Revise the 2008 primary calendar.

The Democratic primary system is NOT producing winning candidates.  How to change that?  Here's a discussion-starter (I hope).

Note: Apparently the primary calendar is largely up to the good Dr. Dean, who has a lame recommendation on his desk now.  See this: http://blogs.washingtonpost.com/...

The purpose of the primary system is to select the candidate most likely to win in November.  The key to winning in November is winning the swing states.  Therefore, we should structure the primary system to favor the candidate most likely to appeal to swing-state swing-voters.  (Not necessarily the swingingest candidate.)  How to do this:

Use polling to determine the states in which the Democratic primary voters most closely resemble the swing-state general-election voters.  Let's guess for purposes of this discussion, without benefit of polling, that this will be the deep-red states.  How to give deep-red-state Democrats (serving as proxies for swing-state swing-voters) more influence on candidate selection?

(1) Keep the nomination in play to the last day of primaries by back-loading the calendar, so 30% to 40% of the delegates are awarded on the last day.  This will extend media coverage, maximizing last-day voter exposure to the candidates.

(2) Put most of the deep-red states on the last day.

(3) Put a few of the deep-red states early in the calendar -- first if possible, but if it's not possible for them to go before New Hampshire and Iowa, then immediately after.  

(4)Put all the other states in the middle of the calendar.