Democrats resolve Michigan, Florida disputes

Clinton supporters keep this chant up of "count every vote" in order to prop up this inane argument of theirs that Clinton won the popular vote.

"You are entitled to your own opinion but not your own facts" to borrow a phrase.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/epolls/2008/president/democratic_vote_count.html

The facts are Obama won the popular vote by any realistic estimation.

The facts have been distorted across the board by Clinton supporters regarding Michigan and Florida.

http://www.chron.com/commons/persona.html?plckPersonaPage=PersonaBlog&plckUserId=dewardbowles&newspaperUserId=dewardbowles

Clinton would be going against the will of the democratic party in Michigan as well as the DNC committee to push the issue in Michigan.

I think the results were fair as they could be under the circumstances. On to November and an Obama presidency.

This shows Dems are not willing to count the votes of Florida and Michigan americans who voted for Hillary. How can Dem leaders steal votes and give it to BHO?

If Dems are not counting Florida and Michigan vote for Hillary.. Republicans will sure count Florida and Michigan Democrats vote in November to win over inexperienced BHO.

No one "deserves'" the parties nomination. Since all candidates agreed to the rules of the primaries/caucases beforehand, no one should be able to complain about party officials enforcing the rules.

The entire Democratic situation stinks of politics at its worst - they made rules and don't like the ensuing publicity so to heck with the public who supported and voted under the false impression that rules would control. So now FL and MICH have their votes and the rest of the Democratic races are devalued.

I have been a life-long Democrat and believe this election is ours to lose, which seems to be what Clinton wants to see happen. She would rather see John McCain in the White House than lose to Obama. If this is the best we can do, then we deserve anythng we get and what we will get is four more years of something that looks, walks, and talks like George W. Bush--hmmm, must be a Bush!

I find the "count every vote" mantra from Senator Clinton an amazing serving up of hypocracy. If: i) all the Clinton Michigan votes had been delivered to Clinton, and none to Obama; ii) all the Florida and Michigan delegates been given full status; and iii) Senator Clinton won the remaining three primaries by margins which equalled her highest win percentage--Sanator Clinton still would not have received more pledged delagate votes than Senator Obama. Then what?, Senator Clinton would have asked the superdelagates to disenfrachise Senator Obama's pledged votes to hand her the nomination, thereby, making sure that, in fact, the Democratic convention would NOT count every vote. Put this exercise down for what it is--blind ambition by a Clinton to be President: again.

Senator Clinton has demonstrated during this long primary process, that yes a woman and a black man can run for the highest office in the this great country

However by her actions, she and her entourage only appear to be interested in their own self interest by using every means possible to get her elected President of the United States, when the main thing should be what is best for the Democratic Party and that of course is to beat the Republican candidate and reestablish a government that is for the people and by the people, not just for the rich people.

Both Mrs. Clinton and Mr. Obama agreed to the party’s decision to penalize Florida and Michigan by disallowing their delegates, but because she now needs the votes, the situation is deemed unfair. Clinton is a political predator that does not play fair when the rules do not favor her. Now she wants to sabotage the campaign of Obama because she cannot manipulate the party to screw over Obama. What a class act -- NOT!!

Wouldn't Clinton backers crying sexism be more mad if the two switched positions and it was Obama that refused to drop out and accept a woman as the nominee this close to clinching? You hear so much about Obama's church but what has Hillary done to calm her more divisive, zealous supporters that are threatening to protest all the way to Denver and act as spoilers? I blame Hillary if the Democrats don't win back the White House.

Wow. Hillary supporters need to calm down.... Hillary is done!! Hillary and the other candidates agreed not to campaign in florida, and every candidate besides the bitch took their names off of the ballot in michigan. Hillary is a cheater, and a scumbag. She reminds me of a witch. Her economic plans are disastrous, her healthcare plan in 1993 reflects what she will do in the future. Hillary is a discrace to this country. Go Barack, lets focus on McCain. Hillary is going to cause a lot of problems in the general election for Barack, because she is such a bitch. She has sunk down to the level of the republicans.

4 delegates?

Ickes wants a floor fight for 4 delegates?

He has no intention of anyone winning but Clinton, quite amazing.
I trust that Pelosi will must a large enough majority now that 4 delegates will seem paltry.

None of the Michigan delegates had to be seated. Not one.

Clinton plays the Misogyny card!

