Newt Gingrich Shows More Respect For Democratic Principles Than Hillary Clinton

Newt Gingrich and the Clintons were on opposite sides of many issues in the 1990’s. Liberal bloggers would generally take the side of the Clintons, but here’s one time when Gingrich is right and the Clintons are wrong. Newt Gingrich understands the consequences of Hillary Clinton’s attempts to steal the nomination, both to the Democratic Party and to democracy itself. Gingrich even discusses the Democratic Party without resorting to the childish tendency of many Repubicans to distort the party’s name.

So the Democrats are caught in a double-bind: Disenfranchising the voters in Michigan and Florida while allowing party insiders to pick the party’s nominee has all the makings of a Democratic civil war.

You might think that as a Republican I don’t have a dog in this fight, but I do. All of us do. A tainted or “stolen” Democratic nomination has the potential to delegitimize the election itself and its outcome. And tainted victories produce hobbled administrations. Much as I might have agreed with the outcome of the 2000 general election, the rancor and vitriol it produced created divisions among Americans where none naturally existed before, irreparably damaging the Bush administration.

Contrary to the political consultants’ handiwork and the mainstream media’s mythmaking, America is not a nation fundamentally divided between red and blue. We are surprisingly united on the core values that make us Americans and the practical solutions to the challenges we face. We need an election process with the integrity to produce a nominee who can lead this natural majority.

The question is: How?

Giving the Michigan and Florida delegates to Sen. Clinton — particularly in light of reports that she bent the Democratic Party rules against campaigning in both states — is a recipe for even more chaos.

On the other hand, leaving the Florida and Michigan delegates unseated runs the risk for the Democrats of alienating two big states they want and need to win in November.

The answer, for the integrity of the process, is a do-over: Hold the Michigan and Florida Democratic primaries again.

The voters — not the party insiders — have the moral authority to choose the nominee. Democratic voters in Michigan and Florida should get that chance. Then in November, we’ll have a fair fight. And I’ll be honest — it may not help the chances for a Republican victory in the fall. But it will help something even more important: the integrity of our political process.

With all the partisan battles, it is good to see a Republican like Gingrich stand up for the core democratic principles which do hopefully bind us together. It is out of respect for the importance of defending democracy that I’ve decided I will vote for John McCain should Clinton win the Democratic nomination by stealing it as she is now attempting.

A new vote, which Obama has supported and Clinton has opposed, would be the best solution. Clinton claims to be concerned with protecting the rights of those of us in Michigan and Florida to have representatives at the convention, but her opposition to a fair primary or caucus demonstrates that her only real concern is picking up additional delegates.

Unfortunately I doubt a new primary is going to happen. The chairman of the Michigan Democratic Party is a Clinton supporter and appears determined to give Clinton this unfair edge. The national party will need to take the lead on presenting a fair solution.

One possibility would be to only allow the delegates of both states to participate after the nominee is chosen. It is possible that events in the final contests will settle the issue and it won’t matter. The super delegates could ensure that this isn’t an issue. Should Obama have a clear lead and enough super delegates then commit to Obama to guarantee the nomination, there will be no reason to allow Clinton the minor victory of having majorities in the Michigan and Florida delegations if Obama is certain to receive the nomination.

If the nomination is still uncertain going into the convention, the best compromise might be to allow Michigan and Florida to have delegations composed of an equal number of delegates for each candidate. This way Clinton will not benefit from violating the agreement among the candidates not to campaign in these states, Michigan and Florida will both be represented at the convention, and supporters of either candidate will probably accept this without becoming angry enough to sit home in November or vote Republican in protest.

2 Comments

  1. 1
    rawdawgbuffalo says:

    well if obama doesnt get the nod, i hope the dems wont run into a brick wall

  2. 2
    battlebob says:

    If Hillary gets the nod then the election campaign will turn out to be who is the biggest liar. Hillary is evil and I have said many times on this blog that I will not vote for her or for Bubba’s third term. Just because she say she is a Democrat means nothing. Her war stance is only slightly more moderate then McCain’s. What else will she twist around in an attempt to get an advantage.
    The choice will be between a Repub and a Repub-lite. I don’t drink lite beer and I don’t vote for lite politicans.

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