Obama Leads Clinton By 10 Points in Pew Survey and Leads in the Biggest State: California

The AP (3/28) reports a Pew Research poll shows that if a national Democratic primary were held today, 49% of Democrats would vote for Barack Obama; 39% would vote for Hillary Rodham Clinton. The "two rivals' standings in the Pew Research Center poll have changed little from late February, the latest indication that so far Obama

The Los Angeles Times (3/28, Silva, Frederick,) reports on its "Top of the Ticket" blog that the "controversy over various incendiary remarks by the Rev. Jeremiah Wright has for the most part 'not hurt' Democrat Barack has weathered the controversy over provocative sermons by his longtime pastor, the Rev. Jeremiah Wright." The Pew survey of 1503 adults (+/- 3%), including 618 Democrats and Democratic leaners (+/- 4.5%), was conducted over March 19-22. Obama's campaign for president, one of the nation's top pollsters says, based on his organization's latest survey." Pew pollster Andrew Kohut said, "Obama's lead over Hillary Clinton remains as wide as it was in late February, [and] both Obama and Clinton continue to run slightly ahead of (John) McCain in a general election matchup."

Deflating pitch
Sen. Hillary Clinton argues that she can win the big states that Democrats need in November. Yet a new poll in the biggest of all states, California, shows Sen. Barack Obama of Illinois stronger than Clinton among likely voters there. The mid-March poll by the Public Policy Institute of California found Obama ahead of John McCain by 49 to 40 percent in the state. A Clinton-McCain match-up was a virtual tie: 46 percent Clinton, 43 percent McCain.