Redstate

By Pejman Yousefzadeh Posted in 2008 | Barack Obama | Hillary Clinton | Kneel Before Zod | Let's You And Him Fight | Rooting For Injuries — Comments (2) / Email this page » / Leave a comment »

It's a trap!

Democrat Hillary Rodham Clinton Saturday said she supported an effort by Michigan Democrats to hold a new primary in June.

"It needs to get resolved and hopefully Michigan by the end of this week will have done that," Clinton told reporters on her campaign plane between stops in Pennsylvania. "I think they are moving in an appropriate direction to have a revote."

Under a plan being finalized by several Democratic members of Congress and other party leaders in Michigan, the state would hold a new primary in early June - most likely on June 3 - that would allow its delegates to be seated at the party's national convention this summer in Denver. The state Legislature is expected to take up the matter next week.

The Democratic National Committee punished Michigan and Florida for moving up their primaries before Feb. 5, stripping them of all their delegates. The two states have been struggling to come up with alternative plans, but Michigan appears closer to resolving the matter.

[. . .]

Obama currently leads Clinton among overall delegates, 1603 to 1497, and his campaign has been openly skeptical of Clinton's eagerness to seat the delegations from the two disputed states. Spokesman Tommy Vietor Saturday said the campaign was open to a "fair and practical" resolution of the conflict.

"Hillary Clinton said in October the Michigan primary would not 'count for anything.' Now she is trying to change the rules and claim the votes of the primary she said didn't count should be counted," Vietor said. "We will evaluate the details of any new proposed election carefully as well as any efforts to come to a fair seating of the delegates from Michigan."

This is actually working out quite well for Hillary Clinton. She must think that it any revote in Michigan, she will do well so apparently it will cost her nothing to ask for a revote. If Obama refuses, she will argue that the Michigan delegation should not be disenfranchised and that will give her a large number of delegates to compete with Obama's delegate totals. The same dynamic will likely apply for Florida. This all gives Clinton a reason to continue fighting for the nomination and points the way--however small and perilous the way may be--for Clinton to take the nomination from Obama despite the latter's lead in contest victories, the current delegate count and the popular vote total.

And all of this will only serve to increase the quandary faced by the superdelegates. Need I mention again that Republicans are overjoyed by this turn of events?