"Lipstick on a pig!"[ap]
"I'm reminded," said witness Jim Blanchard, the former governor of Michigan, "of the old Will Rogers adage, which was, 'I belong to no organized party. I'm a Democrat.' "[m]Only Sen. Carl Levin of Michigan had an irrefutable point. "We've got a totally irrational system of nominating our president," he said.[m]
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Audience becomes an unruly mob[m]

THE START

It started with hundreds of demonstrators chanting outside, until torrential rains drove them away. Inside were the 28 rules committee members, who sat under the lights at a U-shaped conference table[n]

THE END

Front-runner Barack Obama turned to wrapping up the Democratic presidential nomination after a party committee dealt rival Hillary Clinton a blow by seating the disputed Michigan and Florida convention delegations at half-strength. [y]

THE REAL BATTLE BEING PLAYED OUT NATIONALLY WITHIN THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY IS THE CONTEST BETWEEN PROGRESSIVE CONSERVATIVE DEMOCRATS AND THOSE THAT BELIEVE IN SOCIAL LIBERALISM OR LIBERALS

Social liberals, also referred to as progressives or modern liberals, constitute a large part, about 45.6 percent, of the Democratic voter base. Liberals thereby form the largest united typological demographic within the Democratic base. [wp2]Since the 1890s, the Democratic Party has favored "liberal" positions (the term "liberal" in this sense describes social liberalism, not classical liberalism). [wp2]The Democratic base currently consists of a large number of well-educated and relatively affluent liberals as well as those in the socially more conservative working class[wp2]

Historically, the party has favored farmers, laborers, labor unions, and religious and ethnic minorities; it has opposed unregulated business and finance, and favored progressive income taxes. In foreign policy, internationalism (including interventionism) was a dominant theme from 1913 to the mid 1960s. In the 1930s, the party began advocating welfare spending programs targeted at the poor. [wp2]

In recent decades, the party has adopted a centrist economic and more socially progressive agenda, with the voter base having shifted considerably. Once dominated by unionized labor and the working class, the Democratic base now consists of social liberals who tend to be well-educated with above-average incomes as well as the socially more conservative working class. [wp2]

The Progressives are the economic elite in the democratic party. They have sold out, run for cover and generally showed themselves to be a weak spined lot during the Bush neo conservative ear. What we are seeing today is a battle for the hearts and minds of the democratic party. Do we want more of the minority block the democratic elite PROGRESSIVES controlling the Democratic Party the very people directly responsible for allowing, through ineffective opposition to Bush, the demise the American Middle class. Or do we return to our majority base the LIBERALS and social liberalism which brought you the middle class. IT’S A NEW DAY![trb]

THE RECENT SKIRMISH, THE PROGRESSIVE CLINTONITES LOSE.....

The hotel where the 30 Democratic rule-makers met today -- to decide whether rules are rules or whether rules are made to be broken -- was within howling distance of the National Zoo.[l]

Outside the stately Marriott Wardman Park Hotel were clusters of women with "Hear Me Roar" placards in their fists who came in from all over the country -- $4 a gallon be damned -- to make what could be a last stand for their Hillary.[l]

The deep wounds among Democratic partisans — and the unification challenges that lie ahead — were laid bare when the committee rendered its judgment around 7 p.m. Supporters of Mrs. Clinton jeered the decision.[n]

OUR REAL LEADER

Howard Dean, chairman of the Democratic National Committee, opened the meeting by urging party activists who filled the hotel ballroom to think beyond the immediate concerns of their chosen candidates and begin working for the benefit of the party in the general election.[n]

THE GOOD

Former Michigan congressman David Bonior, who argued on behalf of Obama at the meeting, said the result was "fair" and predicted "we’re very close to the end" of the long primary campaign. He would not say whether he expected Clinton’s campaign to carry the potentially damaging delegate fight to Denver.[N]

THE BAD

"Behind all the rhetoric during the meeting about democracy and on and on and on, I am stunned that we have the gall and the chutzpah to substitute our judgment for 600,000" Michigan voters, Ickes said. "I submit that hijacking [Clinton delegates] is not a good way to start down the path of party unity." [N]

THE UGLY

Mark Brewer,....(HIRED GUN OF THE PROGRESSIVES.....[TRB])..., chairman of Michigan’s Democratic Party, told the panel the best solution was a compromise, based on an assessment of exit polling and other data. Brewer said Obama was entitled to 59 pledged delegates to Clinton’s 69, "a far fairer reflection of the Democratic preferences in Michigan.’’ That became the formula for the solution.[N]

MICHIGAN A STATE FULL OF HALFLINGS AND HOBBITS

Democratic Party leaders agreed Saturday seat Michigan and Florida delegates with half votes into this summer's convention with a compromise that left Barack Obama on the verge of the nomination but riled Hillary Rodham Clinton backers who threatened to fight to the August convention.[ap] ....hinting at a bare-knuckles fight the party had sought to avoid.[BC]

THE RISE OF LIBERALISM...ON TO THE NEXT BATTLE....

