis and Hurricane Katrina in 2005. By the time Obama was elected as President of the United States on November 4, 2008, Bush's approval rating was in the low to mid 20s and his disapproval grew increasingly significant, being in the high 60s, and even low 70s in some polls. Polls consistently showed that his approval ratings among American voters had averaged around 30 percent. In March 2008, Bush endorsed McCain at

3619-447: The heart of his plan were tax credits – $ 2,500 for individuals and $ 5,000 for families who do not subscribe to or do not have access to health care through their employer. To help people who are denied coverage by insurance companies due to pre-existing conditions, McCain proposed working with states to create what he calls a "Guaranteed Access Plan". Barack Obama called for universal health care . His health care plan proposed creating

3696-553: The incumbent president nor vice president was on the ballot, as well as the first election since 1928 in which neither ran for the nomination. Incumbent Republican President George W. Bush was ineligible to pursue a third term due to the term limits established by the Twenty-second Amendment . McCain secured the Republican nomination by March 2008, defeating former governors Mitt Romney , Mike Huckabee , and other challengers. The Democratic primaries were marked by

3773-501: The incumbent vice president, nor a current or former member of the incumbent president's Cabinet won the nomination of either major party the others being 1920 and 1952 . With no members of the Bush administration emerging as major contenders for the Republican nomination, the Republican race was as open as the Democratic race. [REDACTED] Immediately after the 2006 midterm elections, media pundits began speculating, as they did about

3850-466: The larger states. Now, because a form of proportional representation and popular vote decided Democratic state delegate contests, numbers were close between Clinton and Obama. By May, Clinton claimed to hold a lead in the popular vote, but the Associated Press found that her numbers were "accurate only" in one close scenario. In June, after the last of the primaries had taken place, Obama secured

3927-534: The last few months of the presidential campaign and exit polls conducted on Election Day showed the economy as the top concern for voters. In the fall of 2008, many news sources were reporting that the economy was suffering its most serious downturn since the Great Depression . During this period, John McCain's election prospects fell with several politically costly comments about the economy. On August 20, John McCain said in an interview with Politico that he

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4004-646: The measure (Hillary Clinton would as well). All the aforementioned remarks and campaign issues hurt McCain's standing with voters. All these also occurred after the onset of the 2007–2008 financial crisis and after McCain's poll numbers had started to fall. Although sound bites of all of these "missteps" were played repeatedly on national television, many pundits and analysts say that the actual financial crisis and economic conditions caused McCain's large drop in support in mid-September and severely damaged his campaign. John McCain 's proposals focused on open-market competition rather than government funding or control. At

4081-618: The minimum 270 electoral votes needed to win the election. These were the Constitution Party , the Green Party , and the Libertarian Party . In addition, independent candidate Ralph Nader ran his own campaign. The Constitution Party nominated writer, pastor, and conservative talk show host Chuck Baldwin for president, and attorney Darrell Castle from Tennessee for vice president. While campaigning, Baldwin voiced his opposition to

4158-478: The most recent time a Democrat carried Indiana and North Carolina in a presidential election, as well as the most recent presidential election where any major party candidate won fewer than 200 electoral votes. Article Two of the United States Constitution provides that the President and Vice President of the United States must be natural-born citizens of the United States, at least 35 years old, and residents of

4235-400: The music critic Timothy McDonald of The Kansas City Star highly praised the symphony, writing, "Schoenberg demonstrated a distinctive and exciting compositional voice. His American Symphony is bold and brilliant, and deserves to be a staple among orchestras in the U.S. and abroad." Paul Horsley of Kansas City-based journal The Independent called it an "agreeable new piece" and wrote, "If

4312-467: The nomination. The small win in Indiana barely kept her campaign alive for the next month. Although she did manage to win the majority of the remaining primaries and delegates, it was not enough to overcome Obama's substantial delegate lead. During late 2007, the two parties adopted rules against states' moving their primaries to an earlier date in the year. For the Republicans, the penalty for this violation

