Democrats are now focusing on February 5 -- Super Tuesday -- when voters in 22 states will cast ballots. On the Republican front, the campaigns remain focused on Florida where voters head to the polls tomorrow. Mitt Romney and John McCain appear to be the frontrunners. In other campaign news, Vice President Dick Cheney’s daughter Liz Cheney has become a senior foreign policy adviser to Mitt Romeny.
So led Democracy Now! headlines on Monday. Wow. Who knew Florida was only having a Republican primary? Of course, they weren't just having a Republican primary. Amy Goodman embarrassed herself to please and appease the DNC.
Star f**ker
Just like your daddy
Selling your baby
Gonna strike a deal
Make you feel like a Congress man
-- "Professional Widow" (Tori Amos, Boys For Pele)
Here's the back story. Presidential election cycle after election cycle, New Hampshire and Iowa get to go first. So they get face time with the candidates. They get to ask questions. In some neighborhoods, they get candidates going door to door. And the rest of the states? Some don't get a damn thing. But because they go first, Iowa and New Hampshire get a chance to meet the candidates over and over starting the year before the presidential election.
This year, two states rightly said enough. And that stand isn't just a stand for themselves, it's a stand for all fifty states. The DNC (Democratic National Committee) responded by stating the states were now stripped of their delgates. If all this seems familiar to you, we'll assume you're regular readers because you damn sure didn't hear about it from our 'populist' and 'grassroots' and 'people loving' 'independent' media.
Two states were retaliated against by the national committee and alleged 'independent' media couldn't wait to march behind the national committee.
Now Wally (and many other community members) are from Florida, there are some from Michigan. And maybe that's why we made this an issue in 2007 as well as 2008? But seems to us a magazine called "The Nation" should have readers around the, well, nation. But the magazine wouldn't go to bat for them, wouldn't stand up for them.
Over and over, they revealed themselves to be craven little lackeys of the DNC while trying to pass themselves off as 'journalists' and 'independent media.'
When we started covering this, we didn't know who the winners would be (it was Hillary Clinton in both states) and we'll note that independent media didn't either. So it wasn't yet another example of Bambi-Love when they ignored what was going on -- it was that they just didn't give a damn.
The same 'independent' media that can't shut up about 'stolen' elections, the same 'independent' media that wanted to act like it was Florida's best friend following the 2000 elections. They wanted to cluck and emphasize. Florida was disenfranchises but it's being disenfranchised in the primary elections and where the hell was independent media?
Tuesday Amy Goodman was back to lying:
Republican Voters in Florida Head to Polls
On the Republican front, voters head to the polls today in Florida in the last primary before Super Tuesday. Speculation is growing that former New York Mayor Rudolph Giuliani will soon drop out of the race if he doesn’t do well in Florida.
Democratic Voters in Florida WERE ALSO Headed to Polls but you wouldn't know that from the crap Amy Goodman was shoveling. Can you send us some copies of Dave's Press, Amy? We'd really enjoy learning about your childhood spankings and what they were for -- especially if they were for lying.
On Wednesday, Amy wrapped up her 'coverage' of Florida with the following:
McCain Wins Florida Primary
In campaign news, Senator John McCain beat Mitt Romney Tuesday in Florida’s Republican primary. McCain received 36 percent of the vote to Romney’s 31 percent. The win positions McCain as the Republican frontrunner heading into "Super Tuesday" next week with contests in more than 20 states.
Sen. John McCain: "Thank you. Thank you. Thank you, Florida Republicans for bringing a former Florida resident across the finish line first and as I have been repeatedly reminded lately, an all-Republican primary."
Giuliani to Drop Out of GOP Race
Rudolph Giuliani finished a distant third with 15 percent. Giuliani had staked his candidacy on a strong showing in Florida. He’s widely expected to drop out of the race today and endorse McCain. Speaking to supporters last night in Florida, Giuliani was already referring to his campaign in the past tense.
Rudolph Giuliani: "But in a larger sense, when you run for President of the United States, you also carry people you have met throughout your life: memories of their struggles, their sacrifices, and their triumphs. I am the grandson of immigrants. Can't imagine that they ever thought that their grandson would have run for President of the United States, or been mayor of New York City, or associate attorney general, or United States attorney, or maybe even just a lawyer."
Former Arkansas governor Mike Huckabee was fourth at fourteen percent. Speaking in St. Louis, Huckabee vowed to stay in the race.
Mike Huckabee: "For those of you that think I should be discouraged, let me just remind you that going into tonight, we were second in delegate count and, more importantly, we're playing all nine innings of this ballgame. And even the Cardinals occasionally have a rough inning, but they know how to win championships."
Clinton Wins Delegate-Less Florida Contest
Democratic voters gave Senator Hillary Rodham Clinton a victory in a virtually uncontested race. The Democratic Party had stripped Florida of its delegates as a punishment for moving its primary earlier in the year. We'll have more on the Florida vote after headlines.
No, they had more crap after headlines.
