Posted by
Part of the solution on Thursday, April 24, 2008 9:55:24 AM
The democrats' dilemna is pretty basic. Who can superdelegates afford to disappoint? Do they willing give away the Presidency in a year that they should handily win it, or do they risk destroying their most loyal constituency? Jacksonian democrats, as Barone refers to them, will simply not vote for Barrack Obama for President of the United States. There seems no chance of Obama winning in November. But, should the superdelegates take away his nomination, the risks to the overall democratic party are far greater.
As Barone clearly points out, the liberal wing, which controls the democratic party, will not nominate a moderate for the Presidency. It boggles the mind to realize that Hillary is the more conservative of the democratic candidates! But, I digress. Taking away the nomination from Obama, most likely will cause Americans that happen to be black to disengage from the political process. They probably won't vote for a republican, but, most likely, they'll stay home. It's clear that Americans that happen to be black are the only loyal democrat constituency left. In 2000 and 2004 almost 90% of which voted for Gore and Kerry. Imagine what would have happened without just 25% of that vote. This core democrat constiuency is the only one keeping the entire party competitive.
Jacksonian democrats have defected to the republican side many times in national elections. However, in local and state contests they mostly return to the democratic candidate. After all, the candidate in their locale is most often a moderate. In the end, democrats are stuck with Obama. The party can give away the Presidency, while building on their majority in Congress and at the state levels. To do otherwise, would spell the end of the democratic party. We can dream!
Ann Coulter has a witty column regarding the company that Obama and Clinton keep. I loved this line: "On one hand, Obama pals around with terrorists. On the other hand, Hillary pals around with James Carville. Advantage: Obama."
http://www.anncoulter.com/
George Will has written an excellent article on the state of education in this country. He starts by referring back to 1983.
"If an unfriendly power had attempted to impose on America the mediocre educational performance that exists today, we might well have viewed it as an act of war.
-- "A Nation At Risk" (1983)"