4389-484: The number of uninsured Americans, would increase costs, reduce consumer protections and lead to less generous benefit packages. Critics of Obama's plan argued that it would increase federal regulation of private health insurance without addressing the underlying incentives behind rising health care spending. Mark Pauly suggested that a combination of the two approaches would work better than either one alone. List of United States senators from Delaware Below

4466-402: The onset of the 2007–2008 financial crisis , the unpopular Iraq War was a key issue during the campaign. John McCain supported the war while Barack Obama opposed it (Obama's early and strong opposition to the war helped him stand out against the other Democratic candidates during the primaries, as well as stand out to a war-weary electorate during the general campaign). Though McCain meant it as

4543-427: The presidency" became a popular anti-GOP slogan. She also came under attack on everything from her 17-year-old daughter giving birth to a child out of wedlock to actively participating in hunting moose and other animals. Because of Palin's conservative views, there was also concern that she would alienate independents and moderates, two groups that pundits observed McCain would need to win the election. Polls taken in

4620-434: The presidency, but he did not initially endorse any remaining candidates. Super Tuesday was February 5, 2008, when the largest-ever number of simultaneous state primary elections was held. Super Tuesday ended up leaving the Democrats in a virtual tie, with Obama amassing 847 delegates to Clinton's 834 from the 23 states that held Democratic primaries. California was one of the Super Tuesday states that could provide

4697-558: The race, he would "forestall the launch of a national campaign and be making it easier for Senator Clinton or Obama to win". His departure left Huckabee and Paul as McCain's only major challengers in the remaining primaries and caucuses. Romney endorsed McCain on February 14. Louisiana, the District of Columbia , Kansas , Wisconsin , and Washington held primaries in February after Super Tuesday. Despite McCain picking up big victories, Huckabee won Louisiana and Kansas. McCain narrowly carried

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4774-462: The security situation in Iraq, may have boosted McCain's stance on the issue in voters' minds. McCain (who supported the invasion) argued that his support for the successful surge showed his superior judgment. However, Obama was quick to remind voters that there would have been no need for a "surge" had there been no war at all, thus questioning McCain's judgment. George W. Bush had become increasingly unpopular among Americans by late 2005 due in part by

4851-451: The theme that " Washington must change", while McCain emphasized his experience. The campaign was strongly affected by the 2007–2008 financial crisis . McCain's decision to suspend his campaign during the height of the financial crisis backfired as voters viewed his response as erratic. Obama won a decisive victory over McCain, winning the Electoral College and the popular vote by a sizable margin, including states that had not voted for

4928-426: The third quarter of 2007, the top four GOP (Republican) fundraisers were Romney, Giuliani, Thompson, and Ron Paul . MSNBC's Chuck Todd christened Giuliani and John McCain the front runners after the second Republican presidential debate in early 2007. Huckabee, winner of Iowa, had little to no money and hoped for at least a third-place finish in New Hampshire. McCain eventually displaced Rudy Giuliani and Romney as

5005-497: The top of the 1,191 delegates required to win the GOP nomination. Mike Huckabee then conceded the race to McCain, leaving Ron Paul, who had just 16 delegates, as his only remaining opponent. Romney would eventually become the Republican presidential nominee 4 years later , which he then lost to Barack Obama . Along with the Democratic and Republican parties, three other parties nominated candidates with ballot access in enough states to win

5082-406: The top spot in Iowa; he ended up winning the caucus in that state, with Edwards coming in second and Clinton in third. Obama's win was fueled mostly by first time caucus-goers and Independents and showed voters viewed him as the "candidate of change". Iowa has since been viewed as the state that jump-started Obama's campaign and set him on track to win both the nomination and the presidency. After

