Clinton would be arguing a different position if Obama had won.
I don’t think at this point it will make a difference because most democrats and all the independents I know are fed up and will either vote McCVain or not vote at all. The Dems are losers once again.

this is a superdelegate that the rest of the superdelegates should refer too. rules are rule and should be honored. I want to know why the people are made at the DNC they should be upset with local government for not changing the date and putting their vote at risk.

I think that since Fla. and Mich. broke the rules and got penalized that they don’t deserve a re-vote. They knew the consequences but they went ahead and moved their primaries up anyway. And now that it is so close in the delegate race they want to cry and whine to try to get a redo. Well they shouldn’t get one.

If anything they should halve the delegates between the two and be done with it. That way all of the whining stops and no one has to shell out the money to pay for another vote.

Cynthia, Covington, Ga.

Of course, the two states should hold revotes, after which their delegates should be seated. The people are entitled to the vote and should not be penalized because their party did not abide by the rules.

That is the point, Jason. The timing rules are no longer as relevant as they were 50 years ago and it has been too long that Iowa and New Hampshire have been allowed to make a decission for the rest of the nation- expecting the other 48 to rubber stamp that decission.

STATES should rotate the privilage of being FIRST or we should make sweeping changes and hold a National Primary. This would make each state as relevant as the next and that is the ONLY FAIR way to do this. There is no reason in the age of modern technology that we need to allow two states who think they are superior to make the decission for the rest of us.

I believe that we have seen record numbers of voters turning out in states that are holding primaries beyond Super Tues because of the fact that they NOW feel that their vote actually means something and that they can have a REAL say in the selection of a candidate, instead of voter appathy because the decission has already been made early in the process - so why waste time going to the polls.

So I do not blame Florida and Michigan for wanting to do better by the voters in their states by challenging the arbitrary and very stupid timing rules that I feel are no longer necessary in our system. I ONLY blame the DNC for being so punitive (they could have only stripped the delegates by 50% as it states in the by-laws, but Howard Dean had to make a point by punishing FL & MI excessively).

I also will cheerfully point the blame at Iowa and New Hampshire for continuing to think that they are so superior to other states- that they actually have passed laws in NH that they expect other states to follow - HOW ARROGANT!

Anderson. I am a Canadian observer that has been watching CNN very closely over the past few months. Recently I have become very concerned about the position CNN has been taking regarding the Obama campaign. This non stop exposure of the Sound Bite and Video of Rev Jeremiah Wright is very upsetting. Looking in from my point of view, it appears that CNN is being pressured to discredit the Obama campaign. Frankly I am disgusted.

Jason,
If you want to cede these two states to the Republicans in the fall, then go right ahead and disenfrancise over 2 million Democrat votes. One thing we are all taught from a very early age is that voting is the one of the most important things that an American citizen does. Over 2 million people went out and voted and now you are telling them their votes don’t count, what does that say for democracy. To me the DNC has way to much power and are trying to teach the local Democrats in these 2 states a lesson. Why shouldn’t states hold primaries when they want to, what right does the DNC have to tell a state when it can or can’t hold a primary? I have always thought that Iowa and New Hampshire are given way to much say in the primary process. In Iowa a very small percentage of elgible voters take part in the Caucus and yet this very small percentage of voters get to decide who is best to run the country. Why shouldn’t a larger state with a primary not have as much say as a small state like Iowa with a caucus? The entire system is broken and needs to be fixed!

On another matter, what are your views on the current controversy that Senator Obama finds himself in with the Reverend Wright? Since you are a superdelegate pledged to Obama would be very interested in your thoughts on this controversy and if you think it will have a negative impact on Obama if he is the Democrat nominee.

I have always believed in following the rules, BUT in this case I feel that the it is a power trip for the DNC and like parents sometime we need to re-examine the rules and make changes that are BEST for all.

I have been a believer for a lot of years that we need to change the way we do the elections. We need to make it easier for ALL people’s VOTE TO COUNT, not play the game of one state having more power that others.

This doesn’t help me in trying to explain to my daughter and husband the importance of voting when she says “why vote, my one vote doesn’t count”!!!

I agree with all of what you said, Jason. I’ve heard all sorts of alternatives - split the votes, do a revote, etc. - the thing is, whatever “solution” they come up with, not everybody will be happy with it. Somewhere, someone will complain. It also sets a bad precedent. I do hope that somehow, this will be resolved very soon so we can put this behind us and focus on uniting as a party.

Lilibeth
Edmonds, Washington

It furthers the interests of democracy to let the will of ALL of the people be heard. The voters of all states should have input into the primary section process–that is the American way.

At this point we need as much input and feedback from the people as possible, especially give the recent revelations about Obama.

Obama’s statements that he did not know about his Pastor’s ravings against America are extremely problematic. Either Obama is lying or his powers of perception and judgment are weak. It is difficult to understand how someone could call this Pastor “like my Uncle” and follow his teachings for 20 years– without realizing that this Pastor held anti-American views.

