The Race for the Democratic Nomination

Recently, Hillary Clinton, feeling that the traditional media had been unfair in their recent coverage of her campaign, appealed directly to bloggers. Well, I certainly wasn't privy to that conference call, as I'm barely a blogger, much less a political blogger, but I will take this moment and answer Senator Clinton's call.

The Race as it Stands: Far Too Negative
Yes, there are many calling for Senator Clinton's concession in this race to be the Democratic Party's nominee. I happen to agree with this, but not for the reasons you may thing. Yes, I am a Barack Obama supporter. Yes, I believe he's all but clinched the nomination. Yet it is not for that reason that I wish for Hillary to step down.

Instead, her attacks continue on the likely nominee, Senator Obama. And this is frustrating for me, not just as an Obama supporter, but as a Democrat who would like to see Senator McCain defeated come November. I agree with Senator Clinton: Every voter should have a chance for his or her voice to be heard. I support the race to continue through June 3rd, the end of the primary season. However, Senator Clinton, I wish for you to focus more on your strengths, rather than Obama's perceived weaknesses. Your brand of politics continues to be divisive. Your supporters consistently poll as being more likely to vote for Senator McCain over Senator Obama in November, and despite your protests that a Democrat must win, you are only building their resentment for the candidate who will defeat you in the Democratic primary by handing Republicans a ready supply of arsenal against Obama.

Please stop.

"It's the map, not the math."
As we have witnessed frequently within this contest, Senator Clinton's campaign has often changed the standards of measurement in order to best fit their needs. Now, even though Obama leads in pledged delegates, superdelegates, states won, and popular vote, the Clinton campaign states that Hillary has won a greater number of electoral votes, if this contest was being held in November.

This much is true, I will not argue. However, it is a mistake to think that Obama would not pick up the majority of Clinton supporters in the general election, and thus would automatically lose the states Senator Clinton has won. This faulty argument is one of a desperate campaign.

Speaking of Math...
The Clinton campaign is claiming that it holds the lead in a popular vote contest. This is untrue. In order for Clinton to claim the majority vote among Democrats, one would have to count Michigan and Florida, as the votes stand in these two states, and ignore the voters in all caucus states. This is problematic for two reasons. First, caucus states had huge turnouts, and their votes should be counted and can be tallied based on percentages and total Democratic voter turnout. Second, Senator Obama, following the wishes of the Democratic party, removed his name from the ballot in Michigan. Thus, there is no way to measure how the junior senator from Illinois would have performed in Michigan.

Either way, when you factor in the caucus states and let Michigan stand as is, Senator Obama still holds the majority vote.

Michigan and Florida
I agree with Senator Clinton that these two states should be seated at the Democratic National Convention. There is no need for the Democratic Party, the so-called people's party, to allow for voters in these states to become disenfranchised. However, these two state delegations should be seated with a penalty. I am hopeful that a resolution will be worked out on May 31st.

We have no way of knowing what the results would have been if voters had not believed their votes would have counted.

End this Before the Convention
There are those pushing for this race to go all the way to the Democratic National Convention in August, and those who clearly wish to see it end before then. I am with the latter group. Even though I will be attending the convention myself, and obviously a battle to the convention would be incredibly exciting, I care more for the future of this country than my own entertainment. As a party, Democrats must come together and begin to patch up the divisions amongst us well before the last week of August. This race has been, in part, so exciting and fierce because Americans are ready for change. We have a president leaving office with a 28% approval rating. That means that a whopping 72% do not approve of the president's performance in office. Come November, we need to rally for positive changes in this country, and not lose an election that should by all means, be ours.

Senator Clinton's Legacy
Here is the topic I wish to address the most. I believe Senator Clinton's legacy depends on how she responds when Senator Obama finally crosses the line and secures the nomination with 2,026 delegates (which may be increased after May 31st). Will she graciously concede? Or will she lead a bitter battle to the convention and cause deeper rifts among Democrats?

On a more positive note, Senator Clinton has now broken through the barrier that suggested a woman couldn't campaign for president. This legacy will empower women for generations to come. She has definitely proven herself a fighter, and an incredible asset to the country and New York. However, come June 3rd, she should surrender her goal of becoming the Democratic nominee, and work with the Democratic party to elect Senator Obama as the next president of the United States.