Fla. Dems sue national party on primary

[maddezmom]

Source: AP

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. - Congressional Democrats from Florida sued their own party Thursday, hoping to restore the national convention delegates stripped from the state because it scheduled an early presidential primary.

The party violated the Constitution and federal voting laws by taking away Florida Democrats' ability to have a say in choosing the presidential nominee, says the lawsuit filed by Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Alcee Hastings against the Democratic National Committee and Chairman Howard Dean.

The national party's rules committee voted to take away Florida's 210 delegates after the state party chose to go along with a Jan. 29 primary. That date was set by Florida's Republican-led Legislature and signed into law by Republican Gov. Charlie Crist.

Democratic Party rules say states cannot hold their 2008 primary contests before Feb. 5, except for Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina.



Read more: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20071004/ap_po/primary_scramble

[eFriendly]

1. I really dislike that Senator Bill Nelson a lot. n/t

[Kagemusha]

2. Someone tell me how this has a chance. I don't get it.

In the first place, presidential elections are governed by the electoral college; that is the only constitutional and federal voting law that applies. How states arrive at choosing their electors is governed by state law. Am I missing something here? How the hell do the federal courts force a national party to alter their rules without fundamentally violating their freedom of speech and association?

[maddezmom]

3. I don't think it has a chance, but if I was a FL I'd be pissed

No candidates can campaign there, advertise there, hold a press conference there, etc. So it'll be all Repubs all the time until the General.

[flyarm]

4. I was 2004 elected delegate for Fl ..and this disgusts me..the dems supported

this crap..the DLC planned it as a powerhouse for Hillary..

Rahm was all over Fl and screwing our candidates ( progressive and DNC) before the 2006 election..the DLC screwed with our primaries..and works..and i am disgusted with the DLC and the state FDP..and FDP chair Karen Thurman and Bill Nelson..all DLC owned!

and do not forget FDP chair Karen Thurman took $35,000. last year from a repig lobbiest while on the FDP payroll!

i have had it...i have lived in 9 states and worked in the dem party in 9 states..i have never seen such a fucked up party.

And i would no longer spit at Bill Nelson he has sold us down the river so many times i can't count ..

remember as well Hillary is a member of The Fellowship..so is Bill Nelson.

enough..

fly

[maddezmom]

5. kick

[Judi Lynn]

6. Nelson, Hastings sue their party

Source: Miami Herald

Nelson, Hastings sue their party
Two of Florida's top elected Democrats are taking their party to court to protect Democratic votes in the Jan. 29 presidential primary.
Posted on Fri, Oct. 05, 2007

By LESLEY CLARK AND BETH REINHARD
[e-mail]

A lawsuit accusing the national Democratic Party of stripping away the voting rights of four million Florida Democrats in the 2008 presidential primary was met with apprehension from legal experts as well as some party leaders uneasy about prolonging the family feud.

The suit, brought Thursday by U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson and Rep. Alcee Hastings of Miramar, contends that by taking away Florida's delegates to the nominating convention -- a punishment for moving up the primary to Jan. 29 -- the national party is imposing ``disenfranchisement on a massive scale.''

The suit was filed in U.S. District Court in Tallahassee, naming the Democratic National Committee and its chairman, Howard Dean, as chief defendants.

''For the DNC to say to the fourth-largest contingent of Democrats in the nation that their votes will not matter in next year's presidential primary is not only shocking and ironic but, we believe, is illegal,'' Hastings said, alluding to the contentious 2000 election in which Democrats fought for vote recounts.



Read more: http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/story/260990.html

[iconoclastic cat]

7. Just let 'em have their glorified straw poll. Sheesh. nt

[Deep13]

8. Who scheduled it for 1/29?

Was that the DNC or Florida?

[Judi Lynn]

9. The Florida Democratic Party: "Florida Democrats Affirm an Early Primary"

Florida Democrats Affirm an Early Primary


By ABBY GOODNOUGH
Published: September 24, 2007

PEMBROKE PINES, Fla., Sept. 23 — The Florida Democratic Party announced Sunday that it would move ahead with its plan to hold its presidential primary on Jan. 29 despite the national party’s decision to block the state delegation from the 2008 Democratic convention.

Candidate Topic PagesMore Politics NewsState party leaders said that even if none of the state’s delegates were seated at next summer’s Democratic presidential convention, the earlier primary would still help determine the nominee.

The Democratic National Committee voted last month to strip Florida of its delegates unless it decided by Sept. 29 to obey party rules and delay its primary until Feb. 5 or later. Then, under pressure from the four states permitted to hold contests in January, the major Democratic candidates pledged not to campaign in Florida if the primary was moved ahead.

Ever since, state party leaders have agonized over whether to accept the sanctions and stand firm on Jan. 29 or to yield and hold a smaller contest, like a caucus or vote-by-mail primary, later in the year. They decided to stick to January, said Karen Thurman, the party chairwoman, to ensure the largest possible turnout and to avoid accusations of disenfranchisement from Democrats still bitter about the 2000 recount.

More:
http://www.nytimes.com/2007/09/24/us/politics/24florida.html?_r=1&hp&oref=slogin

[Major Hogwash]

10. Who is in control of the Democratic party, the DNC or the DLC?

Can't the Democrats in Florida hold their primary later than the January 29th date?

Can't the Democrats in Florida hold their primary on a different date than when the Republicans hold theirs?

Who decides when the Democratic primary will be held, the state or the Democratic party?

[MaineDem]

11. First of all, the DLC has nothing to do with any of this

And the Supreme Court of the US has already ruled that the Parties have control over their own nomination procedures. This law suit will go nowhere.