5159-851: The variety, vitality and optimism of the American spirit. Not exactly a patriotic work, it nevertheless conveys a respect, even a reverence, for the past and future of America." He added, "Schoenberg clearly knows how to orchestrate, and I am sure we have not heard the last of him." A recording of the American Symphony featuring the Kansas City Symphony under the direction of Michael Stern was released through Reference Recordings on January 20, 2017. The album also includes performances of Schoenberg's Finding Rothko (2006) and Picture Studies (2012). 2008 United States presidential election George W. Bush Republican Barack Obama Democratic Presidential elections were held in

5236-426: The vote, contrary to the predictions of pollsters who consistently had her trailing Obama for a few days up to the primary date. Clinton's win was the first time a woman had ever won a major American party's presidential primary for the purposes of delegate selection. On January 30, 2008, after placing in third in the New Hampshire and South Carolina primaries, Edwards announced that he was suspending his campaign for

5313-506: The voting took place. Polling had shown Obama a few points ahead in North Carolina and Clinton similarly leading in Indiana. In the actual results, Obama outperformed the polls by several points in both states, winning by a significant margin in North Carolina and losing by only 1.1% in Indiana (50.56% to 49.44%). After these primaries, most pundits declared that it had become "increasingly improbable," if not impossible, for Clinton to win

5390-404: Was ending in a post-primary speech on June 3 in her home state of New York. She finally conceded the nomination to Obama on June 7. She pledged her full support to the presumptive nominee and vowed to do everything she could to help him get elected. Not only was the 2008 election the first time since 1952 that neither the incumbent president nor the incumbent vice president was a candidate in

5467-487: Was ineligible to seek reelection to a third term due to the Twenty-second Amendment ; in accordance with Section   1 of the Twentieth Amendment , his term expired at noon Eastern Standard Time on January 20, 2009. Media speculation had begun almost immediately after the results of the 2004 presidential election were released. In the 2006 midterm elections , the Democrats regained majorities in both houses of

5544-426: Was one of the first to formally announce his candidacy for the presidency, on December 28, 2006. This run would be his second attempt at the presidency. Clinton announced intentions to run in the Democratic primaries on January 20, 2007. Obama announced his candidacy on February 10 in his home state of Illinois. Early in the year, the support for Barack Obama started to increase in the polls and he passed Clinton for

5621-470: Was referred to as "unimportant" to younger voters. Obama promised "universal health care, full employment, a green America, and an America respected instead of feared by its enemies". Polls regularly found the general electorate as a whole divided more evenly between 'change' and 'experience' as candidate qualities than the Democratic primary electorate, which split in favor of 'change' by a nearly 2–1 margin. Advantages for McCain and Obama on experience and

5698-485: Was supposed to be the loss of half the state party's delegates to the convention. The Democratic penalty was the complete exclusion from the national convention of delegates from states that broke these rules. The Democratic Party allowed only four states to hold elections before February 5, 2008. Clinton won a majority of delegates and popular votes from both states (though 40% voted uncommitted in Michigan) and subsequently led

5775-401: Was suspending his campaign to return to Washington so he could help craft a $ 700 billion bailout package for the troubled financial industry, and he stated that he would not debate Obama until Congress passed the bailout bill. Despite this decision, McCain was portrayed as somebody not playing a significant role in the negotiations for the first version of the bill, which fell short of passage in

5852-464: Was uncertain how many houses he and his wife, Cindy, owned; "I think—I'll have my staff get to you," he told the media outlet. Both on the stump and in Obama's political ad, "Seven", the gaffe was used to portray McCain as somebody unable to relate to the concerns of ordinary Americans. This out-of-touch image was further cultivated when, on September 15, the day of the Lehman Brothers bankruptcy , at

5929-519: Was widespread concern about the idea of electing a man who would be 80 years old if he completed two full terms in office (the oldest president, Ronald Reagan , had been a month shy of 78 when he left office in January 1989). In addition, McCain suffered from the ill effects of his captivity in North Vietnam and reportedly had difficulty lifting his arms above his head. His age in particular was considered

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