Whether Obama is lying or just oblivious, either way he has shown himself not up to the job of exercising the most crucial judgment and decisionmaking in the country.

Obama has just as much experience as Jason Rae and would make a great VP. Obama/Rae ‘08, “EXPERIENCE” you can count on.

. . .Jason is a very honest, intelligent young superdelegate, as the rest of the
Obama Supporters.

OBAMA / RAE 08.

I agree with superdelegateJason Rae. He wants to do things fair and square. A revote is certainly in order . I don’t know about anyone else out there but for Hillary Clinton to continue to say that she should get the delegates in Forida or Michigan when she signed an agreement not to campaign in those states before February 2008 is unbelievable. It really shows something about her character. Today I heard that her campaign has found some type of loophole to reallocate delegates in midstream. This makes me furious. I cant believe this type of unfair play. Some respect the rules and others are above them or try to circumvent them. Pretty slick! Does she think the Demoratic party will heal if she wins with these type of tactics? I don’t think so.

Hang tough Jason. No one want to take responsibility for their actions anymore. This should be a lesson for all politicos not to buck the system esp when it is of their own making. We are not talking about the Constitution here (although we could have a lively debate re the damage Bush and his cronies have done treating that august document like gumbie) , but politics. Good grief.

on the other hand…the weather played a very vital role in the primaries that were held in Ohio… the weather was too bad for me to vote..i feel disenfranchised.. and if i can get over it.. so can these other states…isnt it funny how Florida is always controversally a key factor in elections?

Florida should NOT be counted. I am disgusted with the hacks that allowed Florida to move the primary to Jan 29th. The DNC said it would not seat the delegates, and it should stay that way.

If Clinton were winning the popular vote, she would NOT be pushing for Florida to count.

When someone is elected, congress should revamp the rules of voting with each state’s representation. Like you said, you can’t do it now.

Finally! A superdelegate who stands up for the rules. That is what this country is all about. Fair is fair. I also don’t like that fact that Clinton is constantly able to broadcast to all of America that she won Florida/Michigan. No, she did not. No one “won” those two states. They did not count. I do believe she will be in for a rude awakening once the revotes are done because tons of people stayed home that day. CNN’s own reporter stated that yes, it was a record turnout but it was republicans that turned out in large numbers for FL/MI. Let’s call a spade a spade and be fair. CNN also showed Clinton talking in Oct. 2007 stating she didn’t know why MI would vote as they didn’t count anyway.

Old politics=throw out with the kitchen sink
New politics=breath of fresh air

Barack Hussein Obama writes, “I noticed that people had begun to listen to my opinion. It was a discovery that made me hungry for words. Not words to hide behind but words that could carry a message, support an idea. .” (Page 105). THIS SHOULD SAY IT ALL!

I don’t think the people of Michigan and Florida should be punished for what their DNC reps did. Let them re-vote and let the chips fall where they may.

let’s let everyone’s vote count or it will be another election that we haven’t done the right thing. I want to believe that our elections can really matter to everyone and that everyone matters. come on and just do the right thing, the people of mi. and fla. really had no say in the matter, so let’s count everyone. would you want your vote to count?

Everything was known in advance to lawmakers and voters. No primaries would count. No delegates seated. You knew the rules. You broke the rules. No revote. No excuses. Too bad. Vote in November.

The only compromise should be to seat the half the delegates (as the RNC did) with a 50/50 split.

This precedent will undoubtably show other states they don’t have to follow any rules either. They will also follow suit in years to come.

Dems need to get their act together. McCain will be a formiddable foe.

A national primary is the only way to go. Rules need to be uniform and apply to all states. Caucuses are a waste of time and do not give all people the chance to vote. How democratic is that?

I don’t understand why Florida and Michigan residents are not roasting their elected officials who KNEW what changing the primary dates would cause. Republican or Democrat , they should be held accountable for the damage they have caused. Boot them out or make THEM pay for a re-vote. They have more money than most of us, anyway. I’m all for the booting out part but am not a Florida or Michigan voter. I’d be raising hell if I was. Voters have a right to be whiney; they were undermined by the very people who are supposed to be working for them. Clinton should be complaining. Obama should be complaining. We all should be complaining.

A national primary. Top vote getters duke it out at the convention ( I know I’d tune in). We all vote in November. Popular vote wins. No super delegates. DNC has too many screwy rules.

Enough with the cry babies. Fla. had no business holding an early
primary, they were warned it wouldn’t count.
C’est la guerre.

