Hopefully today's meeting of the Democratic party's Rules & Bylaws Committee will decide how many delegates from Florida and Michigan will be seated at the Convention. If Clinton doesn't get a very favorable ruling, it could effectively end her primary campaign.
Whichever way the decision falls, the most important result is that the committee process looks credible, so that both the Clinton and Obama camps can respect the ultimate decision and move on. If the thing is perceived as a circus, it could damage the legitimacy of the whole primary, which would hurt the nominee in the general election.
Well, I just spent most of the morning watching the first half of the committee meeting on C-SPAN, and it pretty much looks like a circus. Lots of shouting, cheering, booing makes for good television, but it doesn't really establish the process as sober and deliberate, much less legitimate.
Oh well, we've had two screwy presidential elections in a row, why not go for three?
Posted by case at May 31, 2008 01:36 PM