The case for keeping the Democratic contest going — and its flaws

[babylonsister]

http://www.thecarpetbaggerreport.com/archives/15055.html#more-15055

The case for keeping the Democratic contest going — and its flaws
Posted March 30th, 2008 at 11:00 am


snip//

Then, of course, there are the arguments against keeping the race going. Off the top of my head…

* Dems can’t take advantage of their financial edge if the party’s candidates have to spend their money fighting each other.

* In order to bring the party back together after a tough fight, Dems are going to need time. A prolonged process won’t give them the time they need (McCain, meanwhile, is mending GOP fences right and further right).

* The ongoing fight is dragging down the favorability numbers of both candidates, and has given McCain a lead in national polls.

* This is a time to start defining McCain for the general election, but instead Democratic candidates are fighting each other.

* McCain’s many humiliating gaffes — which could undermine his chances in November — are getting lost in the shuffle because the Democratic race is sucking up all the media oxygen.

* The VP vetting process will have to be dramatically curtailed.

* State organizing that needs to be done isn’t getting done: “Democrat Donnie Fowler underscored the consequences of a fight that goes on into the summer. ‘Suffice it to say that every week that goes by without a nominee is another tick on the clock where the Democratic Party is not fully able to put campaign teams together in the 15 to 20 battleground states,’ he said. ‘In the past three elections, state directors have set up shop in May . . . and that’s after a two-months process of searching, hiring, and announcing them.’”

* The intra-party disputes are getting uglier — at the national and state levels.

* If this goes to the convention, McCain will have eight months for his general-election campaign, and Dems will have eight weeks.

Consider a thought experiment. If you’re a consultant/strategist at the RNC right now, are you worried that a prolonged Democratic process is going to help Dems with voter registration and battle testing, or are you doing the Happy Dance that the Clinton/Obama fight is going to continue for the foreseeable future?

It seems pretty obvious to me.

[Demeter]

1. It Isn't a Contest Any More--It's a Farce

If there were odds as even as 60-40, then it might be a contest. But it isn't, and hasn't been for some time. Therefore, in trying to tear Obama down, in trying to bend or break every rule, Hillary is her own worst enemy, and an embarassment to women everywhere who know when to hold them and when to fold them.

But I'm sure it's a great comfort to the MCPs out there to see how badly she's doing.