Last week, I wrote a diary thanking Senator Clinton for her hard fought battle, noting that I understood that there were many factors that worked against her in the contest. I also noted that the Democratic Party could be proud of her campaign but that, unfortunately, there were too many factors that mitigated against her being the standard bearer.
My diary was intended to provide a mechanism for Senator Clinton to be graceful, concede victory for Senator Obama in the contest without need to admit defeat. Now I have had a change of heart.
after ideating, as they say, I have a solution on the other side
Today in Florida Senator Clinton vowed to take the fight for seating all Florida delegates at the convention just as they were "elected". That is, if the Democratic National Committee, which was dominated by her loyalists at the time the decision to strip Florida and Michigan of their delegates, does not go along with her, she will do her best to create turmoil at the Convention in order to get her way. That, of course, will go a long way to assuring Senator Obama’s defeat in the general election. Unfortunately, it is becoming increasingly difficult to dismiss the contention that is the Clintons’ intent in order to preserve 2012 for another bid.
The successful game plan for Senator Clinton entails changing the number of delegates needed to win the nomination to 2209, which would be the margin needed should the Florida and Michigan delegates be seated with full voting rights, including those for the super delegates. With that in mind, it is time for delegates to rebel.
There are still 212 (as of this writing) uncommitted super delegates who can come to the party’s rescue. Others, as Senator Clinton has often reminded them, are free to switch allegiance at any time. Therefore, I propose to the super delegates that they take matters into their own hands or risk losing not only the Presidential race but also suffering losses on the under ticket that would not otherwise happen.
Unfortunately, the time has come to take action to prevent this campaign from becoming a self-destructive exercise. Senator Obama has played by the rules and won by the rules. Senator Clinton, on the other hand, has tried to change the rules time and again.
What action to take? I propose that BEFORE the DNC Rules Committee meets on May 31, super delegates move to guarantee that Senator Obama has at least 2209 committed delegates in hand, making the seating of the Michigan and Florida delegations a moot issue.
Game. Set. Match.