But crap's all you got from 'independent' media. The day before John Nichols tatooed "NEVER TRUST ME AGAIN" on his forehead as he had a hissy fit that Hillary Clinton had a fundraiser in Florida as Rebecca pointed out. Nichols left out the fact that not only had Barack Bambi Obama also attended closed-door fundraisers in Florida (which were allowed by the DNC) but he also held a press conference (which was not allowed, as the reporters pointed out to him) and he also advertised in Florida which was also in violation of the pledge. But there was Johnny Two-Cents, downgraded from five, telling the world that Hillary broke the pledge and that lie got repeated everywhere.
On Tuesday, Mitch Perry demonstrated some problem grasping what is expected from a program entitled Free Speech Radio News. Perry thought that meant do a brief report where Bambi lover Patrick Cannon is allowed to whine that the election leaves Bambi "at an extreme disadvantage" becuase he "did not campaign here in Florida". He campaigned (and broke the pledge). John Edwards (then still in the race) didn't. Hillary Clinton didn't. But Parry didn't feel the need to go their campaigns for statements. He just needed to repeat the refrain of how unfair life is poor Bambi.
On Wednesday, Parry would provide a story that explained exactly what happened to the coverage and why. Bambi supporters advised the media not to count Florida. You heard, in the audio report, John Kerry screaming that Florida was not "legitmate."
That explains Parry's report on Tuesday and presumably all of the media.
Only we didn't think that alleged independent media took their marching orders from the DNC. We didn't think they shoved people aside to please the powerful. Amy Goodman and her brother David Goodman have a new book coming out but it's not entitled Going Where I'm Told to. It just plays out like that
On Tuesday, January 29, 2008, A26, The New York Times editorialized (in "Florida's Phantom Democrats"), "There is a bigger problem, and that is with the whole state by state -- Iowa and New Hampshire always go first -- primary system. The most sensible method for ogranizaing these primaries would be to cluster them by region. And then take turns every four years for slecting the region that get voice to thank."
We'd get behind it were it not for the fact that we've suggesting it since this site started in 2005. It is not fair and it doesn't play in the world of sports where things have to be rotated. It's a damn shame that we expect more fairness from the world of sports than we do from politics.
Hillary Clinton is now calling for the delegates to be seated and there's a lot of nonsense that she just wants to win!
Well, golly, gee, a candidate who wants to win. Summon the village elders!
Hillary's not the issue. Our position last year -- before the primaries were held -- was that Florida and Michigan's delegates should be seated and counted. The DNC wants to have a snit fit. (The RNC has been far less punishing to the delegates from Michigan and Florida.) Well the DNC created the problem. The DNC could have started rotating this out years ago. They created the problem and they allowed it to go unchecked. If Florida and Michigan hadn't stepped up, how many more election cycles would we have seen before some state finally did?
In the general election, the Democrats can't afford to start out that campaign with Florida and Michigan pissed off and still hope to win. They can't afford to write off any state. But that's what they're risking when they disenfranchise two large states.
Even with the threat of no delegates, even without candidates running serious campaigns (or any, except for Bambi) in the state, look at how many people turned out to vote in the Democratic Party. From Florida Democrats' "Amazing Night For Democrats Everywhere:"
No campaigns? No delegates? No problem. Florida Democrats prove America is ready for change
For Immediate Release: January 29, 2008
ORLANDO - Florida Democrats today surpassed the total combined vote in the first four "early states", topped the total population of New Hampshire, shattered the previous state record for turnout in a Democratic Presidential Primary, and even broke the previous record for turnout in ANY Democratic primary in Florida. Incredibly, Democratic turnout has exceeded 1,708,489 voters with 97% of precincts reporting - only 195,074 less than Florida Republicans whose turnout was relatively dismal, considering five multi-million dollar GOP presidential campaigns were working the state for months. Republicans appear to have even failed to meet their own expected turnout, which was rumored to be between 2.2 and 2.5 million.
"Florida Democrats have spoken, and they are being heard loud and clear. More than one and a half million Democratic voters went to the polls and made a powerful collective statement,'" Florida Democratic Party Chair Karen L. Thurman said. "The nation's largest battleground state proved today that America wants change. Democrats clearly have the momentum in Florida and across this country. No matter the challenges we face, Florida Democrats will deliver for this country in November just like they did today. This is an incredible night for the people of Florida!"
Florida Democratic Presidential Preference Primary Turnout: 1,708,489
Population of New Hampshire according to 2007 US Census Projections: 1,315,828
1988 State of Florida record for Democratic Presidential Primary Turnout: 1,273,338
Combined 2008 turnout of the 4 early states (IA, NH, NV, SC) - 1,174,227 voters
Record turnout. More voters than in Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina combined. That's 1.7 million voters in one state who stood up against the system and didn't tell themselves, "They're saying my vote won't count so I should stay home." But to independent media, they don't matter. To independent media, they don't exist.
Though they made their voice heard on Tuesday, 'independent' media wasn't interested in listening. That should bother everyone as much as the threats against Florida and Michigan should.
[For more on this, see C.I.'s "Iraq snapshot" from Wednesday.]