As we know, controlling the narrative of an election practically assures victory. Like a grade-school game of Steal the Bacon, campaigns make a mad rush to define the issues and the candidates before their opponents can. Frame the issues on your terms, and you force your opponent to re-enforce your frames every time they speak. Define your opponent before he can define himself, and he may never recover.
The Clinton has attempted to seize the moral high ground on the Florida and Michigan delegate situation by invoking the malignant ghosts of elections past: Voter's rights. Disenfranchisement. A voice in the process. "Since when are Democrats against counting votes?" goes the popular refrain.
It's a great strategy, for obvious reasons: it puts Obama squarely on the defensive. Clinton argues for voters' rights, Obama responds with concerns about legal and technical issues. "Rules are rules" doesn't sound as good on TV as "your votes should count!" As far as controlling the narrative, it's a no-brainer.
And unfortunately, it's worked beautifully for her until recently. But is the narrative in Florida finally shifting? Is the Florida media starting to catch on to the Clinton's hypocritical brinksmanship on the issue?
Clinton has insisted that the Florida delegates either be seated according to the Jan. 29 primary results, or that there be a new vote:
"In my view there are two options: honor the results or hold new primary elections. I don't see any other solutions that are fair."
But we know a Florida re-vote has been ruled out, and the DNC certainly isn't seating the delegates as is.
Her two choices are illusory, so the only hope of getting anything better than a 50-50 split (if they're seated at all) is to get back to the bargaining table. Clinton could still salvage victory here: even getting less than the full Jan. 29 delegate total would let her claim a "recognized" Florida victory, bolstering her claim of swing-state strength and adding to her popular vote total.
But for whatever reasons, Clinton won't negotiate: it's all or nothing. And now, some media outlets are onto her, and are starting to report that it's Obama who's trying to seat the delegates.
The St. Pete Times:
To hear her campaign tell it, Hillary Rodham Clinton is fighting the good fight to give Florida Democrats a say in the presidential primary, while Barack Obama is blocking her noble efforts.
...
Nice try. But with every passing day, Sen. Clinton looks like the one most likely to disenfranchise Florida Democrats, not Sen. Obama.
At a time when finding a real solution to the stalemate has grown critical, Team Clinton continues bellowing about the two options most everyone in Florida knows are impossible: counting the results from the Jan. 29 primary or holding an entirely new primary election by June.
At least the Obama campaign, which for so long was dismissive of the Florida results, is opening the door for viable solutions to this primary debacle.
...
The Clinton campaign has shown no interest in negotiating. Nor did it show much enthusiasm for the Florida Democrats' proposal to hold a statewide mail-in primary — until after the state party finally killed that idea.
Tampa Bay Online.com:
Barack Obama hinted during a Tampa fundraiser Sunday that if he’s the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, he’ll seat a Florida delegation at the party’s national convention, despite national party sanctions prohibiting it.
Also The St. Pete Times:
The Hillary Clinton campaign has yet to express any interest in negotiating a solution to Florida's delegate mess, but a couple key Barack Obama staffers - delegate operations director Jeff Berman and political director Matt Nugen called state Democratic chairwoman Karen Thurman to talk about possible ways to give Florida a voice in the nomination.
"We're just looking for solutions," said Obama spokesman Bill Burton.
The Orlando-Sentinel:"
On Tuesday, the Clinton campaign continued to push for either fully counting the Jan.29 result — which the DNC has blocked — or holding a new vote in Florida, which state officials have dismissed. Some Clinton supporters in Florida want each delegate counted as half a vote.
Kirk Wagar, a Coconut Grove attorney who is one of Obama's top fundraisers, blamed Clinton for not compromising. "We've been willing to do something that, frankly, even goes to her benefit, but we can't negotiate with ourselves."
Those are the final two paragraphs in the story, making it clear whose position the article favors.
The narrative of the Florida delegate situation could be shifting out from under Clinton even while she's out decrying "disenfranchisement." Florida media outlets are debunking her "concern" as little more than a political game--if she's concerned about seating the delegates, come to the bargaining table.