I do not believe that the best thing is to disfranchise two states. The DNC should not have created those rules to begin with and have taken away the delegates. I think the system at which the delegates are allocated are undemocratic and the system itself needs to be reworked. This is not just about politics. This is not just about giving advantages to any of the candidates. This is fundamentally the right thing to do. I support a re-vote as the best option for both states, but I feel that it needs to be a proper and fair re-vote. And lets not kid ourselves. The 50/50 solution the farthest thing from fair. It will not give Florida a voice, it will just cool some tensions. If the voice of Florida is support for one candidate give that candidate the delegates they deserve.

Florida and Michigan are victims of their own undoing; both, for whatever reasons, moved up the dates of their primary elections in violation of DNC rules. Both States knew that the penalty for advancing the dates would mean that their votes would not be counted and that their delegations would not be seated at the Denver Convention. In fact Sen. Clinton said in October of 2007, that the Michigan contest would not matter. Now nominating contest to so close that the votes may well matter; she wants the votes counted because she is behind. The States are crying foul and alleging disenfranchisement forgetting that they brought this on themselves. At this juncture, any type of “do-over” would reward bad behavior and dilute the future rulemaking authority of the DNC. The DNC should simply invoke the rules and tell Florida and Michigan that they can participate in 2012; end of story let the chips fall where they may. Nevertheless, as an accommodation, the ONLY offer that the DNC should make is a 50/50 split of votes and pledged delegates from both states between the two candidates, permit the delegations to be seated and the super delegates would then be free to back their candidate of choice.

In my view as a loyal american I will not cast a vote for Obama…He appears to have very POOR judgement in many areas of his life..It would appear he has chosen a wife who hates american until recently, and Wright speaks for himself..He is preaching hate the white man, and hate america while he humps the pulpit…Obama has proven to most americans that he is not even fit to be a U.S. Senator… This story will stay alive for along time..Wright is wrong .. Obama is a Halfrican……He’s been walking both sides of the street for 25 years and it has finally caught up with him…

Please CNN start reporting on the big story of the day, which is Obama associates with people who hate America..and Hate the white race….stop avoiding this story and apologizing for talking about it..Just report the news……

This is yet another proof that the election system in US is outdated and needs to be changed. There should be a national primary instead of these messy caucuses and primaries all spread around. Electoral votes system in the general election should be abandoned as well.

I don’t remember anyone in Fla. and Mich. protesting back when the DNC was bragging that early primaries would give voters more clout in the nominating process.

Let’s follow the rules. FL & MI were told that their delegates would not be seated. I don’t know why the Clinton campaign team seems to think that they can do whatever they want. The DNC needs to split the delegates 50/50 and be done with it.

Re-voting is a set up against Obama to help Hillary win. It should be no revote, split the delegates in half and be done with it. Let the voters in Florida and Michigan deal with those that made decision to move the primaries up. Hillary is dirty and will do whatever to win. If a revote is done, it will be a race and gender issue again. Go Home Hillary and but a home monitor on Bill and make sure he dont stray from home again.

Jason, why do you believe that YOUR vote should count when the voters of Florida and Michigan, in good faith, took the time to show up at the polls with the belief that THEIR vote would count too?
Voters don’t make the rules, the DNC does.
Who are we punishing? The American voting public. Either their vote won’t count (meaning they wasted their time showing up), or they’ll have to show up for a re-vote (meaning their wasted their time showing up the first time - see a pattern here?….).
Why wasn’t this potential problem addressed BEFORE this mess?
The Democrats are running on a platform that promises, in part, that they can fix the problems this country faces. They could prove that “Obamillary” and company are capable of tackling these problems by showing to us, the voting public, that they can resolve the simple problem of choosing a candidate that the people support.
This means that my vote (and that of all other voters), should have as much weight as yours, Jason. The only way to do that is to tally the nationwide popular vote (including Florida and Michigan) and award all delegates (including superdelegates) accordingly.
Anything else seems like a farce. How many people are going to vote for McCain just out of knee-jerk distaste for the political infighting?

Rules are rules until they aren’t anymore. Flexibility is a great asset to any organization. If the DNC can’t figure out a way to re-enfranchise the voters in Florida and Michigan then it just comes to prove the organization has ossified in ideological squabbles and can’t bring voters a feasible candidate. I think we’ll just have to contend with another Republican president - which means no healthcare, republican management of the war in Iraq, and Republican management of our country’s economic woes.
I’ve never voted Republican in my life, and I will vote Democratic this November as well, but I wonder if my Democratic allegiance is just taken for granted by the Party who”s agreen to dissagree on everything>

I think that Florida and Michigan should be punished. They should not be allowed to seat any delegates. After that, they can just take their votes to the Republicans in November. The Republican party does not need them or their support. How dare they do as instructed by their elected officials and State party leades. They had no right and should all be deported.

And here, Jason, is where your age and inexperience show. These rules were made 30, 40, 50 years ago. Many states moved up their primary dates because by the time the primary got around the nominee had already been decided and we were left with our votes not counting. This is the first primary in, well, 30 or 40 years where ALL 50 states’ delegates actually are making a difference.

