Sending the MSM down the river...
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Related PJM LinksDNC Looks into Rerunning Florida, Michigan PrimariesPlenty of Hurdles to Rerunning FL, MI Dem PrimariesHoward Dean Captain of Sinking DNC Ship?Little Policy Difference Between Clinton, ObamaDems Abandon Florida Do-In Plan. So What Now?Dean Could Cost Dems FloridaSubscribe |
In Focus: Dems Debate Do-Overs
March 20, 2008 12:31 PM
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By Sheryl Longin The very notion that in this longest of all presidential races, Democrats are actually contemplating re-doing primaries in two key states is mind-boggling. Surely I’m not the only voter who worries about a political party’s ability to govern the entire country effectively when it’s making a mess of a basic procedure that is elemental to our democracy. Just to be clear, the problem began when Florida and Michigan moved their primary dates up to January, in order to gain more influence in the nominating process. In doing so, they violated DNC rules and were stripped of their delegates. At the time, no one anticipated the tight Obama/Clinton race and therefore it wasn’t a concern. Talk about a recipe for disaster. Here is one time the Dems actually should have listened to Hollywood, where legendary screenwriter William Goldman penned the adage, “nobody know anything.” Cut to the present, where Obama and Clinton are in a fight to the death, and those Michigan and Florida delegates mean a whole lot. Although Hillary won the popular vote in both states, that was then and this is now. Add to that the fact that Obama’s name wasn’t even on the ballot in Michigan, and what’s a poor delegate to do? On Monday, after endless wrangling, Florida rejected a revote. As of today, Michigan is still undecided, but time’s running out. Naturally enough, the fight provides yet another opportunity for Obama supporters to accuse Hillary supporters of trying to buy the election, and for Hillary to accuse the Obama campaign of effectively disenfranchising voters. With a revote looking more and more unlikely, the Obama campaign now supports a proposal to split the delegates 50/50, which Hillary rejects. What a dream ticket these two would make! Over at TalkLeft the grassroots base battles it out, each faction accusing the other of being undemocratic, except when they can blame it on Republicans. Speaking of the GOP, how did they escape this mess with a tight Romney/McCain race? While Democrats always use a proportional system to divvy up delegates, Republicans have different rules. In some states, the delegates are divided up based on the popular vote, but in many others, it’s a winner-take-all contest. Thank God for simplicity. If the Bush/Gore Florida 2000 dispute made many question our electoral college system, the Michigan and Florida 2008 Democratic primaries are making it look a whole lot better than the alternative. ———
Return to Pajamas Media homepage Related PJM LinksDNC Looks into Rerunning Florida, Michigan PrimariesPlenty of Hurdles to Rerunning FL, MI Dem PrimariesHoward Dean Captain of Sinking DNC Ship?Little Policy Difference Between Clinton, ObamaDems Abandon Florida Do-In Plan. So What Now?Dean Could Cost Dems FloridaLatest PJM ExclusivesLive from DNC: Hillary in the Spotlight Live from DNC: It?s a Mad World (Day 2) Live from DNC: Eyewitness to Mayhem (Day 2) Live from DNC: Malkin in Jeopardy Live from DNC: It?s Zombietime! (Day 2) Madonna?s McCain TantrumComments (4)John Sampson :PW :So basically Obama supporters are worried that if he doesn't get the nomination African Americans & young people will be disenfranchised but they don't care if people from Michigan & Florida are disenfranchised? Even if you don't care about that do the Democrats have any chance of winning in November without Michigan and Florida? Dryfuss :This is one year most of American's don't mind time passing quickly and the winner in the center of the ring is " ? ", being announced. We may all be in for a few surprises when the final count comes in. Mark Poling :That 50/50 proposal is a sure sign of weakness. Obama now knows he'd likely lose the do-overs, and would rather kick the can down the road with the lead he's got when Florida and Michigan are ignored. Interesting times. Comments have been archived for this page. |
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I'm sorry to see my brothers and sisters in Michigan falling for the big con. For years our primary votes (I'm from Florida) were virtually meaningless because the politicians had made a deal to let Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina get first crack, and control the choices left to us. They did this solely for their own benefit - it was easier to raise money and run those limited campaigns, rather than fight in a big state early.
Last year, we convinced our legislators to let us vote earlier. Hey- it's supposed to be a democracy. The party rules of BOTH parties said they'd strip half of our delegates if we did that. We were willing to take half as many delegates just to get votes that actually counted, so our legislatures passed the necessary laws and adjourned. The DNC and the candidates got together and agreed to punish us for having the guts to stand up for our rights.
The politicians (DNC) broke their standing rule by stripping the rest of our delegates, and the candidates agreed to skip our primaries. Dirty deals.
Right now we don't care who won or lost, but we want our votes to count. Friends in Michigan: stand up for yourselves, stand with us. If you give up this year, they are offering you the "compromise" that you can vote over, and a have a voice this year. That's not a compromise: you surrender and vote when they wanted to begin with. And 4 years from now, when they don't need your votes so much, you'll again have meaningless votes. Stand with us! Reject any revote!
And to all our sister states: please quit trashing us because we try to stand up for right, for good change. Tell the politicians to back off and let us vote when we want to.
Mar 20, 2008 05:57 PM