Say Yes to Michigan... Please
Michigan -- my state. The Great Lakes. Motown. The polite yet brutally honest people. We are a hearty people, I tell my wife when she complains about the winter weather.
Our political environment can be rather funky. We have a Canadian Democratic female governor. Senator Levin is ours, Senator Stabenow, too. We've voted against Bush every chance we got, even in the 2000 Republican primary when we thought McCain was a straight talker and not a lying hypocrite.
We also have the DeVos family, powerful Republicans who made their money off the scheme known as Amway. Betsy DeVos, 2004 Bush-Cheny "Pioneer" and all-around uber-Republican, is the sister of Erik Prince of Holland, Mich. Prince is the founder of Blackwater USA.
Gerald Ford also came from Michigan, but he was a moderate Democrat compared to those people.
We gave the country Michael Moore and Ted Nugent.
So, the question of our Democratic primary is a complex one.
In January, in crappy winter weather, we went out to vote. The results:
Hillary Rodham Clinton - 328,151 - 55.3%
Uncommitted - 237,762 - 40.0
Dennis J. Kucinich - 21,708 - 3.7
Christopher J. Dodd - 3,853 - 0.6
Mike Gravel - 2,363 - 0.4
Some names were missing on the ballot. Also, there was no campaigning.
Yes, we were bad. We wanted an early primary so we, a large state going through rough times with a population of 10,095,643 hard working folks, could have an impact.
We're sorry. It'll never happen again.
So... could we have a do-over?
The funny thing is, 40%, 237,762 people, bothered to come out into the snow to vote for "Uncomitted." There was an effort at the time, strictly via web and word of mouth, to get Obama supporters to vote for Mr. U. The thinking was that if the delegates were seated then the uncomitted would maybe go to the Obama side. This cockamaimie plan managed to motivate 40%, back in the time when Obama was still an underdog.
Governor Granholm, when asked if she'd support a do-over, said "No." Rather bluntly dismissed it. Turns out she's a Clinton supporter, also.
I can see the point in not spending more state funds on another primary -- we are broke. Would there be any way to get the party to fund a primary or caucus?
I put this all out there because I hear rumblings about getting my state to matter again. Because I feel like John Travolta, all "Boy In The Plastic Bubble" like. This is the first time I really wanted to do something to choose the Democratic candidate. I can put my hand against the plastic, and you can put yours up on the other side, but can we really touch?
Our political environment can be rather funky. We have a Canadian Democratic female governor. Senator Levin is ours, Senator Stabenow, too. We've voted against Bush every chance we got, even in the 2000 Republican primary when we thought McCain was a straight talker and not a lying hypocrite.
We also have the DeVos family, powerful Republicans who made their money off the scheme known as Amway. Betsy DeVos, 2004 Bush-Cheny "Pioneer" and all-around uber-Republican, is the sister of Erik Prince of Holland, Mich. Prince is the founder of Blackwater USA.
Gerald Ford also came from Michigan, but he was a moderate Democrat compared to those people.
We gave the country Michael Moore and Ted Nugent.
So, the question of our Democratic primary is a complex one.
In January, in crappy winter weather, we went out to vote. The results:
Hillary Rodham Clinton - 328,151 - 55.3%
Uncommitted - 237,762 - 40.0
Dennis J. Kucinich - 21,708 - 3.7
Christopher J. Dodd - 3,853 - 0.6
Mike Gravel - 2,363 - 0.4
Some names were missing on the ballot. Also, there was no campaigning.
Yes, we were bad. We wanted an early primary so we, a large state going through rough times with a population of 10,095,643 hard working folks, could have an impact.
We're sorry. It'll never happen again.
So... could we have a do-over?
The funny thing is, 40%, 237,762 people, bothered to come out into the snow to vote for "Uncomitted." There was an effort at the time, strictly via web and word of mouth, to get Obama supporters to vote for Mr. U. The thinking was that if the delegates were seated then the uncomitted would maybe go to the Obama side. This cockamaimie plan managed to motivate 40%, back in the time when Obama was still an underdog.
Governor Granholm, when asked if she'd support a do-over, said "No." Rather bluntly dismissed it. Turns out she's a Clinton supporter, also.
I can see the point in not spending more state funds on another primary -- we are broke. Would there be any way to get the party to fund a primary or caucus?
I put this all out there because I hear rumblings about getting my state to matter again. Because I feel like John Travolta, all "Boy In The Plastic Bubble" like. This is the first time I really wanted to do something to choose the Democratic candidate. I can put my hand against the plastic, and you can put yours up on the other side, but can we really touch?