This is also where Obama’s platform of change is so apparent. It is the “old boys network” that is still running the party. It appears they haven’t caught up with the current century. And this, unfortunately, will be their downfall.

If they had a clue (and I highly doubt they do in fact understand the undercurrent flowing out here among us non-elite party members), they would award the delegates of the 2 affected states on a 51-49 basis to Clinton. She had the foresight to keep her name on the ballot so she should get the majority. But Obama should also not be punished for following the “rules”. And the delegates then do count.

Apparently this party does not recall the disenfranchisement of thousands of voters in the previous 2 elections (Florida and Ohio, respectively). As such, they seem hell-bent on reliving those mistakes. The problem this time around, though, is that they will disenfranchise not only Dems in Florida and Michigan, but also in other states. Call it a show of unity/support, but if they do not seat the delegates from those 2 states (or allow a “do-over”), this registered Democrat WILL be changing parties.

(Where, oh where is Mr. Chips when you need him?)

To everyoe who thinks that FL and MI should not count, how can anyone be moninated or for that matter elected for president if evey state and all people do not have their voices heard?

You know that if Obama had won FL and had cared enough about the people of MI to leave his name on the ballot and won, he would want all the delegates because than his lead would be huge and the superdelegates would not seem that important.

The only fair thing to do going forward is all states vote on one day just like the general election, maybe around the middle of February, and then everyone’s vote will count.

RULES are RULES, please stop making excuses. We have millions of people currently in jail because they could not follow the rules — our society is built on rules — the bible is built on rules. It I where a citizen in Florida or Mich., I would make it a point to tell the responsible leadership that MY VOTE for them is GONE. Bottom line — they GOOFED! Own up to your responsible and stop asking for a handout to make everything okay!

Why not fine florida,,say $100,000 and seat their delegates,then hold rodo in michigan,,cheap,fair,problem solved…oh yes, why didn’t Obama “borrow”speach from his pastor?then he could reply “they are just words” xena

The two candidates are so close in every primary that it would save millions of dollars if they just split the Michigan and Florida delegates and forgot about a revote/redo.

Florida & Michigan, if they want to be seated & vote counted should come up with their own money for the revote. How they do it is their own problem. If not split 50-50 for Hillary & Obama.

It is my wright and duty to vote and nobody could take this away . I am from Michigan and I do not care if Governor Granholm mishandled the primary in my state , nether I should care for rules made by Democratic party . The only thing people from Michigan and Florida want is to have their voices heard. For all this mess somebody should be responsible. You can’t violate constitutional rights of people in some states and not be countable for.

for the good of all we need to know when its ok to brake rules. rules are created to help create order when there is chaos and that is important to know when it’s okay and even important to break the rules. Otherwise, the rules created to help us grow will keep us prisoners and prevent us from growing. The most evil things done in this world are done when people are fallowing the rules. where there is no love there must be rules and law.

I know that rules were put into place for the primaries. Yet, when the DNC leaders knew ahead of time that FL and MI had moved up their elections, why didn’t they try to resolve the issue at that time? I think this all could have been avoided with good ole good sense. Instead, the DNC was to busy trying to show their muscle and now everybody suffers. Because of the lack of effective leadership skills, the DNC has created a monster. They need to get it together or this election is going straight down the toilet.

There is no way to be fair in this situation, so you have to settle on just trying to be equal. Split them down the middle.

I agree with a 50,50 count. Mrs Clinton was in a rush when she claims ,many times that she won both states…hum.. Means what she can to win.. everything… Hope superdelegates see it the samething…

Why would Florida need to revote at all? Both candidates were on the ballot there, and they made their choices. If they’re going to seat the delegates. then seat them as they stand. No need to spend the money on a revote when the voters had both main candidates to choose from.

The DNC needs to stop this election bickering by asking Hillary to drop out of the race. She is trying to do something that will certainly cause a civil war between races. Mr Obama should not debate her again, she can’t win. Superdelegates should cast their vote for the choice of the American people. (popular vote)

Howard Dean could have done more to negotiate a better solution prior to FL and MI holding their primaries. He knows the importance of this year’s democratic presidential election. He knows the cost for a state primary is shared by the state and some unit of local government. He knows that the costs of a general election and state primary are often lumped together. It’s easy to make the rules when you don’t have to absorb the costs for anything.

It would be a shame to disenfranchise those voters in FL and MI who did vote in ther respective primaries. Both states had record turnouts.
FL in 2008 — 1,737,197; in 2004 — 753,762
MI in 2008 — 592,261; in 2004 — 163,769

What I can’t understand is the logic in Sen. Obama’s thinking by taking his name off the MI ballot. He claims he is running a 50 state campaign, yet he chose to take his name off the MI ballot. Why?

spoken like a true obama supporter. but the republicans did it in florida, jacko__.

