I didn't see any diary entries on this, so here I go:
The Washington Post is reporting that five Democrats are dropping out of the DC primary (Lieberman, Edwards, Kerry, Gephardt & Clark). All of the candidates cited DNC rules which prohibit primaries ahead of Iowa and NH. DC's primary is just a beauty contest, something else also apparently discouraged by the DNC - witness the recent Florida straw poll flap. (Delegates will actually be chosen at a caucus sometime later.)
DC is holding this primary to call attention to its lack of representation in Congress. I know this may seem like an abstract issue, but as someone who has recently moved to the district, the fact that DC residents lack the same rights (but face the same obligations) that citizens of the 50 states have is incredibly galling. I considered changing my voter registration to DC (I still have a home in NY), but I realized: I won't get to vote for Senators or Congressmen! And when MoveOn sends me e-mails exhorting me to call my reps about such-and-such issue, who the hell would I call???
I think the primary, even if it is a beauty contest, is a great idea for DC. It'll get all the attention for at least a couple of days, and every article written will begin by saying "DC is holding an early primary in order to call atttention to its lack of statehood." I'm pretty annoyed that most of the Dem candidates think obeisance to allegedly finnicky voters in Iowa and New Hampshire is more important than statehood for DC. I mean, are voters in IA and NH really not going to vote for Kerry or Gephardt because they participate in this little, non-binding primary? If only 4 of 9 candidates participate, the impact of the early primary will be lessened.
(I also wouldn't be surprised if some of the campaigns saw this as an escape hatch from a primary which will almost surely go to Dean.)
Lastly, statehood for DC is also a minority rights issue. DC is overwhelmingly black. For all the attacks on Dean for his perceived insensivity to blacks regarding the confederate flag controversy, this seems like a much more substantive slap in the fact to minority concerns.