The chaos and vitriol seemed to confirm Democrats' fears that they might blow an election that should otherwise be an easy victory for them. Nor did the party's compromise fit well with the Democrats' oft-voiced commitment to voting rights. They decided they would give Florida and Michigan half of their voting rights - one of the more arbitrary compromises since the 1787 decision that a slave should count as three-fifths of a person - and voted to award Obama 59 Michigan delegates even though his name wasn't even on the ballot in the state.[m]

D.B.COOPER STRIKES AGAIN

"Hijacking four delegates is not a good way to start down the path of party unity," said adviser Harold Ickes.[ap]

I WANT IT ALL AND I WANT IT NOW!!!!

Clinton's...(PROGRESSIVE CAMP...[TRB]) ...maintains she was entitled to four additional Michigan delegates.[ap]

A civil war, that's how it felt. Democrat against Democrat. Not long ago, they were united in the cause to wrest the White House from the Bush legacy, end the war, stop global warming, empower the middle class.[l]

OBAMA IS A CLASS ACT, THE CLINTON PROGRESSIVES, CLASSLESS....

The Obama campaign applauded the party’s Rules and Bylaws Committee’s handling of the emotion-charged disputes in an often-raucous televised meeting in a Washington hotel. But the committee’s decision on the Michigan primary, which Clinton won in January by a wide margin after other contenders took their names off the ballot, left Clinton’s supporters fuming and threatening to take the fight to the party’s nominating convention in Denver in August.[b]

WE WILL PICK UP OUR MARBLES AND LEAVE

And now, many of them were so mad they said they planned to defect from their party for the first time ever -- if Hillary Rodham Clinton were not the nominee.[l] Please do, while we still have a middle class Do not let the door hit you in the butt.[trb]

THE PARTY WILL UNIFY, THESE MORONS CAN NOT STOP THAT, JUST SPIN THATS ALL THEY HAVE LEFT...

The decision by the party's Rules Committee raised slightly the total delegates Obama needs to clinch the nomination. Clinton advisers conceded privately he will likely hit the magic number after the final primaries are held Tuesday night, but said the ruling threatened to dash any hopes of a unified party.[ap]

MRS. CLINTON (I.E). BUBBAS WIFE, IS STICKING A SHARP STICK IN OUR EYE

"Mrs. Clinton has told me to reserve her right to take this to the Credentials Committee" at the convention, said Ickes, who is a member of the Rules Committee that voted Saturday.[ap]

Mrs. Clinton was in touch with Mr. Ickes throughout the day, aides said, and she instructed him to conclude his remarks with that message to the party. It remained an open question, though, how much leverage Mrs. Clinton would have after the primaries concluded on Tuesday.[n]

OUR GUY WILL WIN, ITS TIME TO AIM OUR CANNONS AT MCCAIN....

The resolution increased the number of delegates needed to clinch the nomination to 2,118, leaving Obama just 66 delegates away from the majority needed to secure the nomination.[ap]

FINALLY SOMEONE IS MAKING SENSE

"Our main goal is to get this resolved so we can focus on winning Michigan and Florida," Obama said while campaigning in South Dakota. "There were compromises. ... I'm glad the DNC worked it through and I hope we can start focusing on substance as opposed to process."[ap]

MRS. BUBBA THREATNED A RIOT/PROTEST SHE GAVE US RAUCOUS

So, these women climbed in buses and in their cars and came to fight. Clinton's campaign didn't organize it but didn't dissuade them; Barack Obama's camp discouraged its supporters from demonstrating, mindful not to offend Hillaryites they hope will come their way by the time Nov. 4 rolls around.[l]

The disputed Michigan and Florida primaries became a focal point of anger for the Clinton supporters, and busloads of them arrived in Washington to protest — many of them Clinton campaign volunteers. Holding placards and shouting slogans like, "Count every vote!" they demanded that the Democratic National Committee honor all the primary votes and pledged delegates from Florida and Michigan.[N]

The deal was reached after committee members deliberated for nine hours, including three where they met privately and argued fiercely over their eventual deal, according to several people inside. They voted in front of a raucous hotel ballroom that frequently interrupted proceedings and reflected deep divisions within the party.[ap]

MARK BREWER (MDP) &MRS. BUBBA DID NOT FOLLOW THE RULES, ½ VOTE IS THE DNC POLICY TO SANCTION UNRULY CHILDREN

"How can you call yourselves Democrats if you don't count the vote?" one of the many hecklers in the audience yelled loudly and repeatedly before being escorted out by security. "This is not the Democratic Party!"[ap]

SPIN, SPIN AND MORE SPIN, THE VOTER ARE GETTING DIZZY...