I feel that since Florida is not having a re-vote, seating the delegates equally is the only way there can be any representation at the DNC. Wrt Michigan, they are entertaining another primary. I’m okay with these solutions, but I think it is a very immature viewpoint to blame the candidates or Howard Dean for this. If I were a voter in either Michigan or Florida, I’d think twice before re-electing these officials who would so haphazardly and whimsically mishandle my right to vote. They are the ones whom the voters should be pressing on this issue. They broke the rules knowing full well the consequences to the people whom they SERVE…I repeat SERVE. It was a misuse of authority and they need to be held accountable by the DNC AND the voters.

I’m not completely familiar w/ all of the DNC rules, but what I do know is that usually only a few early states decide the nominee… usually the same few states… So I think those two states had every right to have their primaries earlier. It’s not fair that some states rarely get a say and it’s ok to stand up against that. Maybe if the DNC rules were more reasonable, this wouldn’t have happened in the first place. I’m all for a re-vote or whatever, but maybe split the bill or something. DNC is partially responsible.

Rae is absolutely right about not changing the rules midstream. I beleive it is also wrong to allow a re-vote. They broke the rules - it should not count PERIOD. If they get to revote, then we should allow a revote for every state since many people in many states may have changed their minds since the earlier primaries.

Folk in FL and MI who are followers of the political process should have known what was happening, for there was considerabe coverage in the press, at least in FL.

My outraage is not with the DNC, it is with the FDP; even after being offered a compromise to move the date back to ‘Super Tuesday’, they still rejected the offer. The mess in FL is all the result of some party big-wigs thinking moving the date would give their ‘candidate of choice’ an unsurmountable lead, but it back-fired.

The irony of this is, these are the very folk who have been selected to make rules, yet they refuse to live by rules.

For those that say they have been cheated the ability to influence the selection of the presidential candidate (which you haven’t, since you still can vote in Nov.), I say now is the time to bombard the lawmakers to make changes to the rules that will be satisfactory to the majority; for we know that whatever is done, it is not going to satisfy everyone.

You have four years from now to accomplish this… This cycle is over!

What is wrong with everyone?!
It is unfortuante that their votes don’t count but they broke the rules. The people from Florida and MIchigan who followed the rules did not vote because they know it would not count, so counting the illegal votes is a disservice to them. If revoting is permitted, then offer it to every state as they may have changed their minds since their primaries (many in NJ wish they had voted to Obama when they see that he is more likely to beat McCain). Interesting how the Clinton supporters are the ones who don’t follw the rules and then want special allowances. Let’s not forget that the candidates signed a statement of understanding and adherance to the rule that invalidated those delegates.

I am not sure about Michigan but I am pretty sure Florida should not count at all. The reason being is that they have a history of screwing up elections and rules are put in place to follow not to break. What would happen if they decide in the general election not to vote until Nov. 3rd or 4 th? Would we let those count? If people would follow the rules in the first place we would not be having any discussion about this and I think it is a bad situation when we allow people to break rules. It sets a bad example for all.

Jason,
I totally agree with Mischelle/ Illinois. The states of New Hampshire and Iowa should not be allowed to make decisions for the whole country. Enough, enough. We should hold a national primary. Get rid of the caucuses and the old “two step” voting.

LET THE VOTES COUNT FOR MICHIGAN AND FLORIDA !!!!!!

HILLARY ‘08 !!!

I think this is a poor choice. We are going to lose the Dems. in Florida to Mccain come Nov. Say good bye to the Democratic party in Florida.
I think that the media has done a poor job covering the candidates to begin with, and we were not given an adequate look at both candidates. I know alot of people that would have voted different if the media had vetted Obama in the first place. But MSNBC has decided that they are going to decide the Democratic nominee not New Hampshire and Iowa. So I guess they too thought it was time to change the landscape of how America chooses the President not just Michigan and Florida!!
I will change to Independent as will my husband (who is a Vietnam Vet. and Dem. since 1974) if MSNBC, Obama and a bunch of “Johnny come lately’s” to the Democratic party mess up our party, that we have been devoted to for decades. You better hope that these people that are new to the party and cross overs (repubs.) messing in our party decide they like it enough to stay, and not just until some other unvetted politician new to the scene comes along say… a Repub. as they have no strong ties to the party just a candidate!! This is a sad day when Democracy has possibly lost in 2 states in the good ole U.S.A. Are you watching Iraq… this is democracy at work!!! The irony is everyone was on the ballot in Mich. Obama took his name off!! That is what I would call a rookie mistake. He has shown the people of Mich. that their voice is unimportant to him. Then people paint Hillary as the bad guy because she left her name on!!! Obama called the Florida vote in Jan. a beauty contest!!! Pathetic just pathetic!!! Well DNC you are looking silly, unorganized and ill equipped to put a candidate in the White House when all you had to do to win this time, was present a candidate in November!!!

