And superdelegates? All documentation that the idea has ever existed should be loaded into a rocket and shot into the sun. Superdelegates are superstupid and nearly as undemocratic as the Electoral College. They're a solution in search of a problem.
From the outside, the Democratic primary process looks disorganized, divisive, and complex beyond all reason. From the inside, it probably looks pretty much the same way. Democracy is actually a pretty simple thing -- everyone votes, you count up the votes, and you're done. Throwing in superdelegates is a superfluous step.
That's not to say that the dems get nothing right. The Republican primary has its own problem. In making all states "winner take all," their delegate count doesn't reflect the popular vote at all. In that way, the GOP's process is just as undemocratic. Dividing the delegate count among the candidates reflects the math on the ground much, much better. In that way, the dems are one up on the GOPers.
Unfortunately, the machine's got to stop before you can fix it. And the primary machine isn't going to wind down until the primaries are over. It's too late for a fix to the races happening now, but we'll have four years to make sure the 2010 elections aren't the complete mess that the 2008 races have been so far. Once the smoke clears and a new president is sworn in, party members and lefties in general should have an agenda for the party -- reform. As the primaries are now, they're frustratingly destructive.
And screwy. How many superdelegates are there? It depends on what day you ask. Last night, I came across a piece by John Nichols at his The Nation blog that shows just how ridiculous the whole process has become.
In case you thought the race for the Democratic presidential nomination was a little too easy to follow, consider this notion: We do not currently know exactly how many delegate votes will be required to win the party nod when it convenes this summer in Denver.
How can that be? Because the number of superdelegates -- party leaders and elected officials who are guaranteed places at the convention -- keeps changing.
There used to be 794. Today there are 793. And, says Nichols, "that figure will change."...
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