Barack Obama's efforts to woo white voters in the Pennsylvania Democratic primary have been hurt by his comments on small town bitterness and his association with an outspoken pastor, some residents of Muncy Valley say.
Local people called the Illinois senator arrogant, unpatriotic and un-Christian after his remarks that residents of small towns in Pennsylvania and elsewhere are bitter because of job losses, and so have turned to traditions like guns, religion and anti-immigrant sentiment.
"He is saying people are weak, dumb and naive, and they are seeking religion as a way of getting through," said Darwin Whitmoyer, 54, a white truck driver, at the gas station in this town of about 100 people 150 miles (240 km) north-west of Philadelphia. "He didn't help himself."
While most black voters in Pennsylvania will back Obama in Tuesday's crucial presidential primary, only about 35 percent of whites have said they will vote for him, compared with the 53 percent of whites who say they will back Hillary Clinton, according to a Newsmax/Zogby poll published on Thursday.
Pennsylvania's population is about 85 percent white and 11 percent black, with most of the remainder Hispanic. Whitmoyer said Obama's mention of guns as an emblem of rural culture was interpreted by local people as a sign that he will restrict their use if he becomes president. "If he isn't for guns, he's against guns," Whitmoyer said. "He just cut his own throat with everyone who owns a gun."
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