Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Milwaukiedave]

Clinton Campaign Sets Up Website to Push to Change the Rules
February 20, 2008 8:49 AM

This morning brings the news that the campaign of Sen. Hillary Clinton, D-NY, has launched a new website http://www.delegatehub.com/ are announcing how they are officially preparing to make the case that the rules of the Democratic nomination process should be changed.

Among many "facts" they declare are some accurate ones, such as the idea that superdelegates, which in true nomenclatural dexterity they now term "automatic delegates" "are expected to exercise their best judgment in the interests of the nation and the Democratic Party."

But then comes this juicy non-fact:

"FACT: Florida and Michigan should count, both in the interest of fundamental fairness and honoring the spirit of the Democrats' 50-state strategy."

That's not a fact, that's an opinion.

And it's clear evidence (not that there was any mystery about it) that the Clinton campaign is trying to change the rules in the middle of the game.

Clinton's own senior adviser, Harold Ickes, voted as a member of the DNC committee to not recognize these two state delegations because they violated the rules of the primary scheduling process. Now as a Clinton campaign representative he's making the case that they should count.

The Obama people deserve to be tweaked for suggesting that the superdelegates should follow the lead of the regular delegates -- that's not what the rules dictate, either.

But there's a difference between pressuring/lobbying/strongly suggesting that superdelegates follow the will of regular delegates -- that ultimately will be decided by each individual superdelegate -- and trying to change the rules of the nominating process.

The Clinton camp is now calling 2208 "the number required for a candidate to secure the nomination with Florida and Michigan included."

But that's not the number.

According to the DNC, the number is 2025. And Florida and Michigan don�t get included.

The three chairs of the Democratic Convention Credentials Committee, which will decide this Michigan and Florida morass, all worked in the administration of Bill Clinton: Former Secretary of Labor Alexis Herman, Social Security Administration associate commissioner James Roosevelt Jr., and White House travel consultant Eliseo Roques-Arroyo, as noted yesterday by the Washington Times.

More and more, this reminds me of the Florida recount.

Don't like the rules? Change the rules.

Count every vote -- except the ones for the other guy.

- jpt

http://blogs.abcnews.com/politicalpunch/2008/02/clinton-campa-2.html

[Kuros]

Clinton's campaigning to get MI and FL votes to be counted.

She's campaigning. That's what Presidential candidates do.

[Milwaukiedave]

Ickes voted for the rules, before he campaigned against them. Hmm..the irony.

[stillnotking]

The real humor:

[Milwaukiedave]

Notking,

Actually Tapper (who wrote that), said that even if Hillary Clinton wins by one vote in both Ohio and Texas, she'll stay in the race (he actually said keep moving the goal posts back) even though they are saying those two states are the "firewall".

You are right though, in the end the whole controversy over the superdelegates and Florida/Michigan not being seated becomes a moot point if she doesn't win both.

[Czarjorge]

I would be worried about Ohio if I were Hillsy. Wisconsin and Ohio aren't that far apart demographically. Chuck Todd did the math today on Hardball and Clinton would have to win by 65-70% to take the pledged delegate lead. That's not going to happen. Clinton has also lost one or two superdelegates in the last three weeks and Obama has picked up thirteen, including that defector and possibly another from Clinton.

What I don't understand is that they don't see the harm they're doing. The Clintons really seem to believe they HAVE to have the White House of the US will go down the toilet. Either that or they're so privileged and so entitled that they're willing to screw the party, and possibly the general, to win the nomination. I'm starting to swing away from not only not voting for Clinton if she wins the nomination, but voting for McCain just so Clinton doesn't get the Presidency.

[Paddycakes]

I don't like Hillary.

She seems contrived... and rather desperate.

[Milwaukiedave]

[DCJames]

Hillary disgusts me.

[Milwaukiedave]

[stillnotking]

[stillnotking]

[Czarjorge]

SNK, on a logical level I agree with you. I would prefer a candidate with a little class. The problem is the political hackery of Clinton isn't taken the same way by people who are political junkies. It would seem to a number of us who post around here politics has the same or greater appeal of sports. I know it does for me. I waste way too much time with it, but it's usually only every two or four years.

They called Bill "Slick Willy" for a reason. Where'd that "Slick" go. And Hillary looks doubly worse compared to a candidate like Obama. I know it's not completely true of Obama, but I would like to live in a world where the candidate is running because they want to do good by the US citizenry and not just for power. Maybe I saw "Mr. Smith goes to Washington" when I was still too impressionable a youth, but Obama is as close to that I've had the chance to see and the idea of Cruella Deville swooping in and throwing dead puppies at the party pisses me off.

[stillnotking]

[Kuros]

All these criticisms seem pretty petty to me.

Jesus, no wonder people flock to Obama.