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/ 4 June 2008

Obama wins Democratic race

After making history by capturing the Democratic nomination, Barack Obama turns on Wednesday to the task of unifying a fractured party for a five-month battle for the White House with Republican John McCain. The Illinois senator on Tuesday locked up the 2 118 delegates he needs for victory at the August convention.

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/ 4 June 2008

Clinton defiant in face of loss

Hillary Clinton refused to surrender to Barack Obama in the Democratic race for the United States presidency on Tuesday or to acknowledge she had reached the end of the road in her bid for the White House. Rather than concede the loss to Obama, the New York senator told a cheering crowd she would consult supporters and party leaders to decide the future of her campaign.

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/ 4 June 2008

Wall Street puts its money behind Obama

Wall Street is putting its money behind Democrat Barack Obama for president, despite worries that his administration would raise taxes and take a tougher line on trade and regulation. The signs Wall Street reads point to Democrats prevailing in the November presidential and general election as voters punish the incumbent Republican party.

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/ 4 June 2008

The transformation of Barack Obama

It was, as nearly everyone among the thousands of jubilant supporters recognised, a little slice of history. Barack Obama, once seen as a most improbable presidential candidate, before their eyes had been declared the Democratic nominee and the first African-American to have a real shot at winning the White House.

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/ 3 June 2008

Chinese premier hailed as Facebook star

China’s state media on Tuesday hailed Premier Wen Jiabao as the world’s sixth-most-popular politician on the social networking site Facebook — well ahead of United States President George Bush. Wen Jiabao’s profile was set up two days after he rushed to the scene of the May 12 earthquake in Sichuan province to oversee rescue efforts.

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/ 3 June 2008

Obama eyes history as last primaries loom

Democrat Barack Obama stood on the brink of history on Tuesday, within reach of becoming America’s first black presidential nominee after a twisting, emotional and divisive battle with Hillary Clinton. As voters in the last two states, Montana and South Dakota, wrapped up the gruelling nominating marathon, Clinton faced the demise of her own quest.

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/ 1 June 2008

Obama quits Chicago church after race rows

Democrat Barack Obama said on Saturday he had quit his long-time Chicago church after months of controversy over racially laced pulpit rhetoric that still threatens to tarnish his White House hopes. The Illinois senator said he and his wife, Michelle, were withdrawing from the 8 000-strong congregation of the Trinity United Church of Christ.

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/ 31 May 2008

Another ‘pastor disaster’ upsets Obama campaign

Barack Obama’s campaign on Friday tried to contain a new ”pastor disaster” prompted by a video of a Catholic guest preacher at his Chicago church mocking Hillary Clinton’s tears.In a sermon last Sunday, Father Michael Pfleger, a long-time ally of Obama, accused Clinton and white voters of believing she deserved to be president because she is white.

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/ 29 May 2008

Obama expects to clinch nomination next week

Senator Barack Obama said on Wednesday he expected to become the Democratic United States presidential nominee after next week and he is considering an overseas trip that may include Iraq. After a hard-fought primary season against rival Democrat Hillary Clinton, Obama said the general election race will begin in earnest next week.

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/ 25 May 2008

Obama says Clinton ‘stirring up’ Florida controversy

Democrat Barack Obama accused rival Hillary Clinton on Saturday of ”stirring up” a controversy over the disqualified Florida primary election because it was her last hope of winning their party’s presidential nomination. Obama, an Illinois senator, is leading Clinton, a New York senator, in delegates needed to win the Democratic nomination to face Republican John McCain.

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/ 24 May 2008

Clinton draws rebuke over assassination remark

Hillary Clinton mentioned the June 1968 assassination of Robert Kennedy in explaining on Friday why she had resisted calls to end her White House bid, drawing a rebuke from Democratic front-runner Barack Obama’s campaign. Clinton, who later expressed regret over the remark, made it to the editorial board of theSioux Falls Argus Leader.

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/ 23 May 2008

Running mate sought as Obama shifts gear

Democratic party officials disclosed on Thursday that Barack Obama has sanctioned a hunt for a vice-presidential candidate, a further sign that he regards the battle with Hillary Clinton as being over. Time magazine, in a report in its next issue, quotes a friend of Bill Clinton saying he wants his wife to be the vice-presidential candidate.

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/ 21 May 2008

Obama moves closer to US presidential nomination

Barack Obama passed a milestone to move within reach of the United States Democratic presidential nomination on Tuesday, but rival Hillary Clinton refused to surrender. A split of two nominating contests — Obama handily won Oregon and Clinton crushed the front-runner in Kentucky — gave Obama a majority of pledged delegates won during their lengthy nominating fight.