And thank God. After tonight all the states will be counted. This has been a long primary season, but that’s due in a large part to this new crazy schedule. That’s also why I supported sanctions against Florida and Michigan. Without sanctions for violating the timing rule, we could end up with our 2012 primaries in 2010. States will keep jumping one another until we enter a time of perpetual primaries and general elections. It needs to stop, and the whole primary process needs to be revamped. Hopefully the DNC will take this on after November.
I must say this primary has brought out the worse in the blogosphere. I been reading blogs that are very pro-Obama and very pro-Clinton. The level of discourse these blogs are engaging in is disgusting. It also emphasis what I hear at every Jefferson-Jackson dinner, party fundraiser, etc., from people who have been active in the party for years; “we don’t visit the swamp land of the blogs”.
I don’t want to go into singling out blogs, so I will address them by group.
First off – the pro-Obama blogs. I myself have been for Obama, but I also recognize there is a process in place. Some prominent blogs are saying that Obama *is* the nominee and Hillary is trying to take that away. No party has a nominee right now. John McCain is the “presumptive” nominee of his party, and if Obama reaches the needed number of delegates, he too will be the “presumptive” nominee. Perhaps a look at the definition of presumptive is needed here:
1 : based on probability or presumption
2 : giving grounds for reasonable opinion or belief
Nothing there gives certainty to the nominee. That certainty won’t be given until the parties hold their conventions and have their final votes.
Obama has taken the right approach on this, by assuming the role of nominee and starting his general election campaign against John McCain.
Also there has been a lot of talk about Super Delegates and how they need to commit now. The Super Delegates has been cause for much debate over the years in the DNC, but the rules can’t be changed now. It amazes me to see pro-Obama blogs screaming that these rules should be changed now, yet they thought giving Michigan and Florida full voting rights was unfair, as it would be changing the rules mid-game. I thought the Republican party was the pary of double standards, not the Democratic party.
On to the pro-Clinton blogs. I can’t believe what I have seen on these blogs. They are just as viral as the pro-Obama blogs, and worse – they are willing to throw away a chance at a Democratic White House. This means they are putting sex above principal.
Last night I was listening to Mark Thompson on Sirius. He was in attendance at the RBC meeting, and doing interviews for his show. He said there were a number of women who said they don’t care if McCain gets Roe overturned, they would still vote for him.
They also say they want the troops home now, yet they are willing to vote for the man who will keep them there as long as he can?
These people haven’t given one valid reason for voting for McCain over Obama, except that McCain didn’t beat Hillary in the primary. I’m sorry, but that is also sexism, in reverse.
We have had an historic election this primary season, one that should be remembered for greatness. Instead certain fringe elements of the blogosphere is pushing this primary to be remembered as a disgrace for our party and country.
If you are willing to ignore the economy, health care, women’s rights, the war, our nation’s infrastructure and all the other problems our nation faces in this time of peril and vote for John McCain, just because Obama beat Hillary, then you are the truest form of sexism. And to be fair, if the tables were turned and people were saying this about Obama, I would be saying the exact same thing.
Sexism, racism, religious intolerance, and any other form of discrimination you can think of has existed for all of time. Is it right? No, but things are slowly getting better. Will we ever get to a point that it doesn’t exist? No.
Our party does need to heal, and that healing will take time. The best band aide for it will be not laying credence to blogs out there who have helped make this primary so bad, but ignoring them.
The blogosphere has been working to become a predominant voice in politics, and these fringe blogs have hurt that. In fact they are exhibiting a sense of greed that is horrible. Let the system play out and we move on from there.
For the final thing to ponder:
For the Clintonites – If Hillary is offered VP, will you still vote for McCain and throw away our nation’s chance at having the first woman vice-President?
And to the Obamaniacs – If Hillary does manage to become the nominee and Obama the VP candidate, will you still vote for McCain and throw away our nation’s chance at having the first African-American vice-President?
And to both – if your candidate is the nominee and the other candidate is the VP, will you vote for McCain because that person you have despised for all these months is on the ticket?
If you answered yes to any of these, you should be ashamed of yourself for the reasons mentioned above.