On August 25, the Democratic National Committee Rules & Bylaws Committee voted to deprive the Florida Democratic Party of all its delegates to the national convention next year. However, if the state party agrees in the next 30 days not to choose its delegates at the January 29 presidential primary, the penalty will be revoked.
The vote was almost unanimous. Probably the Florida Democratic Party will give in and schedule caucuses in February to choose its delegates. The January presidential primary will be just a “beauty contest.”
Democratic National rules say no state may choose its delegates earlier than February 5, except for Nevada, South Carolina, New Hampshire and Iowa.
This behavior by the DNC is disgusting, unethical,
immoral and should be illegal !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
What a bunch of morons !!!!!!!!
Every state should have a right to conduct a delegate election, any time they choose.
“Democratic National rules say no state may choose its delegates earlier than February 5, except for Nevada, South Carolina, New Hampshire and Iowa.”
Why?
Let me see if I understand this mess. the Florida Republicans basically passed a law changing the Florida primary date to a day before the DNC allows. By selecting delegates on the new date the Dems would violate their own rules and be forced to punish themselves? Huh? But apparently the dems have an out clause — they can ignore the new state law and choose delegates at the normally scheduled time, in which case there will be no penalties and this is all much ado about nothing. Is this correct? Did the DNC even want the new law passed, or was this untimely dilemma concocted by the republicans? At first glance it appears that the Florida Republicans saw a quick way to obstruct the Dems by passing an innocent-sounding law. Is this just one of those legal “election-swindle” maneuvers, or a genuine mistake by the Dem strategists?
Jane Hamsher at FireDogLake has a post up that illuminates some of the questions raised here.
(I don’t know if the comments permit links here… guess I’ll find out.)
Some members of the Democratic National Committee said they didn’t think the Florida Democrats in the legislature had put up a good fight against moving the primary to January 29. I don’t know if that allegation is true.
If the DNC has such little regard for Florida voters why should I bother going to the polls. As a matter of fact, if DNC is going to bully like Republicans …. At least there is still time to change my registration and cast a primary ballot that will mean something. If DNC is going to deny Florida delegates I am going to deny any Democrat candidate my ballot because there is nothing democratic about this action.
What about electing delegates to the state convention through the primary, then electing delegates to the national from the state convention?
If the Floria Democratic Party can not follow the rules of the national party then it deserves to suffer the consequences. Political parties are private associations of individuals, and thus in order to be part of the private group everyone has to play by the private group’s own rules. This is definitely not a “right to vote” issue as the Florida DP is claiming.
If political parties are private associations of individuals and able to enforce the group’s own rules, then they ought to pay their own way. No taxpayer-financed primaries, no taxpayer subsidized conventions.
As a Democrat and a Floridian, all I can say is one thing. Because of a hanging Chad, we have an idiot in the White House. Does any of this surprise you?
Primaries should be held in a line from the smallest to largest ( pop. ) states. They should have set number of weeks between dates and there should be a manditory number of townhall public meetings in each state by the candidates. All advertisements including yard signs and bumper stickers should have a tax to fund inclusive publicly funded debates.
Scott, Bush got all the legal votes and won. Deal with it. Look to 2008.
Will the tax payers in Florida now get stuck with the bill for a primary and a caucus?
If I was the State Democratic Party, I’d say fine. We’ll hold a state convention earlier than the national convention to see which Democrat we will have listed as the Democratic candidate for President on the Florida ballot. After all, it’s the State Democratic Committee that does all of the paperwork in order to get the candidate listed on the Florida ballot, not the DNC. The thought of a big electoral state nominating say, Obama, before the national convention was even held would send a shiver up the DNC’s spine. Not to mention all of the other Democratic candidates. I’m betting another solution would quickly be worked out.
I am 43 and have voted democratic every year since I was 18. I am so appalled that the DNC is stripping our delegates and disenfranchising Florida. If this indeed happens, I will change my party affiliation, and will not vote the democratic ticket, and will urge every democrat I know to do the same.
Its hard to believe that people like Scott can even survive in this world the way they get things so twisted around.
Remember Scott it was your party that tried to use the hanging chad issue to steal an election.
A dozen investigations only showed that some democratic run countys did a sloopy and questionable job
If they don’t care about your presidential preference as a democrat, it’s not too late to change your affiliation. Feel like an independent? Or should we just do nothing. Ethics has reached a new undemocratic low with this manuever.
All I can say is wow! I can’t believe this! As a Florida Democrat We are being bamboozled again.