Don’tchathink maybe, you should have said that this young man has already come out in support of Obama? Certainly makes his un-American comments make more sense.

Why is anyone listening to this kid?? He’s what….like 12 years old?? He only became a superdelegate by luck. What actual time does he have in any office anyway?? He’s just trying to make a name for himself.

The voters in those two states should NOT be penalized for a stupid and power-tripping decision made by republican leaders and Howard Dean. FIRE Howard Dean…..he misuses his power and authority. And do not vote for your respective republican leaders who made the awful decision to move up the dates for their primaries…..they should lose their jobs, too. Same for MI.

Get rid of the delegate system as well as the electoral college entirely. They are dinosaurs and are no longer needed. Go with the popular vote to determine the winner and be done with it. The only people who don’t want to let go of an old system that no longer works are the ones who are addicted to the power the old system holds.

As a life long democrat, I agree, no re-vote should be done in Florida. Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton’s name was on the ballot here. In Michigan, Obama’s name was not on the ballot, so that state should redo it’s election. Four states changed their primary dates, but only two states were penalized by the DNC.

The DNC leadership seems to forget the party is made up of democratic voters. Those supporters voice’s and delegates have the right to be honored. Not be disenfranchised by some silly rule book the DNC wishes to conveniently invoke.

I’ll lay it out there for you Jason: If Florida’s delegation is not seated in Denver. Then my families vote, and a lot of other democratic Floridians, will be not voting to seat a democrat in November in the White House. It’s that simple!

One final note, the DNC can stop sending me weekly emails begging for a donations. I have stop all funds until this matter is resolved.

I think that every one needs to stop for a minute. I want you to think how you would feel if you were stripped of your right to have your voice heard.
When we take a situation that agrees with our own agenda, then we tend to take a light look at the facts. Now when it actually impacts us personally, then we take a more measured approach to how we will be impacted, and what needs to be done so we are treated fairly. I would be outraged if my vote was taken away from me for some rule I had no control over. Also a decision made by politicians in my state that I had no control over.
I was an Obama supporter when the Jan. primaries were held. I still wanted those votes to count. So did Obama he said that he thought the Delegates should be seated. Then he lost the primary and he changed his mind…so did I .. about Obama though.
Remember people if it can happen to “the other guy” it can happen to you. Who will stand up for you if you don’t stand up for the other guy. Pretty soon you stand alone.

And this is a point only because Senator Clinton is whining!! Florida and Michigan should not be allowed to seat their delegates. I also think that all of this is happening to bring this process to the attention of the average voter…and if it’s not working let’s work together and rewrite the rules, but not now just because Hillary is whining. I mean think about it people if she had not opened her mind the states would have taken their punishment and moved on!!!

I do not not think that the voters decided the rules.

I agree, the rule is the rule BUT bad rule must be change.

Ignoring millions of voters is a bad rule.

Do a re vote.

So people are tired of NH and Iowa having the say? The primaries were MONTHS ago and we still don’t have a winner. The irony of it is that if Michigan and Florida had held their place, they could have had the power they tried to get through breaking the rules. I think “tough cookies” is how my mom used to put it.

I can’t believe your stance on this. It’s because of Democrats like you that the election will be lost in November. Ironically, it will probably be lost in Florida. Florida seems to decide everything whether it’s President elections or DNC nominations.
Obama and his minister will be played over and over again in November and Obama will lose the white male vote that he’s getting now and lose the election. At that time, please remember how you were a superdelegate for Obama. Go Hillary!

Wouldn’t Senator Obama have been something different if he had won what the Obama mouthpiece, the mainstream media, is calling a “beauty contest”. The main stream media keeps repeating the fact Senator Obama didn’t campaign there. They conveniently forget Senator didnt campaign there as well.
Was the vote in Florida a perfect situation? Nobody can argue it was. However, given the situation we are in there are only two choices, count the vote, however imperfect, or disenfranchise Floridians and lose Florida in the general.
What other fair way is the Obama campaign talking about; maybe allocate delegates based on his victory in the Mississippi primaries or the Idaho Caucus.

Seating delegates from MIchigan and Florida under the present circumstances is TOTALY wrong. When the DNC set the rules everyone knew what they were. Hiilary Clinton and Barack Obama both agreed not to campaign in those states. In fact Obama did not even register to be placed on their tickets. Hillary chose to ignore her agreemant, sensing the potential for a coup there. So, it is no wonder that she came away with “wins” in these two states. It was not a fair contest, with Obama abiding by the rules and his agreement, while Hillary chose to break her agreement and snub her nose at the DNC rules. I can’t help believe that as president she will not snub her nose at all of us and do what she pleases.
It is strange that this is not discussed publically on the news or by the Democratic party, or by Senator Obama’s supporters. I think that this needs to be brought out and discussed to show the duplicity of Clinton. Does she carry a special “get out of jail free” card that allows her to get away with her double-crossing tactics?