A senior Clinton adviser, speaking on a condition of anonymity about internal campaign decisions, said the decision could be used to help her raise campaign donations for a scaled-down campaign that might focus on a signature issue — such as health care reform — rather than a traditional fight for the nomination.[ap]

MR. AND MRS BUBBA DESERVE NOTHING AFTER THIS IS OVER, ITS BEYOND BELIEF THEY HAVE THE GALL TO TAKE THIS LOSING FIGHT THIS FAR

The advisers said no decisions had been made, and it was still possible that Clinton would bow out once Obama goes over the top.[ap]

SHE WON NOTHING, IT WAS BUSH LIKE/LEAGUE TO HAVE EVEN BEEN ON THE MICHGIAN BALLOT WHEN THE DNC SAID STAY OUT

Clinton and her supporters wanted the Michigan and Florida delegations fully restored, according to January primaries that she won. But those contests were not recognized by the party because they were held too early, and both candidates agreed at the time they would not count.[ap]

THEIR RAGE IS WHAT MUST BE RECOGNIZED. PUNISH THOSE AT FAULT FOR THE MICHIGAN MESS, MARK BREWER IS A GOOD START

But as Clinton tried to catch up to Obama's delegate lead, she has argued that the votes of the 2.3 million people who participated in the elections must be recognized.[ap]

Obama supporters argued that they did compromise by allowing her to take the majority of delegates in two contests where he didn't campaign.[ap]

The sticking point was Michigan, where Obama's name was not on the ballot.[AP]

Clinton's camp insisted Obama shouldn't get any pledged delegates in Michigan since he chose not to put his name on the ballot, and she should get 73 pledged delegates with 55 uncommitted. Obama's team insisted the only fair solution was to split the pledged delegates in half between the two campaigns, with 64 each.[ap]

SHE DESERVES..... NOT ....THE 10 VOTE ADVANTAGE, HE FOLLOWED THE RULES SHE DID NOT

The committee agreed on a compromise offered by the Michigan Democratic Party that would split the difference, allowing Clinton to take 69 delegates and Obama 59. Each delegate would get half a vote at the convention, according to the deal.[ap]

The deal passed 19-8. Thirteen members of the committee had endorsed Clinton for president, so she wasn't even able to keep her supporters together.[ap]

Allan Katz, a Rules Committee member and Obama supporter, said the Obama campaign had enough votes on the committee to support the campaign's proposal to split the delegates 50-50 in Michigan. Ultimately, the campaign agreed instead to support the compromise negotiated by the Michigan Democratic Party as a way to resolve the matter.[ap]

OBAMA IS HIGH MINDED MRS CLINTON IS LOW ACTING

"The ironic thing is Obama had the majority of that committee," Katz said. "The Obama campaign wants to move on and compromise. We did not muscle our way through it. It was a wise decision from a well run and wise campaign that will reverberate."[ap]

CLINTON WAGS WILL SINK THIS SHIP BEFORE IT ARRIVES AT OBAMA BAY

But the irate reaction from Clinton's campaign and her supporters in the sharply divided audience shows Obama will have a long way to go to bring the party together after a long and divisive primary.[ap]

Clinton had made the disputes over Florida and Michigan a rallying cry for her campaign. Officials told the panel Democrats could pay a price in November against McCain if the delegations from the two election battlegrounds were not seated and the results counted. [y]

CLINTON BACKERS: WE WON’T ROLL OVER[wt] Then you should be knocked out.[trb]

Earlier in the day, hundreds of demonstrators, mostly Clinton supporters, jammed sidewalks outside the hotel, holding homemade signs reading "Count our Florida votes" and "50 states -- not 48." [y]

"The Democratic Party has disdained the female demographic, they have demeaned Hillary Clinton, and this time we're not going to roll over," Ms. Garrard said. [wt]

MISOGYNISTIC

"I refuse to be associated with a party that is stupid, self-destructive and undemocratic, and now, I'm beginning to realize, is misogynistic," said Norma Broude, an American University professor who was among more than 1,000 Clinton supporters at a "count the vote" rally at Rock Creek [wt]
Misogyny is hatred (or contempt) of women.[WP]

CHILDREN BEHAVE

"We just blew the election!" a woman in the audience shouted. The crowd was divided between cheering Obama supporters and booing Clinton supporters.[ap]

OLD YELLER WAS YELPING

"This isn't unity! Count all the votes!" another audience member yelled.[ap]
Jim Roosevelt, co-chair of the committee, tried repeatedly to gavel it to order. "You are dishonoring your candidate when you disrupt the speakers," he chided.[ap]

HOW MUCH MORE OF THIS FIASCO IS LEFT...

