Friday, 02.15.08
The scorched earth primary fight
by Rick Gerson / Getty Images
Another bad idea
14 February 2008
Megan McArdle on Clinton's delegate desperation.
Clinton On Michigan And Florida
12 February 2008
Hillary Clinton is going to have a comeback. A respectable showing in Wisconsin will propel Clinton forward in Ohio and Texas, where she enjoys deep reservoirs of support and demographic terrains that play to her strengths. So why, ask her Democratic critics, is her campaign so aggressively pushing the idea of seating delegates from Michigan and Florida? Keep in mind that all candidates agreed not to contest these elections as a nod to the first-in-the-nation caucus and primary states, and that there was an understanding that delegates selected in these uncontested primaries would not be seated. To many, this smacks of changing the rules in the middle of the game. Julian Bond, ostensibly neutral in the Democratic race, has argued that failing to seat the delegates would represent an effort to deny minority voters their basic rights -- an entirely novel charge that wasn't raised earlier on, before Obama established a small but significant lead. Obama supporters are horrified.
A Delegate DealE.J. Dionne Jr. argues that Michigan and Florida will have to be counted no matter what. The best way to avoid a bruising battle is to have some kind of re-vote. |
Clintonian CynicismEzra Klein accuses the Clinton camp of cynically changing the rules for the sole purpose of gaining an edge. |
Penn's WoodshedJosh Marshall tears into the Clinton campaign for delegate shenanigans, and for tolerating the antics of strategist-in-chief Mark Penn. |
Unfond of BondJulian Bond, who has supported the Clinton effort to seat Florida and Michigan delegates, gets a stern talking-to from blogger Nonso Christian Ugbode. |
