Jay began writing politically themed commentary and founded his blog, Swimming Freestyle, in October 2007. Here he'll write about politics from a progressive perspective.

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Circular Logic

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May 7, 6:20 PM

by Jay McDonough, Progressive Politics Examiner

It's nearly impossible that counting the delegates from the penalized Michigan and Florida Democratic primaries would change her fate, but the Clinton campaign is adamant that those delegates should be be seated at the Party convention in August.

Based on comments from the Clinton camp today, the seating of these delegates appears to be a precondition for Senator Clinton's withdrawal from the primary process.

Matthew Yglesias outlines why this makes no sense at all:

Nothing would do more to help resolve the Florida and Michigan issue than for Clinton to drop out and endorse Obama. If she did that, the only remaining issue would be to strike a balance between representing FL and MI at the convention and slapping FL and MI on the wrist hard enough that states don't pull this kind of stunt again. That's a needle you can thread any number of ways.

It's the fact that the campaign is continuing that makes the question difficult to resolve because it has both campaigns focused on maximizing their delegate counts rather than dealing with the aforementioned issue. Which, I suppose, is part of what makes it such an appealing pretext for staying in the race -- as a rationale it has a nice circular logic where the campaign can't end 'till MI and FL are resolved, but the issue can't be resolved until the campaign ends, so on and on we go.

What fun would this whole process be if it made any sense?

Topics: Democratic Primaries

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Comments

Obama's birth certificate; you can't keep a good conspiracy theorist down

8 comments

December 4, 3:24 PM

Did you know the Apollo 11 moon landing was faked by NASA?Did you know 9/11 attacks were orchestrated by the U.S. government?Did you know the government manages Area 51, where alien spacecraft and its occupants are being studied?Well, maybe you don't... Read More

The president's most solemn oath

1 comment

December 4, 2:12 PM

On January 20, 2009 Barack Obama will take the following oath and become the 44th president of the United States:"I do solemnly swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of... Read More
Topics: Torture , Bush , Mukasey

Auto industry predictions

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December 4, 11:35 AM

Phil LeBeau from CNBC made some predictions the other day about the U.S. auto industry. A couple:1. Chrysler will be sold.This isn't hard to imagine. The company is a shell of what it once was, it has just enough cash to stay out of bankruptcy,... Read More

The case for health care investment

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December 4, 9:26 AM

Given the precarious state of the economy and the huge investment being made to keep Wall Street afloat, some have argued any move to implement universal health care is ill-timed. Jonathan Gruber, in an op-ed piece in today's New York Times, argues... Read More

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1 comment

December 3, 5:16 PM

Beijing, China: A newborn baby holds onto his mother's finger at a hospital (Photograph: Frederic J. Brown/AFP/Getty Images) ... Read More

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December 3, 3:49 PM

The United Auto Workers announced today their willingness to make contract concessions to assist the troubled Big Three automakers in winning loan guarantees from the federal government. The UAW will agree to delay the autoworkers contribution... Read More

Subpoenas issued in Justice probe

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December 3, 3:09 PM

Attorney General Michael Mukasey appointed an independent prosecutor, Nora Dannehy, two months ago to investigate the dismissals of nine U.S. attorneys. Mr. Mukasey's move was initiated following an internal Department of Justice review that concluded... Read More

Retired officers want torture revoked

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December 3, 11:59 AM

The other day I noted a Washington Post op-ed, written by a former interrogator, arguing for an end to the use of torture by American forces. I included this comment:After reading much on the topic, it seems that the great majority of career military... Read More