There are three primaries left in the contest — Puerto Rico on Sunday and Montana and South Dakota on Tuesday. Obama should get at least 30 delegates in the remaining primaries, meaning he has to pick up no more than about 30 more superdelegates even if he loses Puerto Rico and South Dakota.[ap]

He will not clinch the nomination this weekend, barring a barrage of superdelegates Sunday.[ap]

The committee also unanimously agreed to seat the Florida delegation based on the outcome of the January primary, with 105 pledged delegates for Clinton and 67 for Obama, but with each delegate getting half a vote as a penalty.[ap]

SHOUT IT OUT

Proponents of full seating continuously interrupted the committee members as they explained their support of the compromise, then supporters of the deal shouted back.[ap]

"Shut up!" one woman shouted at another.[ap]

"You shut up!" the second woman shouted back.[AP]
Obama picked up a total of 32 delegates in Michigan, including superdelegates who have already committed, and 36 in Florida. Clinton picked up 38 in Michigan, including superdelegates, and 56.5 in Florida.[ap]

OBAMA HAS AN INSURMOUNTABLE LEAD...WHY ARE WE ARGUING

Obama's total increased to 2,052, and Clinton had 1,877.5.[ap]
A proposal favored by Clinton that would have fully seated the Florida delegation fully in accordance with the January primary went down with 12 votes in support and 15 against.[ap]

THEN WHY DID THEY TRY

Tina Flournoy, who led Clinton's efforts to seat both states' delegations with full voting power, said she was disappointed by the outcome but knew the Clinton position had "no chance" of passing the committee.[ap]

"I understand the rules. ... I can tell you one thing that has driven these rules was being a party of inclusion," Flournoy said. "I wish my colleagues will vote differently."[ap]

A BACON MAKE OVER

Alice Huffman, a Clinton supporter on the committee, explained that the compromise giving delegates half votes was the next best thing to full seating.[ap]

"We will leave here more united than we came," she said.[ap]

Some audience members heckled her in response. "Lipstick on a pig!" one shouted. [ap]

“McCain in 08! McCain in 08!” a woman yelled from the back of the room. “No-bama! No-bama!”[n]

But Obama supporters said that the Clinton camp was upset because it showed the nomination contest was essentially over. “There is no more big concentration of delegates from anywhere left,” said Allan Katz, a Florida lawyer and member of the rules committee who supports Mr. Obama.“This was their last big chance to move the goal posts and it failed,” he said.[n]

“This is not about Barack Obama. This is not about Hillary Clinton. This is about our country,” Mr. Dean said. “This is about restoring America to its greatness, to restoring our moral authority and to healing America at home. That’s what this is about.”[n]

Obama will hold a victory celebration after the South Dakota and Montana polls close on Tuesday night at the Xcel Energy Center in St. Paul, Minnesota -- the site of the Republican convention in September.[y]
–END

Posted here by Terry Bankert ... 6/01/08
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—WHERE DID THIS STUFF COME FROM
[ap]
AP
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5igrYLRrHG3P6lIbs2E7pSH0bxhvgD910VH9G0
[l]
LA Times
http://www.latimes.com/news/politics/la-na-scene1-2008jun01,0,5094571.story
[m]
Mercury News
http://www.mercurynews.com/nationworld/ci_9444974
[WT]
The Washington Times
http://www.washtimes.com/news/2008/jun/01/clintons-backers-we-wont-roll-over/
[WP]
WIKIPEDIA
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Misogyny

[n]
The New York Times
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/06/01/us/politics/01rules.html?em&ex=1212379200&en=393fad3614090350&ei=5087%0A
[b]
Boston.Com
http://www.boston.com/news/politics/politicalintelligence/2008/05/democrats_resol_1.html
[bc]
Boston.com
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/06/01/accord_furor_over_mich_fla_delegates/

[TRB]
Comments of Terry Bankert to Include CAP headlines
http://attorneybankert.com/
[Y]
Yahoo News- Reuters
http://news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20080601/pl_nm/usa_politics_dc

58687

When democracy is practiced by an uneducated population, the choices are limited to imbeciles like Bush, simpletons like McCain or megalomaniac hypocrites like Hillary. Enlightened leaders are only possible when the people who elect them are able to think critically. This requirement, unfortunately, excludes the vast majority of the electorate.