Haven't decided who to vote for on Feb 5th. Convince me!

[BlueStateBlue]

I've turned my attention to the primaries a bit late. I've watched a few of the Democratic debates and I can't stand much more of the talking heads on TV.

You guys are so well informed, so I thought I would ask your advice.

I've narrowed my choices down to the obvious three - Clinton, Obama, Edwards.

The issues that are most important to me are health insurance, the future of the Bush tax cuts, and Iraq.

Thanks in advance for your input!

[Jim Sagle]

1. Edwards RRRRRAWWWWWXXXXXX!!!!!!!!

;)

[babylonsister]

2. Goodness! Who did you lean towards in the debates? nt

[BlueStateBlue]

6. They're all appealing in their own way. Of course,

anything looks good when compared to GWB!

[MadBadger]

7. What state are you from?

[BlueStateBlue]

9. NJ

[MadBadger]

11. My state...so I realllly want you to vote for Obama

[BlueStateBlue]

12. How do the delegates work in NJ? Is it winner take all?

[MadBadger]

14. I'm not sure if any state is winner take all.

[Tatiana]

18. Here are the delegate selection rules for NJ:

http://www.njdems.org/pdf/2008DSP.pdf

107 out NJ's 127 total delegates are pledged, and therefore, typically reflect the will of the primary voters.

[TreasonousBastard]

17. Joisey are ya? Last I heard, Lesniak, Corzine,,,

Menendez and a bunch of other party bosses are solidly behind Hillary. If they get Bergen, Mercer, and Essex counties to go along, Hillary's almost no contest.

But, that has nothing to so with how you vote, and I'm sorry to say that I'm in the same boat. Here in NY, I don't doubt Hillary will sweep the state, but I haven't really decided who I think would be the best President out of this crew. Each has some really good points, and some not so good ones.

They all kind of average out to pretty much the same in my book, so I think I'm just gonna wait till Tuesday and vote on instinct-- a last minute, and probably simply emotional, decision.

[NJObamaWoman]

19. I think NJ will be a big contest. I'm from Bergen county and they mostly vote

Republican. I mean I still remember Bob Dole coming to visit in my old home town. Essex seems to be heavily Obama. From Newark all the way to Montclair I see alot of support for Obama. If Obama can get our major cities like Newark (which he has because the mayor is for him), Jersey City, Passaic, Paterson, Hoboken, New Brunswick etc than he can do good.


I also think people have to take into account that there are many NJ residents who now can't stand our Gov. Corzine. I think NJ will be very interesting come Feb 5th.

[TreasonousBastard]

20. Been outta joisey for over two years, so not really up...

on that latest. Corey Booker is for Obama? Figgers, and that takes it for Essex since whatsisname, the Senate leader who was guvnah for a while, is also for Obama.

You're right that Bergen overall is Republican, but that's largely thanks to Morristown and environs. And all those other stuffy towns up Rte 17 and by the NY border. How are Hackensack and Bergenfield and other Democratic towns gonna go?

[NJObamaWoman]

21. Yes Corey Booker is for Obama and has been actively campaigning

for him. There was also a straw poll taken in Montclair in which Obama received an overwhelming amount of support. The one thing I wish Obama would have gotten is former Gov. Cody. He's decided to back Edwards but a lot of people respect Cody. I know that there were people who really wish that he would have ran for Gov. instead of Corzine.


Anyway Bergen county is really a big Republican strong hold. So when I saw that HRC was going to visit Hackensack I kind of laughed. Even in the news (tv and papers) they talked about it that day but afterwards nothing really. There were more people talking about Obama's visit to Jersey City than anything else. I mean the local news was pumped for Obama that day and the following days. Again if he gets the major cities and HRC gets some of the people in Republican counties than she might lose. Thats a pretty big might but I still think Obama has a great chance.


Hey I grew up in Bergen county we all aren't stuffy lol. I'm not really sure how Hackensack and Bergenfield is going to vote. The Bergen Record hasn't endorsed anyone yet (neither has the NJ Star Ledger which is our biggest paper). I just think that NJ is definately in play and isn't a Clinton stronghold as everyone would like to think. Their are alot of people who will vote on Feb who never done so before. The colleges and universities all are gearing up as well.

What I've found interesting is while driving on the parkway I have been seeing tons of Ron Paul signs. lol

[TreasonousBastard]

22. Cody! That's the name I couldn't think of. I thought he...

came out for Obama. I probably wasn't paying much attention.

Well, that splits Essex. Union and Hudson will go for Hillary with Menendez and Lesniak behind her. Passaic, Mercer... who knows. Warren-- finding a Democrat is like going on a snipe hunt.

Yeah, it will be interesting. I still think Hillary has most of the power behind her, but who knows.

