President-Elect Barack Obama

President-elect Barack Obama gave a rousing speech after winning the Iowa Democratic caucus.

After doing so he must have promptly called Oprah Winfrey to thank her for helping put him on the make, and for making his book a best seller, and giving him the name recognition he needed to defeat the anointed Democratic nominee, Hillary Rodham Clinton.

He also, no doubt, placed calls to Mayor Daley of Chicago, whose political machine made his ground war so successful, and George Soros for all the behind-the-scenes help.

There is no question that Obama will now defeat Hillary Clinton in New Hampshire, just five days away, and then go onto another victory in South Carolina as the anti-Hillary vote (quite substantial in the Democratic Party) coalesces behind the Illinois senator.

Hillary’s troubles were apparent to anyone who watched C-SPAN coverage of her Iowa rallies. Her crowds were always packed with older white women. Her campaign looked more like the last hurrah for ‘70s era feminists still fuming that the ERA amendment wasn’t passed.

So many mistakes Hillary has made. One was waiting so long for her to employ husband Bill on the campaign hustings, especially since he draws votes across the political spectrum.

But her single most significant mistake was her quasi backing of the Iraq war. According to the AP exit poll of caucus goers, the No. 1 issue for Democratic voters was the Iraq war, nearly a tie with the generic “economy” issue. Healthcare, a staple issue for Mrs. Clinton, was a close third.

Clearly, Democrats, and I think most Americans (and yes, most Republicans), want out of the Iraq war. Obama is resonating on this issue. He will go to New Hampshire and resonate with independents who populate the southern part of the state, mostly former Democrats from Massachusetts.

He will go on to win the nomination and the presidency on this issue, if Republicans don't wake up and smell the coffee.

We conservatives may also discover after the South Carolina primary that Mr. Obama is the likely Democratic nominee and that the "dreaded” Hillary has been replaced by the most left-wing Democratic nominee in memory.