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Politics : Politics for Pros- moderated -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: MJ who wrote (238966)	2/16/2008 5:53:48 PM
From: Tom Clarke	Read Replies (3) \| Respond to of 793917

Clinton Campaign: Screw Democracy Published by Gaius at 2:36 pm under Politics It does not surprise me that Harold Ickes believes this to be the case, but it frankly stuns me that he would say it so baldly. He has openly stated that he believes the superdelegates will decide the nominee and that their choice will be Hillary Clinton. What is truly ironic here is that Ickes is the one who set up this whole scenario back in 1988 when he negotiated the current proportional allocation rules. A top Hillary Clinton adviser on Saturday boldly predicted his candidate would lock down the nomination before the August convention by definitively winning over party insiders and officials known as superdelegates, claiming the number of state elections won by rival Barack Obama would be “irrelevant” to their decision. The claims no doubt will escalate the war of words between the campaigns, as Obama continues to argue superdelegates should vote the way of their districts. But the special class of delegates, which make up about 20 percent of the total delegate haul, are not bound to vote the way of their states and districts, as pledged delegates are. Obama leads handily in the pledged delegate count and has won more states but trails Clinton in superdelegates, making them potential and controversial deadlock-breakers if the race ends up a dead heat come convention time. Harold Ickes, a 40-year party operative charged with winning over superdelegates for the Clinton campaign, made no apologies on Saturday for the campaign’s convention strategy. “We’re going to win this nomination,” Ickes said, adding that they would do so soon after the last contest on June 7 in Puerto Rico. “You’re not going to see this go to the convention floor.” Ickes predicted Clinton and Obama would run “neck and neck” in the remaining states and that there would be a “minuscule amount of difference” between the two in pledged delegates. But he said superdelegates would determine the outcome and side in larger numbers for Clinton, as they “have a sense of what it takes to get elected.” Even though averages of head-to-head polls on RealClearPolitics.com show Obama beating presumptive GOP nominee John McCain in a general election and Clinton losing, the Clinton camp is stressing the electability argument. Ickes said superdelegates must “exercise their best judgment” about who can win the White House. Oh man. Is this going to get ugly. If the scenario plays out the way Ickes thinks it will, there will be real, devastating and lasting harm to the Democratic party. Like I said, I'm stunned he is saying this as openly as he is. bluecrabboulevard.com