Why might John Edwards be waiting till after Super Tuesday to endorse?

[RiverStone]

Thom Hartmann was suggesting today that if it were possible to know who our party's nominee is by February 6th - that it would be better for the Democrats. It would allow ALL our collective resources to focus in one direction - against the puke nominee.

Edwards did not want the Dem race to be divisive and he suggested upon withdrawing, that his exit may speed up the process of choosing a nominee. Then why not endorse someone before Super Tuesday, and let the chips fall where they may? That would likely speed things up alright. Personally, I'd rather see Edwards endorse Obama and enjoy John as the AG in an Obama Administration.

What would be the pros/cons to Edwards delaying an endorsement? Even slime-ball Rudy practically knocked Arnold over trying to get on stage with McCain the day after he dropped out.

Of course, the best person Edwards could possibly endorse would be himself! But alas, that's probably not in the cards.

[candice]

1. Jesus?

[GreenTea]

13. NO endorsements!

Not JE style...Moderates....Get real!

(Ha, maybe on down the road)!

[PurityOfEssence]

2. Perhaps he's being an honorable and true pluralist

and letting the people speak for themselves.

It shouldn't be all about influence and leverage; to those of us who often find ourselves voiceless, sometimes it's the neighborly thing to simply not speak. So much would be read into an endorsement, and it should be about them now, not him. I hope he doesn't take sides at all.

[DJ13]

3. Waiting until AFTER Feb5th wouldnt be very smart

He will have less leverage pledging his (est.) 59 delegates to someone who ends up with 1500 after the 5th than he would have pledging that amount to a candidate that only has 80 or so before the 5th.

That and his importance as an endorsement declines significantly after the biggest primary day we'll have this year.

If he waits, he does no one, not even himself (or the platform he's ran on), or his past supporters any good.

[Kittycat]

4. Wouldn't an edorsement "End" his campaign, instead of suspending it?

I posted this earlier, but I think in part it has to do with his campaign financing, and being able to pay his staff. If he withdraws, then he can't pay them. An endorsement would amount to a withdraw. So his campaign is suspended until his staff finishes closing things down, and find new jobs.

Just my 2¢

[GoldieAZ49]

6. It is the same thing I am post the info on his delegates in the thread

[JDPriestly]

5. Maybe he doesn't prefer one to the other, but rather sees

them as equally bad/good. Maybe it is a kind of protest. If he has been asked to drop his campaign in order to allow a clear winner to emerge or to make it appear that the party will unify around one candidate, it could be either.

If Edwards had decided to drop out because he really preferred one of the others, he would have simply announced that.

That he has not done so, and a number of other rumors/facts (don't know which) about the abrupt end to his campaign (such as that Trippi was not told in advance) make me think he was pressured into dropping out and is not dropping out to help either of the other candidates.

Hillary will win the nomination and then lose in November to McCain. It's a media set-up. I wish that more people on DU had supported Edwards. He was the only hope of a win over McCain in November. It's just a matter of fate playing this out now. I think that is what Edwards meant by his comment about the future and letting history take care of things. To clarify, I think Edwards knows he is the only Democrat who could beat McCain, and he realizes there is just nothing we can do to save our country at this point.

[RiverStone]

7. That's a rather pessimistic assessment....

Dang JDPriestly, I sure as hell hope your wrong.

What if John decided that indeed he could work with Obama (for example) --- and John got assurances that Obama would promote his platform ideas on poverty. In return, there were purposely leaked rumors that John would have either the AG or a cabinet position in an Obama administration. Do you see any chance that could shift the balance?

I can't fathom seeing Obama and McCain in a debate - with Obama waxing poetic and forceful...and McCain babbling about my friends this or that, and Obama not totally kicking his rhetorical ass.

I'm very hopeful that Obama would and could win the GE - and the surprise will be he would win at least 2 or more (GA/SC) southern states plus all the usual blue ones.

[ClericJohnPreston]

9. You are 100% correct sir

Now watch those very much under the influence of corporate M$M spin, fail to understand simple facts. Rather, they will view these events through the distorted prism of Trojan politics, wherein they fail to see the obvious hand that guides this sham narrative.

Edwards was unceremoniously asked to withdraw from a race in which he is the only spokesman for the disenfranchised working class. This group is an embarrassment for our very nouveaux corporate crowd of Neoliberal, who never met a corporate contributor they didn't like. The result is we are suddenly left with two corporate candidates.

SURPRISE.........NOT!

Edwards threatned the staus quo and had to go. Ba-bye John. Read our script and leave. He did just that, making it clear he wasn't reading his own words.

I concur with your read on where this is all heading in November. Maybe when we are finally on the brink, the real DEMS will take over.

[GoldieAZ49]

10. Let me get this right

the spokesman for the disenfranchised working class, who promised to fight to the end was disenfranchised himself and he just capitulated?

I think he just quit because he knew he was not getting the votes and money to sustain the campaign.

