There has been a lot of talk about delegates over the last few weeks. Hillary wants to count Florida and Michigan becuase they help her totals, and every vote should count, right? Obama wasn’t on the ballot in Michigan, and did not campaign in Florida, becuase both states violated party rules governing the timing of their caucuses. And Hillary’s surrogates have taken pains to dismiss any results they don’t like as insignificant, although (as Atrios has pointed out) that strategy is self-defeating in the long run if Hillary keeps losing. So far, Obama has won in 21 States and the District of Columbia, and Hillary has won (counting Michigan and Florida) only 12. To turn the question back on Mark Penn, you could ask whether it is possible for us to have a democratic nominee who has lost two thirds of the contests she’s been in so far?
After Tuesday’s vote, Obama is the clear leader on delegates for the Democratic nomination. But today TPM points out that Obama is also the clear leader in the popular vote, even counting Michigan, where he got no votes at all because his name was not on the ballot. Good work, Michigan.
But remember, that’s good news for Hillary, because all of those nine and a half million voters are insignificant.