I am really disappointed in the Clintons. They are not telling Americans the truth. Only they just want power or probably money.Lastly, please clinton, forget this ” I am more experience than Obama. The Americans are just tired of people like you. You mean President Bush have no experience? and look what is happening to America with his policies. Oh, please(Bitte, in German) tell us another thing

Clinton forget this florida re-vote. obama is already too ahead and no looking back. The superdelegates are not stupid and they already saw the popular votes and they will not change the peoples choice. Chikena

Regardless of rule breaking, deadlines, etc. Isn’t it amazing how we have individuals in our country who should be able to vote in their primaries but simply can’t due to a handful of ‘lawmakers’ who were elected by these very same individuals . . . welcome to America?

Let me add another perspective, Jason. You have a record turnout of 1.7 million democrats that voted in a fair and legal contest that was on an even playing field in Florida. Yet the DNC says our vote doesn’t count because the Republican State Legislature and Republican Governor slipped into a widely popular vote reform bill, a provision to move up the primary to one week before the DNC said it could be held. One week! Does that punishment fit the crime? The best that the DNC could come up with was to punish the voters themselves for something totally out of their control? They couldn’t fine the state party or something? So now, as in 2000, the Republican leaders of our state are seeing to it that our choice doesn’t count. Only, in 2000 we knew it was the Republican’s fault. This time is different. It’s the insensitivity to voters and total lack of judgement of the DNC in meting out this death sentence to the voters who did nothing but vote their preference when told to. When you are deciding whether or not to seat Florida’s delegates, just remember it is the voters being punished not the state party. In summary, if the DNC doesn’t want my vote now, they won’t get it in November either.

The national party failed to see early primaries for what they were, a political move to gain advantage by the Republican Party. If the Democratic Party had done the same thing I would be cheering their brilliance. As it is, I am disappointed in the poor handling of this situation.

When Republican legislatures in Florida and Michigan moved up the primary date, they did so in knowledge of the rules effecting the Republican and Democratic parties. In close races the Democratic rules hamper a candidate gaining enough delegates to win before the convention more than the Republican ones do. This gave the Republicans an advantage and they used it effectively.

Since that vote the national party failed to effectively resolve the problem either by paying for the early elections or by suspending their rules about when primaries could be held. They could have said the primary system needs a revamping and suspended the rule and that would have been the best result. Instead they blamed the state parties and fueled the flames that had the candidates blaming each other. Voting not to seat these delegations only compounds this problem. I hear alot about the nomination being “stolen” this year. If these delegations are not seated, the nomination may indeed be stolen, not from Senator Obama, but from Senator Clinton.

Florida has the best case for being seated. Everyone was on the ballot and no one campaigned in the state. It was a level playing field and a clear winner exists. I say seat the Florida delegation as it stands.

In Michigan Senator Clinton was the only candidate on the ballot. No other candidates, including the one I support, appeared on the ballot. This was stupid campaigning on the part of the other candidates. They had to know there would some effort to seat of decline delegates and their votes would give them a voice. As it is, only Senator Clinton any standing in the argument. I could see a revote there, but think we should just seat the delegates as they stand.

As a Florida voter I agree we can not seat the delegates under the present rules. But what is not widely reported is that we have a Republican Legislature & Governor who set the date for the Florida Primary; breaking their own parties rules in the process. However, their party chose to punish the Florida voters by only seating half of the delegates earned for each candidate. This will now be the 3rd presidential election the DNC has allowed the Fl voter to be disenfranchised. How can we as Americans really believe that the vote of the sons & daughters of Fl. fighting for democracy on foreign soil today should not be reflected because party leaders play politics with when primaries should be held.
Ed, all of the democratic candidates were on the ballot in Fl., as a matter of fact Senator Obama ran a tv commercial here in violation of the no campaign agreemant.
The DNC had better find a way to resolve this mess & seat our delegates; revote if needed. Most of my dem friends will be voting Republican in November

Lets just give them all to Obama, cause thats what your doing if there is no revote, we all know Clinton would win Florida for sure, just give it to OB just like the media has and say hello President McCain. As usual the Dems just mess up. I’m fed up! Will vote for McCain, just hope he gets a good VP.

Finally the mask is off…Howard Dean and the legislators in Washington in some many words have confirmed what a lot of people knew all along that the democratic race to elect a nominee was rigged from the beginning. Now they are saying that the only way they will seat those delegates at the convention until they are certain that those delegates will not affect Obama’s nomination. What king of a decision is that? Is that their idea of a fair and impartial decision? What a joke!

Ladies and gentlemen, the DNC and Howard Dean have betrayed us in the worse possible way.

If you are as disgusted as I am with the DNC, I invite you to boicott the party in November and simply vote for another candidate. Personally I am withdrawing my affiliation to the Democratic Party pernanently.

