Florida Democrats invade Georgia

[madfloridian]

Make that Monday, March 17. But however it turns out, it won't be Florida's last stand at all. They may take it all the way to the Supreme Court. Just stand aside and get out of their way, Georgia.

Florida Dems invade Georgia

From our mothership, the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

Atlanta could become the center of the political storm on Monday when a federal appeals panel hears a lawsuit that seeks to force the Democratic National Committee to seat all of Florida’s delegates at the party’s national convention in August.

The suit was filed in August in Tampa on behalf of Floridian Victor DiMaio. It claims the DNC violated his constitutional rights when it stripped Florida’s Democratic Party of all 210 of its delegates to the convention as punishment for holding its Jan. 29 presidential primary earlier than DNC rules allow.

The suit was rejected at the district court level in Tampa, but the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta has agreed to hear the case.

DiMaio said Thursday in an interview that the appellate panel’s decision to hear the case gives him hope.

“They’ve cleared the entire docket for the entire afternoon,” DiMaio said. “They definitely want to hear our argument.”

Let's see, could it be that Florida went before the DNC rules committee and did not tell the truth? They did not tell how they worked with the Republicans to move up the primary. The rules committee had transcripts before them.

I guess in my wildest dreams I never foresaw this scenario playing out in our presidential race. I imagined all kinds of situations, but never one in which Democrats would vow to take a case to the Supreme Court to keep the national party from enforcing the rules.

Lawsuit over Florida delegates will be appealed to Supreme Court if needed.

"We have been impatiently waiting for the Appeals Court to grant us this hearing considering the fact that time is running out if we have to appeal our case to the United States Supreme Court if the Florida Delegation is still shut out of the convention in August at the same time the Supreme Court takes its annual recess" according to Mr. DiMaio. "We are grateful to the Atlanta Justices for granting us the best option of of the three options available. The Court could have denied our appeal and dismissed our case or they could have asked us to mail in our pleadings. Instead they have granted us the opportunity to present oral arguments and the Court has cleared their docket for an entire afternoon, an option that was denied to us at the Tampa District Court. Considering the closeness of the Presidential Election at this point, every delegate vote could make a difference in deciding who the next President could be.

And I really never thought it would get to the point that the favorite talking head analyzer on the Florida news circuit would say that Howard Dean should not plan a vacation in Florida

Georgia, our Democrats are on the way. We will fight till the last man is standing.

[RubyDuby in GA]

1. Fantastic! I work right across the 11th Circuit Court of Appeals. I'll be out there (with sign in

hand) to watch the freakshow.

[onehandle]

4. Jinx. I almost said freakshow too.

Changed it to media at the last second.

[madfloridian]

5. Ruby, great picture. But maybe the power to change this country is in the courts' hands.

[onehandle]

2. That court is down the street from my office.

Here comes the media.

[RubyDuby in GA]

8. I work in the Grant Building. Maybe I'll see you out there.

[justinsb]

3. This is pretty standard

It's Florida, they can't have an election without the Supreme Court having to approve and interpret the results.

[SwampG8r]

9. excuse me

but i live here and i think your overstating a case
we run as many successful elections as anywhere else
we had the unlucky happenstance to be put under the global microscope
if it hadnt been us it would have been ohio or new mexico in the scotus cases
so please dont alienate fla voters by continuously blaming us for what we did not create
the sad part about it all to me is that the counties that failed were all run by democrat supervisors of election
most of us here in florida look at it as a failure by our own parties elected watchdogs
and poor planning in ballot design

[justinsb]

11. I didn't say that the people of Florida don't

know how to vote, I said that the state of Florida can't run an election.

[reflection]

10. Florida needs to be given a time out

until they can learn to play nice. I'm getting pretty sick of their inability to run a decent election and represent their constituents properly. When I read madfloridian's play-by-play of how the Florida Democrats steered themselves to this precipice, high-fiving each other all along the way, it really disgusted me. Florida deserves better representation than they are getting.

I'm with Howard Dean on this one.

[madfloridian]

12. Yes, Florida needs a time out. I agree.

But they are not going to quit this attack on the DNC...not ever.

Florida Democrats will attempt to destroy Dean for not giving in to them

No one crosses Bill Nelson.

[thevoiceofreason]

6. The Circuit Courts Always Allow Argument in these Cases

Don't get your hopes up. Supreme Court precedent is against you.

[madfloridian]

7. Here's the precedent...DiMaio wants a new one.

http://journals.democraticunderground.com/madfloridian/...

"The 1981 Supreme Court decision for the case Democratic Party of U.S. v. Wisconsin, 450 U.S. 107 clearly states that the Democratic National Committee can make and enforce the rules on the delegate process.

"The State has a substantial interest in the manner in which its elections are conducted, and the National Party has a substantial interest in the manner in which the delegates to its National Convention are selected. But these interests are not incompatible, and to the limited extent they clash in this case, both interests can be preserved. The National Party rules do not forbid Wisconsin to conduct an open primary. But if Wisconsin does open its primary, it cannot require that Wisconsin delegates to the National Party Convention vote there in accordance with the primary results, if to do so would violate Party rules. Since the Wisconsin Supreme Court has declared that the National Party cannot disqualify delegates who are bound to vote in accordance with the results of the Wisconsin open primary, its judgment is reversed.

It is so ordered."

