Rick Raw: Half a Vote Half a Person? –DNC’s Compromise Leaves Voters Feeling Screwed Over

By Rick Grant rickgrant01@comcast.net www.rickatnight.com

"I’m not an animal, I’m a human being," said the Elephant Man in David Lynch’s film. Yeah, and I’m not half a person, I’m a whole voter. However, the Democratic National Committee (DNC) compromise has cut me in half as a voter and human being. Again, Florida voters were royally screwed by a dirty trick. And now I have to roll around on a platform with wheels because I’m only half a person after the DNC cut me in half with a chain saw compromise. It’s humiliating.

During Saturday’s debate, Senator Bob Nelson pleaded his case for the voters of Florida in the televised DNC meeting to reach a compromise on the hotly debated Florida and Michigan delegates and what penalty would be imposed on the two States for holding primaries early. In Senator Nelson’s speech he revealed how the Jan. 29th early primary happened. It turns out that the Republican Senate and Governor slipped in the early primary issue into its voting reform bill, knowing that it would come back to bite the Democrats like a hidden poisonous snake. It was, in fact, a Republican dirty trick.

When the day-long meeting ended and the dust cleared, the DNC agreed to seat all the delegates from Florida and Michigan at the convention but give them only half a vote. This meant that Clinton and Obama picked up a substantial number of delegates, with Obama benefitting the most. His lead over Clinton was in tact. As expected, it wasn’t a popular decision but under the circumstances at least they had an agreement. Of course, Florida’s voters will feel screwed over losing half their vote, as will the folks in Michigan.

Clinton backers vowed to fight the Michigan decision, which gave Clinton a 10 delegate edge over Obama in a state where his name didn’t appear on the primary ballot. The ruling gave Clinton 105 pledged delegates from Florida and 69 from Michigan, with a total of 87 votes. Obama received 67 pledged delegates from Florida and 59 from Michigan, as a total of 63 votes. The tally leaves Obama ahead by the equivalent of 174 votes.

Harold Ickes, Clinton’s campaign guru said, "Mrs Clinton has asked me to reserve her right to take this to the credentials committee." However, Ickes, the most savvy political strategist in Washington, knows that if Clinton doesn’t bow out of the race by the end of next week, she will hurt her chances of having any clout with the party in the future. Of course, Obama clinched the nomination Wednesday, June 5, leaving Clinton on the outside looking in.

Spearheaded by Bill Clinton, the behind he scenes lobbying for a Obama-Clinton ticket is getting stronger. Bringing Clinton’s considerable voting block over to a team ticket would greatly increase the chances of Obama winning the election. Still, bitterness persists between the two camps, but it’s not anything that can’t be smoothed over with whiskey and cigars.

As half a voter and person, I agree with Senator Nelson–I and my fellow Floridians deserve to have a full vote. It’s outrageous to be cut in half like a side of beef. But given that the art of politics is the art of compromise, the DNC decision salvages what could have been a lost cause, with all the Florida and Michigan votes thrown out. In the end, begrudgingly, we Floridians will take the half vote as better than no vote. This Republican dirty trick will be remembered and it will hurt them in the national election. Besides, who in their right mind wants another four years of a Bush surrogate as president? Well, maybe a few diehard Republicans.