Blue Jersey to NJ Delegates: Pledge to uphold DNC rules

[ProSense]

Blue Jersey to NJ Delegates: Pledge to uphold DNC rules

by: Scott in NJ
Tue Jan 29, 2008

With the exception of 1984, New Jersey Democrats have suffered decades of irrelevance in deciding their party's presidential nominee. Candidates treated the state like an ATM, stopping by for an occasional fundraiser between nominating contests in early states like Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina. This year, however, by holding its primary on the earliest date allowed under the rules of both political parties, New Jersey will play an important role in picking the presidential nominees.
New Jersey is one of twenty two states that will hold a Democratic Presidential primary or caucus on Feb. 5, the so-called "Super Tuesday". Two states, Florida and Michigan, moved their primaries ahead of Super Tuesday in violation of DNC rules. The punishment the DNC imposed for this violation, namely stripping both state of all of their delegates, was almost certainly a painful one, to give and to receive. But Democratic legislators and party leaders in both states ignored repeated warnings from the DNC that moving up their primary would cost them their delegations. They knew the rules, they knew the consequences for breaking them, and they broke them anyway.

Yet Hillary Clinton has held fundraisers in Florida and will visit the state for a rally tonight, despite having pledged not to do so. Barack Obama's national ad buy includes the Florida media markets. It seems that the candidates are giving Florida just as much attention as they are giving New Jersey, if not more.

Senator Clinton will ask her delegates to flout DNC rules and vote to seat the Florida and Michigan delegations at the Democratic National Convention in Denver. If either she or Senator Obama clinches the nomination before the convention, we have no objection to seating at least some of these delegates in the name of party unity. But if the candidates enter the convention with neither controlling a majority of the delegates, seating the Florida and Michigan delegations would serve only to make a mockery of the DNC rules and bylaws and punish the 22 Super Tuesday states, including New Jersey, who decided not to play a disrespectful game of high-stakes chicken with the DNC. Therefore we call on New Jersey delegates and alternates for all candidates to pledge to vote against any motion to seat delegates from Michigan and Florida, absent an agreement among all three remaining candidates to do so.

Let me be the first (4.00 / 1)
delegate candidate pledged for Edwards in NJ to state that I will vote AGAINST seating delegates from Florida and Michigan. They broke the rules - let them explain why, but actions should have consequences.

[1620rock]

1. Yeah, push BO at the expense of ofhers eh?

[jasmine621]

2. You are right. Consequences to this action might be Dems sitting home

come November. Another punishment could have been used. Fines distribution of campaign funds, etc.
Making voters feel disenfranchised was a pretty stupid move to me.

[sandnsea]

3. This is about claiming delegates now

She won't give two shits about these voters the second she doesn't need them anymore.