[Hawkeye-X]

13. I certainly hope that this scenario happens.

The appeals court fully reject the lawsuit and dismiss it with extreme prejudice, sanction DiMaio for this waste of time, force DiMaio to repay DNC for court time, lawyers fee, and other sanctions, hold DiMaio in contempt if he fails to pay. Have the Chief Judge personally tell DiMaio that Kennedy (his responsibility for 11th for the Supremes) have told him that the Supreme will reject any appeals coming to the Supreme because of the Wisconsin precedent and stop wasting their time, and deal with the DNC and not the federal court.

[madfloridian]

14. I can agree with that completely.

[rateyes]

15. I have said that I will vote for the nominee, regardless, but I now add a caveat...

If Florida's delegates are seated because of a decision of a court, and not according to DNC rules, and the nominee is chosen because of such a decision, I will stay away from the polls in November.

[madfloridian]

16. I think that a lot would feel that way.

Florida has woven a tangled web of deceit. They don't even know the difference now about truth and lies. There seems to be no fear of going to the courts.

[rateyes]

Thanks for staying on top of this.

Yours is a voice of reason.

[madfloridian]

21. Trouble is....

that as the attempts to undermine the party continue here in FL...the "reason" part might be stretched to the limit. Sometimes it is just anger now. But thanks.

[Hissyspit]

17. Last man standing is John "W" McCain?

Thanks, Florida. All of this for nothing.

[madfloridian]

18. You are most likely right. Dean and the DNC try to attack McCain...media change subject.

In this CNN interview the other day, Dean tried to talk about McCain. The anchor kept going back to FL and MI. Dean would say his job is to be fair...then he would change to McCain. Back to Florida.

Video
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2008/03/13/dean-we... /

Tells all you need to know about they operate...talking points and all.

[Divine Discontent]

19. but does it surprise you?

I guess, ultimately, it does not surprise me. This damnable state is the most poorly led, ill-advised, full of worthless ideas that lead to nowhere, that I could imagine, and they seem to have NO interest in party, but instead - only self interests.

There are so many people I meet down here that remind me in some ways of folks who spend all their time in the tundra in Canada - they seem sun-baked! They broke the party's rules, and now they're forcing FLORI-DUH into the spotlight yet again for something the rest of the country can laugh at us about - we don't follow rules, and everything that CAN go wrong, DOES in FLORI-DUH!

FLORI-DUH Democratic leaders just want the full spotlight of the nation's news cycle shining on us so that the self-promoting egoists, like the lady who runs the party here, can feel like we're are as important to the world as she says we are!


Howard Dean, please, come to FLORI-DUH for a vacation, I will get you into Disney on my cast member pass and together we can ride the revamped Haunted Mansion where they keep the ghosts of GOP past in the graveyard... you oughta see the job they did on Bar, in her wedding dress holding the knife - it's stunning.

[madfloridian]

20. "the most poorly led, ill-advised, full of worthless ideas that lead to nowhere"

Yeh, you got it.

[Divine Discontent]

24. Thank you, and I said it months ago, but again,

thanks madfloridian, for posting all the news about this mess, and the FDP shenanigans. I am ashamed of them, they are NOT Democrats, and they need ousted. I'm not someone who has much time for politics, but surely, there's gotta be a majority of DEMS who cannot stand the 'leaders' we have in FL.

I cannot believe I told Nelson I liked him in '04... I feel dirty now. LOL

Maybe if I see him again, I'll tell him I don't like him anymore and that he's a petty senator that intentionally walks a fine line to not offend the conservatives and that's bullshit, if he just stood up as a DEM on all issues and was articulate, like he can be, then he would be in the seat for life, regardless... Instead, I prefer another DEM to him, but I guess it's nearly impossible to get rid of a sitting senator with another person from your party. LIEberman proved that, and he was crappier than Nelson.

[Dr.Phool]

22. With this leading the FDP, is it any wonder.

Karen Thurman spends so much time lobbying for Republicans, she's confused about what party Charlie Crist belongs to.

She says, he's a good Democrat and needs our support.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ORQZ6iZw1DU


And here's MSNBC's Chuck Todd on the situation.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qKDrYQ-CnyQ&feature=rela...

He says the FDP is the worst state party in the country. Thanks Bill Nelson. You foisted Thurman on us.

[Divine Discontent]

23. wow, thanks for the links.... just pathetic what we have here in FL, we need to demand she go. eom

[Major Hogwash]

25. "Leave the oranges, take the canoli."

Go get 'em Florida!!!

[madfloridian]

26. Do you realize the court could award the delegates their way?

That they could take the power from the national parties and run them otherwise.

It is a scary thought.

[Major Hogwash]

27. They won't. Monday is St. Patrick's Day. You've gotta have hope.

Keep the faith.

I have it on good authority that St. Patrick ain't too happy at all that has been going on either.

[madfloridian]

28. LOL

Good one.

[madfloridian]

29. I feel uncomfortable with this over our heads. Another lawsuit.

The most sued DNC in history.

[madfloridian]

30. Big day tomorrow. Just another day in the succession of lawsuits...

against the DNC. Have they ever been sued this much before?

[Hawkeye-X]

32. When the justices hears the FDP's bullshit,

they're not going to buy it and dismiss it. See my scenario, and I would give it a 25% chance of it happening......

Right now it leans 5-4 Republican but there may be two or three that may head DNC's way.

Hawkeye-X

[ButterflyBlood]

31. This will go nowhere

The courts have ruled many times that conventions are party affairs and the law has no jurisdiction here.

[madfloridian]

33. Then why are they hearing it on appeal?

[ButterflyBlood]

34. To set mor eprecedent

Hearing an ppeal doesn't mean they'll rule in that way certainly.

[madfloridian]

35. Kick for today...

wondering if it will determine the nominee.