Did Howard Dean put YOUR Vote in Jeopardy?

It looks like the Clinton and Obama battle now stretches at least through the spring. But what about the 2 million people who have already voted in Florida and Michigan? Right now those votes just don’t count after the Democratic National Committee stripped the states of their delegates because they had moved their primaries up. They can’t count Michigan since Obama wasn’t even on the ballot. And in theory neither candidate campaigned in Florida. But the voters shouldn’t be punished for the idiocy of their party insiders. I have said for weeks that superdelegates shouldn’t overturn the will of the people. And consistent with that argument, the Democratic and Republican Governors of Michigan and Florida are right when they say: “…It is reprehensible that anyone would seek to silence the voices of 5,163,271 Americans.”

The two states’ Congressional delegations are meeting in Washington D.C. to discuss the potential powder keg. Last night DNC Chair Howard Dean said that “rules are rules” but he “looks forward to hearing the new delegate selection plans from these states.” Why not hold new primaries in Florida and Michigan? Put the vote on April 22, the same day as Pennsylvania, it’s almost seven weeks away, it’s plenty of time.

Some might argue that there are no do-overs in Presidential politics, and the reason we’re in this mess is because these states broke the rules. They knew they were breaking them and they were warned of the consequences. So a do-over, especially in a tainted state like Michigan where they already had one Cuban-style election with one person on the ballot, is not an option. This is what I call the “party insider” or “Howard Dean” argument. But the whole breaking-the-rules stuff that everyone is focusing on is basically a defense of the idiocy of the Democratic Party.

Why can’t this be thought of as a courtroom verdict with an appeal? Yes, I know what you’ll say: There are no appeals in politics or Al Gore would be President. But this is the point about the Democratic Party. They can change the rules whenever they want. This is not set in stone. This is supposed to be about the best outcome for the Democratic Party. Now, while I do think that do-overs should be reserved for Double Dutch and Kickball and not Presidential elections, I certainly prefer this plan to splitting the delegates between Clinton and Obama.

We have to accept that Howard Dean was wrong. He blew it! He didn’t expect it to be this close, he didn’t think it was going to matter, and now you have a situation where, I think, a lot of people are going to question the democracy of the process. (Sorry Florida and Michigan, due to a technical violation the Democratic National Committee has decided that your votes do not count.) This should be a lesson to Party Chairs to do things differently and more democratically.

There is no question that this is one helluva mess. Yes, the rules were clear. But the rules were backwards. And that is why it is time for an appeal. And the appeal should be won by the people, not by Senators Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama. Let’s get the voters back to the ballots. At the end of the day I think the good citizens of Florida and Michigan would want to have their voices heard.