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Former Democratic National Committee Chairman and Indiana super delegate Joe Andrew announces his support for Barack Obama for President today, withdrawing his former support for Hillary Clinton. Andrew calls upon his fellow Hoosiers as well as other super delegates to unite behind Barack Obama.
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Here's something that seems truly out of left field: What if a negotiated settlement between the two Democratic presidential candidates led to somone else on the top of the ticket?
Rep. Tim Mahoney, a Democrat from Florida, told his local paper this week that if the nomination comes down to a negotiated settlement and one of the Candidates puts forth a ticket led by some third person, with one of the current candidates as VP, the party would accept it.
This bizarre possibility could result in Al Gore or John Edwards in the White House and Hillary Clinton or Barack Obama next in line. It seems far more unlikely a resolution than a Clinton/Obama or Obama/Clinton dream ticket.
Why would either of the candidates be willing to negotiate himself or herself off the ticket completely in favor of a vice presidency for the other?
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Furthermore, if the nominee turns out to be someone other than one of the people currently running for president, would rank-and-file Democrats be bewildered to the point of not showing up to the polls?
And finally, in a year expected to produce either a female or black nominee, would it not be received poorly by the public at large to suddenly have yet another white man at the top of their ticket? We certainly think so.
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There are two words a person can count on hearing pass through John McCain's lips as he explains where he falls on the political spectrum on the campaign trail these days: conservative Republican.
Never mind the fact that he has spent decades cultivating the image of a moderate, someone who votes their conscience and not the party line. But the New York Times is pointing a couple of other inconsistencies in McCain's new-fashioned self image: the two occasions during the first Bush presidency when McCain almost switched parties.
In 2001, when the Senate was evenly divided 50-50 between Democrats and Republicans, former Democratic Leader Tom Daschle says McCain approached him about switching parties. The negotiations became moot when another Republican made the switch, handing control of the Senate to the Democrats.
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John Kerry says in 2004, McCain staffers approached him about considering McCain for the second spot on his ticket. Kerry reports that he was wild about the idea but in the end couldn't get McCain to do it.
McCain remembers it differently, of course. Now he's the "conservative Republican" nominee for president, he obviously never considered becoming a Democrat.
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David Paterson has been governor of New York for just over 24 hours and already he has admitted to an extra-marital affair. But don't get too excited, this one's the more conventional variety.
"There was a period of time where it appeared this marriage was going sour," Paterson told the New York Daily News just hours after being sworn in. He admitted having an affair with "a woman other than my wife." Michelle Paterson had a similar confession to make.
This story has a happy ending though. They went to counseling, worked it all out, and even went to the same hotel where Paterson used to do his mistress. How about being governor for new and exciting? That should get the New York's new first lady's blood pumping.
Unlike his predecessor though, Paterson doesn't seem to have broken any laws in his extra-curricular carnal pursuits and we can file this one under the category, "water under the bridge."
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Earlier today, the state of New York got its 55th governor. David Paterson was sworn in during a special joint session of the legislature in Albany.
So happy to be rid of Spitzer is the Empire State's capital that Paterson received at 2-minute standing ovation when he entered the chamber. He was sworn in and and gave a 12-minute speech addressing the economy which he said was "headed toward crisis" and also spoke of restoring a sense of bipartisan comity in Albany.
He didn't mention Spitzer by name, but the fact that he feels that a spirit of bi-partisanship needs to be restored does seem to indicate that it was lost at some point. If Paterson is skillful, he may be able to channel the bi-partisan excitement about his ascension to the state's top job into reform. T
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The crowd was practically raucous during the swearing-in. According to the New York Times, applause and cheering interrupted the process after Paterson began the oath of office. Chief Justice Judith Kaye had to tell the crowd, "Not yet," in order to finish the process.
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Real Clear Politics made an interesting point about Michigan earlier today. In their effort to be one of the first primaries of the season, it was stripped of it delegates.
Now, it's the state's (possible) location at the end of the primary schedule that is making it so important. It just goes to show the full extent to which this year's election is different from the ones that have come before it, probably all the way back to at least 1992.
There is no conventional wisdom about any aspect of presidential contests that will help in predicting a state's importance or a candidate's success this year.
Michigan Democrats are trying to get a primary together by June 3, and doing so could make them the decisive state in an otherwise undecidable race.
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Geraldine Ferraro has resigned from the Clinton campaign after suggesting that Barack Obama owes his success in the presidential contest partly because of his race.
Hillary Clinton has apologized to black voters and disowned the statements, but Ferraro is herself is far from apologetic, lashing out at her accusers. In fact, she feels that she is owed an apology. "If anyone is going to apologize, they should apologize to me for calling me a racist," she said on NBC's Nightly News last night.
Hillary Clinton, does not share her sentiments and tried to get as far away from those damaging words as possible.
She blamed Obama for making race and issue in the national spotlight, which is something Dr. Phil might refer to as "projection."
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"I certainly do repudiate it and I regret deeply that it was said," Clinton told a crowd of black newspaper owners yesterday. "Obviously [Ferraro] doesn't speak for the campaign, she doesn't speak for any of my positions, and she has resigned from being a member of my very large finance committee."
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