And, OK, I forgot Morristown is Morris County, but those little towns up there around Dumont can be pretty damn stuffy. There's one tiny one by the Scout camp that made it illegal to have house numbers, the theory being that if you have any business there, you know the house you want.

[MadBadger]

3. delete

[Tatiana]

4. I am undecided too. However, this is how my thinking goes.

My state (IL) is solidly for Obama. So, I think I am going to vote for Edwards in the hopes that he finishes second (or at least reaches the 15% threshold).

I am hoping this goes to the convention.

[BlueStateBlue]

8. Can you explain further how the convention delegates work?

Thanks in advance!

[Tatiana]

16. It can seem quite complicated and tedious, at times.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Party_(United_States)_presidential_primaries,_2008#Delegate_selection_rules">Under the Democratic Party's Delegate Selection Rules for the 2008 Democratic National Convention, delegates are awarded by proportional representation, with a minimum 15 percent threshold required in order to receive delegates. Each state party is required to publish its own state level delegate selection plan and take public comment. The plans indicate how each state will select delegates at the congressional and statewide level, how the delegation will implement the party's affirmative action policy, and how the delegation will ensure an equal balance between women and men. Those plans were adopted at state conventions and forwarded to the national party in mid-2007.

In caucuses, the viability threshold (15 percent or higher depending on the caucus) must be met at each level in the process, from the precinct level upwards. This puts enormous pressure on remaining candidates to gain the support of those voters who had previously supported candidates fallen below the 15 percent threshold. The focus on viability is designed to weed out small, divisive factions from gaining delegates to disrupt the national convention. However, this can result in candidates gaining viability in some precincts but not others, and a complicated "caucus math" required to allocate whole delegates to the county and state conventions for each precinct. (The exception is Washington, whose delegate selection plan does not include thresholds at the precinct level.) In the primaries, the viability threshold is set based on statewide and congressional district votes. At-large and PLEO delegates are allocated based on statewide votes, while district-level delegates are allocated by district votes.

That's a pretty accurate description. It all depends on what your state is, whether you hold a caucus or primary, how many pledged/superdelegates your state has, etc. If Edwards doesn't get 15% in a primary, he will be awarded no delegates to the state and national convention. In a caucus, Edwards would have to get 15% of those caucusing or else those delegates for him would likely go for someone else (the other candidates' supporters usually try to win the <15% supporters over). The Super Tuesday states holding caucuses are Alaska, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Minnesota, New Mexico, and North Dakota. Minnesota is a pretty big caucus, so it would bode well if Edwards can secure some delegates there. The other states all hold primaries. Every state party has their own rules packet that has been approved by the DNC.

Here are the rules for the national convention:

http://s3.amazonaws.com/apache.3cdn.net/3e5b3bfa1c1718d07f_6rm6bhyc4.pdf

There are the rules for my state of Illinois:

http://www.ildems.com/IL%20DELEGATE%20SELECTION%20PLAN.pdf

Your state party should have the rules for the seating of your state's delegates.

[Catherine Vincent]

5. I say go with Edwards!

:)

[usregimechange]

10. Did you know Obama was a constitutional law professor? Compare and contrast

with *

[andyrowe]

13. Obama

Obama has been ready to hold the health insurance companies' collective feet to the fire ever since they put his mother through hell during her fight with cancer.

Obama is the only one of the three that didn't vote for the Iraq War Resolution (tho I'll concede he couldn't vote on it because he was not yet a Senator. He did speak against it at the time tho).

All three would repeal the tax cuts.

[Tulkas]

15. Obama,

Billary is the past, and an embarrassment

Edwards has no viable path to the nomination


Obama is the future, be a part of history and cast your vote for him.

[goodgd_yall]

23. They're all pretty close on the issues you mention

Obama's health insurance plan isn't mandatory---one difference. All of them want to withdraw combat troops from Iraq, and all of them want to roll back the tax cuts. It's down to who do you think would be the best leader of the country.

[FrenchieCat]

24. I support Barack Obama....and I believe that he is a great choice because

He is authentic, thinks out of the box, is a hell of a visionary, and will make a great leader.

Barack embodies the American Dream in a way that none of the others can even come close to. He is smart as hell, possesses excellent instinctual leadership judgment and has a wide broad perspective of the world (from the heartland of Kansas, to the sands of Hawaii, to the Foreign lands of the East, to the slums of Chicago, to the best Universities in the World to the great halls of power). He wants to change this nation for the good, and he knows what it will take to get it done; the American people behind him all the way. And note that he is dead serious about bringing back democracy to this country. He knows that when we can do good, we should.

Oh yeah...and he's one hell of a motivator.

His speeches are pretty good too!

and he is a progressive, and believes in open government.