[ClericJohnPreston]

17. You have a very elementary understanding of politics

You will undoubtedly need it to survive.

[GoldieAZ49]

18. and you seem to have a delusional understanding of politics and money

[RiverStone]

12. damn more pessimism......not from this voter though!

Question: Do you see John playing an active role in the establishment of the Dem platform at the convention or with our future nominee's administration? He does not share your fatalistic view that essentially - we're fucked.

The corporate-media's foothold on John Q. Public is well established - did you think this would change overnight? Regardless of your skepticism, I do believe real Dems, even those in the beltway, would not erode further our personal liberties by nominating a couple of rw wacko judges to the SCOTUS for the next generation.

Corporations rule - but I can't fathom you seeing the 2 Dems as on the same playing field as the 2 pukes. I see it as either a continued march into darkness, lead by fear - or a slow slog into the light. There is a difference.

I hope somewhere in the mix ClericJohnPreston, you see hope. I do - the alternative is not an option.

[ClericJohnPreston]

16. Corporations Rule?

My you say that in a very glib retort. Do they have to? Was there a candidate, deemed too shrill ( a media concoction )to be heard, warning of their infiltration?

I wonder why both candidates tonight looked so comfortable. Could it be that the one person who could hold them each accountable was missing from the debate?

Personally, if I were told to leave a campaign, I frankly wonder what I would have to do with the Party that made that request. Step aside for "history". Some history, if it elects another corporate shill.

You want to measure success in increments. I want wholesale change after 8 years of Bushco. Sorry, but no change for me.

[GoldieAZ49]

8. Edward's delegates status...They are already realigned

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=132x4329283

[kelligesq]

11. Absolutely untrue. They are not free until he releases them - unless they are Super delegates

but ordinary delegates are not released.

Since his campaign is "suspended" I doubt he can endorse anyone for then he
could lose his matching funds from the feds which are not going to be paid
until March.

Perhaps he cant or wont endorse anyone until March or ever.

Nevertheless many Edwardians are voting for him on Feb 5 to give him power to
make his platform the democratic platform.

[GoldieAZ49]

15. A vote now is just thrown away it does not give him any power

pick a candidate as your second, just like they do in the caucus

http://www.mydd.com/story/2008/1/30/235933/332

What's up with Edwards' delegates
by msn1, Wed Jan 30, 2008 at 11:59:33 PM EST

With Edwards dropping out, one question is, what happens to his delegates? Let's take a look:

First, according to 2008 Democratic Convention Watch, Edwards had 27 public superdelegate endorsements. CNN had (actually, still has) it at 36. Doesn't matter. They're all now available. A superdelegate endorsement can change at any time anyway, so Edwards superdelegates are free to support anyone.

Now, on to his pledged delegates. Edwards won 4 delegates in New Hampshire, 14 in Iowa, and 8 in South Carolina. The New Hampshire delegates have been already chosen, so he "keeps" them. Who they end up voting for at the convention is another matter.

In Iowa, Edwards received 14 delegates, but they were split. 5 were state-level delegates, and 9 were Congressional District (CD)-level delegates. The CD-level delegates are basically history. First, there are county conventions, and then CD conventions. Since Edwards won't meet the 15% threshold at the county conventions, he won't have any representation at the CD conventions, and won't get any CD-level delegates. Where they go at this point is impossible to say. As noted in the comments, the state-level delegates are chosen in the state convention, and as Edwards won't meet the 15% threshold, he won't get any state-level delegates either.

South Carolina is more complicated. But reading the South Carolina Delegate Selection Plan, they essentially have a convention system similar to Iowa's, except the final number of delegates selected for each candidate has to match the numbers out of the primary. There's no mention of a candidate "releasing" his delegates, so for now, I'll assume Edwards gets to name his 8 delegates, but, I think we need a South Carolina expert to weigh in on this. (Again, who they end up voting for at the convention is another matter).

Remember a couple of things. There is no first-ballot "vote for your candidate" rule at the Democratic Convention. Technically, any delegate is free to vote for any candidate on any ballot. (There may be state rules mandating a vote - we're still looking into that). Therefore, there is no such thing as a "legal" release of delegates. There is a political "release" - almost all delegates will vote for their candidate unless their candidate tells them they don't have to. But from a Rules point of view, a "release" of delegates mean nothing.

And therefore, it doesn't matter whether Edwards "ended" his campaign or "suspended" it as far as his delegates go. My guess is he will tell any delegates he has left that they can vote for who they want, or he could endorse someone and tell his delegates to vote for that person. But it doesn't matter from a rules point of view. They can vote for anybody at any time anyway, regardless of what Edwards did or say today or does in the future.

[Egnever]

14. Because this thing isnt going to be over on tuesday

Even if he endorses it wont be over. We are going to end up with close to a 50/50 split on delegates on tues. So this thing will go forward. He doesnt have to endorse now.