Hillary does have more expiriece. But its 35 years of expirieince at making aweful decisions, and Obama will start to talk about that stuff now. Hillary was loosing when he was playing tame, I think she may have awakened a sleeping giant...

WASHINGTON — Florida Democrats are planning for the nation's largest vote-by-mail election so the state's delegates can have a say in the hotly contested presidential nominating fight.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC) stripped Florida of its 211 delegates and Michigan of its 156 delegates to the party's convention in August as punishment for scheduling their primaries before Feb. 5. In Michigan, a mail-in election appears unlikely because of concerns about costs and feasibility.


The clock is ticking: Democratic Party rules call for the nominating contests to end by June 10.

Under the Florida plan, to be submitted to the DNC by the end of the week, the state party would pay for the new primary, according to Dan McLaughlin, spokesman for Sen. Bill Nelson. Nelson, a Hillary Rodham Clinton supporter, is working on the do-over proposal.

DNC chairman Howard Dean has expressed support for mail-in primaries and has encouraged Florida and Michigan to devise do-over plans that meet party rules.

A Florida election by mail would cost between $8 million and $10 million, said Mark Bubriski, state Democratic Party spokesman. "We think it would be the most fair solution," he said.

The state party is moving forward, he said, despite resistance from Barack Obama's campaign. "We're concerned," said Obama strategist David Axelrod, noting Florida has not had enough preparation time. Clinton, who won the Florida and Michigan contests, has said delegates should be seated based on the original votes.

Clinton and Obama are locked in an intense nomination battle, with Obama leading in delegates. But the party's system of awarding pledged delegates proportionally — rather than winner-take-all — makes it unlikely that either candidate can secure the nomination just based on pledged delegates awarded by Tuesday's Mississippi primary and 10 remaining contests.

No delegates were awarded when Michigan and Florida voted in January. Both candidates had agreed not to campaign in those states, and Obama took the added step of taking his name off the Michigan ballot.

Do-overs in Florida or Michigan are unlikely to give either Clinton or Obama the advantage in the delegate fight. "The re-do will result in just a few delegates in one candidate's favor," said Debbie Dingell, a DNC member from Michigan.

Oregon voters have cast ballots exclusively by mail since 1998. In mail-in elections, voters sign their ballot, which is checked against a state database of voter-registration signatures.

Under the Florida plan, voters would receive ballots about three weeks before the election, Bubriski said. Floridians living overseas, including military personnel, would get ballots 45 days in advance. Ballots must be received by the election date to count.

Florida has 4.8 million registered Democrats, according to the state party. A record 1.7 million Democrats voted in the Jan. 29 primary.

Scott Moore, spokesman for the Oregon Secretary of State's office, said the mail-in system works well but requires significant voter outreach. "You don't want people to say, 'What's this joke ballot?' and toss it in the trash," he said.

Clinton and Obama, who each raised more than $100 million last year, have the resources to wage a short vote-by-mail campaign, said Paul Gronke, a political scientist and expert on mail-in voting at Reed College in Portland, Ore.

The Florida party is likely to pay for the new election through unlimited "soft-money" donations from corporations, unions and wealthy individuals that are banned at the federal level but allowed for state parties.

In Michigan, party spokeswoman Liz Kerr said a mail-in election poses cost and logistical problems. Among them: Michigan does not require voters to register by party. That means party officials would have to ensure that voters who participated in the Jan. 15 GOP primary do not receive ballots in a new Democratic contest, she said

what was said?

Is that how it works? Ignore the popular vote, ignore the delegate counts, only 10 states get to decide who the nominee is?

How undemocratic.

So Groucho you don't think that Florida and Michigan voters should have a say. I agree that Michigans vote is FUBAR but Florida is a little different. Both Michigan and Florida are important states come the general election should the Democratic Party just ignore them. Nothing precluded Obama from putting his name on the Michigan Ballot(though the ballot there the way it was voted is not really a democratic vote). I think the weight on those votes carries a lot on the whole democratic and republican parties(yes the republicans screwed it up too).

SO lets not count 2 states where voters went to the polls...How undemocratic.

Not too mention that if the Democrats awarded Delegates the same way as the republicans did than Hillary would be up in pledged delegates 1378-1269 and after Pennsylvania and Puerto Rico the Popular vote could go either way not too mention West Virginia which will most likely vote for Hillary.

So Groucho you don't think that Florida and Michigan voters should have a say..

...2. Thank goodness the Dems have more sense to award delegates by a % than winner take all. Does winning all the states delegates by 0.5% as an example really make much sense, I mean really?

When you stop putting words in my mouth, then I will deem you worthy of response. But I won't debate someone who thinks the way to win a debate is by lying about what the other person says and then arguing against what you want to argue about instead of what was really being debated.

Well groucho this is a thread about the florida and michigan primaries sorry if I misunderstood. Conversely I haven't put words in your mouth. I may of misunderstood what you are saying. But I am not lying. If that is how you feel more power to you.

Come Novemebr I can honestly say that I will be voting for Obama or Hillary with pride. Can you say the same if Hillary wins?

LANSING, Mich. (AP) - Michigan Democrats are close to an agreement with presidential candidates Sens. Hillary Rodham Clinton and Barack Obama to hold a do-over primary.

Party officials and the campaigns negotiated on Thursday, and state Democratic leaders were hopeful that an agreement could be reached on Friday, said Democratic officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the talks. To go forward, any plan would require the approval of the two campaigns, the Democratic National Committee, state party leaders and Gov. Jennifer Granholm, who is backing Clinton