It should not be about if Hillary or Obama had one florida or michigan. simply you cant have a real and valued election without counting those states. To think that this won’t tear the dems apart is wrong and the DNC may have cost their party the election by doing this.

By the way Anderson; CNN is obviously Obama supporter. You are the only one who even apears somewhat fair.

Is it true that if these two states do a re-vote they get an additional amount of delegates because they are voting at the rear of the promary caucus season? If that were true (and it may not be) it would be a great strategy to get your state to break the rules and then weasel back in at the end to give the candidate of your choice the tipping points. Hmmm? I wonder which candidate would think that little strategy up. Didn’t this kind of thing happen during one of Bill Clinton’s bids for the Whitehouse.

This young man is correct—and I might add much more mature than some of the folks ranting and raving.
The fault does NOT lie with the Obama campaign! The Clinton, Edwards, Beiden, Dodd,etc campaigns ALL AGREED to the rules.
The fault lies in the STATES where the rules were broken.
Gov. Dean is not to blame. The Democratic Party is not to blame for this.
The Clintonites would have us believe that they are champions of Florida and Michigan—-That they care about disenfranchisement.
THEY CARE ABOUT WINNING AT ANY COST.
Their supporters who threaten to “boicott” the party or “vote for Mccaing because Barak H Osama is a lier” need to learn the facts—and how to SPELL.

Am I wrong in understanding that the republician party told the democratic party that if they wanted a paper trail (re- voting )that they would have to move up their voting to Jan 29th.and if this is true its just more of the republicians way of screwing up the voting in florida again.

I have not read all the comments posted so far on this issue, but I am glad about the first 3 or 4 comments. Rules are rules. What I do not understand is Hillary Clinton’s action here.

It is my view that she (Hillary) is the cause of the problems about the current fiasco involving Florida and Michigan. Clinton as a lawyer should learn to obey Party laws. Why is she arguing that the illegal votes should count? This is her second show of lack of judgement (teh first was voting for the Iraq war)

I am a woman and (white) but I cannot vote for Hillary because she is too entrenched into controversies and lack of judgement. If she cannot uphold the law, how else can we trust her to obey the American constitution - how else will she avoid lack of jugdement such as was demonstrated by Bush in embarking on the “Domestic Spying Program”?

John,
You basically are correct, but you left out one significant point. It was a Democrate that proposed the bill to move the date and was co-sponsored by a Republican.

I’m a Floridian also, and to the point you make about the vote being held one week prior to Super Tuesday; well, the FDP could have accepted the compromise to move back to Super Tuesday and all would have been well. What was so important about holding the primary one week prior?

As you have stated, there was a record turnout, but it was more about the Property-Tax Reform Amendment. A lot of DEM non-property owners I know didn’t bother to vote; knowing the presidential primary aspect of the ballot was void and they were not going to be affected by the outcome of the Tax Amendment. Everyone knew going in what the deal was.

The DNC must allow the delegates to be seated because we need an honest, forthright, wise and far thinking person in the White House. This country would be well served to elect Hillary Clinton President. If the delegates are not seated, we could have a McCain-Obama contest. McCain would win, easily, in that event. Hillary would easily win over McCain. Further, Obama has lied, manipulated and deceived us. Do you really believe after 20 years he never heard Rev. Wright’s racist values and sermons? Did he never hear from or discuss this with Rev. Wright, whom he proclaims is his friend, mentor and advisor? If he does not believe in those racist values, then why did he continue to be an active member of TUCC? Why was Rev. Wright a part of his campaign? If he does not see that those racist values hold black people down and create conflict in our country, then where has he been? Who is Obama and what does he really believe? This baggage makes him unelectable, and beyond that, do you really want another lying, manipulative man in the White House? If Obama was an honorable man with any integrity, he would end his presidential campaign now. I call for his immediate withdrawal from the presidential campaign.

Jason, one more thing. As you say, most would agree that having a redo in both states would solve the problem. However, in Florida, the same Republican bill that changed the primary date here mandated that all Counties switch to OCR counting machines. The simple truth of the current situation is that there are about 15 Counties that are in the process of changing machines and currently have none, Additionally, they will not have machines in place prior to June 10th. So, we are back to square one. Either recognize that Florida’s vote was legitimate in the eyes of the voters or risk disenfranchising more of them like myself if the DNC doesn’t realize they are unfairly punishing the voters and not those who made this decision. Let me further remind you that there was major,groundbreaking tax reform on the ballot Jan 29 in Florida that effected nearly every voter in Florida. So, noone stayed home just because they actually believed the DNC would stick to their overbearing and unfair punishment of the voters. Now you have the right to vote for me,Jason. The DNC stripped me of that right. You are my last hope that my voice will be heard. The DNC obviously doesn’t care about us voters. Maybe you will.