The DNC DID ask candidates to remove their name from the MI Ballot

[WeDidIt]

So said Garry Shay (Super Delegate, Clinton Endorser, and member of the Rules and Bylaws Committee) just yesterday:

Well, there are a lot of things that happened with Michigan. First of all, the primary law was challenged as to its constitutionality and it was thrown out. So, there’s no law supporting the Michigan primary.

There’s the fact that Hillary Clinton’s name and the uncommitted slate was the only thing that was on the ballot in Michigan because the Democratic National Committee asked the other candidates to withdraw their names from the ballot. So, here you have the institution itself asking people to pull their names off the ballot.

Link

[LisaM]

1. Biden and Kucinich were on it too.

So that quote is untrue. Kucinich was still in the race then. I'm sure that he's out there defending Hillary's choice and standing up for the fact that she did the same thing he did.

[WeDidIt]

3. They were asked to remove their names, too

And it was Dodd, not Biden, who chose not to as did Clinton.

Kucinich tried but failed to file the proper paperwork in time.

[LisaM]

5. Sorry, sorry, Dodd! (I couldn't remember which one, guessed the wrong one!)

But I think 'ol Dennis kind of was playing a little game. He supposedly got the paperwork wrong twice! Uh huh. And then he campaigned there.

[rinsd]

18. How come not a single campaign cited the DNC request when removing their name from the ballot?

How come not a single time (until today) has anyone criticizing a ballot decision not mentioned a DNC request?

Hint: Shay has it wrong as he does with who was on the MI ballot.

[SemiCharmedQuark]

6. Biden criticized Clinton for leaving her name on

The Biden campaign criticized Clinton and Dodd for not taking their names off the ballot.

"The Dodd and Clinton campaigns have chosen to hedge their bets, thereby throwing this process into further disarray," Biden campaign manager Navarro said. "In doing so, they have abandoned Democrats in Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina."


http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/09/michigan.primary/index.html

[rinsd]

21. Notice there is no mention of a DNC request to remove their name.

That story seems to come from whole cloth from a man who seems unaware of who was on the MI ballot.

[bkcc]

7. Don't forget Gravel.

He was on the ballot too.
I wonder why everyone always leaves his name out of the discussion.

;)

[quakerboy]

11. Because

Every time I hear him, it reminds me of falling down in the driveway as a kid. The gravel was pointy then too.

[bkcc]

13. lol.

i have to confess that i think the same thing.

[stillcool]

20. I don't know why that happened...

Kucinich Files Affidavit To Remove Name From Michigan's Primary Shortly Before Deadline

October 10, 2007 8:19 a.m. EST
Ayinde O. Chase - AHN Staff
http://www.allheadlinenews.com/articles/7008781843
Dover, NH (AHN) - The Kucinich for President campaign Tuesday afternoon officially requested that Kucinich's name be withdrawn from the Michigan Democratic primary ballot. The affidavit came by way of to the Michigan Secretary of State's office.The Ohio Congressman and Democratic Presidential candidates
National Campaign manager Mike Klein said in the statement, "We signed a public pledge recently, promising to stand with New Hampshire, Nevada, South Carolina, and the DNC-approved 'early window', and the action we are taking today protects New Hampshire's first-in-the-nation primary status, and Nevada's early caucus."
The statement continued: "We support the grassroots nature of the New Hampshire, small-state primary, and we support the diversity efforts that Chairman Dean and the DNC instituted last year, when they added Nevada and South Carolina to the window in January 2008. We are obviously committed to New Hampshire's
historic role." Klein who actually recently moved to Dover said, "We will continue to adhere to the DNC-approved primary schedule."

Governor Granholm and other Michigan Democratic leaders have openly criticized the decision by several presidential candidates to keep their names off the state primary ballot. The Michigan lawmakers are taken back by Barack Obama, Joe Biden, John Edwards and Bill Richardson's decision to withdraw their names from the January 15th ballot.

The only ones who remain on Michigan's primary ballot are Hillary Clinton, Mike Gravel and Chris Todd.

Potential presidential nominees who did not want to appear on the Michigan January 15, 2008 presidential primary ballot could submit an affidavit with the Secretary of State by 4:00 p.m. on October 9, 2007. The January 15 date violates DNC rules, and five Democrats did submit the required affidavit: Biden, Edwards, Kucinich, Obama and Richardson. Clinton, Dodd and Gravel will appear on the Democratic ballot.

http://www.gwu.edu/~action/2008/chrnothp08/mi100907pr.html

Editorial: Follow DNC rules on seating delegates
February 25, 2008
By Editorial Board

On September 1, the campaigns of Clinton and Senator Barack Obama (D-Ill.) issued press releases stating that they had signed pledges affirming the DNC’s decision to approve certain representative states and sanction others for moving their nominating contests earlier. But now that the race is close, Clinton — whose top advisor Harold Ickes voted as a member of the DNC to strip Florida and Michigan of their delegates — is pushing for the delegates to be seated.
Her argument is that not doing so disenfranchises the 1.7 million Florida Democrats who voted and that her pledge promised only that she wouldn’t campaign in the states, not that she wouldn’t try to seat the delegates. However, the results of the contests in Florida and Michigan are not necessarily representative of the voters’ preferences in those states. Given that most of the candidates removed their names from the
Michigan ballot, and that many voters stayed home from the vote in Florida with the understanding that their contest would not affect the final delegate count, the delegate totals that the candidates accumulated in these states may not accurately reflect the will of the voters. Had there been no restrictions in Michigan and Florida, the turnout, and thus the results, may have been different.

The Four State Pledge all candidates signed on Aug. 28 stated, “Whereas, the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee will strip states of 100% of their delegates and super delegates to the DNC National Convention if they violate the nomination calendar...

Therefore, I ____________, Democratic Candidate for President, in honor and in accordance with DNC rules ...pledge I shall not campaign or participate in any election contest occurring in any state not already authorized by the DNC to take place in the DNC approved pre-window.” When the candidates pledged to campaign only in approved states, they were also agreeing to the terms listed above, which explicitly mentioned stripping noncompliant states of their entire delegation.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) recently said that the Florida and Michigan delegates should not be seated if they would decide the nomination. Other compromise proposals include holding new nominating contests in these states, but such contests would be expensive and cumbersome. The irony is that had Florida and Michigan not moved up their primaries, they would have voted in February and March, when they would have been even more important than in earlier months in determining the Democratic nominee — and would not have created an enormous controversy that has the potential to divide the party.
http://daily.stanford.edu/article/2008/2/25/editorialFollowDncRulesOnSeatingDelegates

[Happyhippychick]

2. Yes that is well known. Edwards and Obama complied, Clinton did not.

[rinsd]

17. Well known? This is the 1st time this excuse has been offered and it appears to be made up.

[flor de jasmim]

4. thanks for the link

[bhikkhu]

8. Thanks, I hadn't seen that one.

What is simple enough is the text of the pledge they signed not to "campaign or participate" in states that moved their primaries up too early, against party rules.

The other candidates took their names off the MI ballot because they were asked to and it was expected of them and they had pledged to do so.

[apocalypsehow]

9. That other OP pulled a hit and run and will not do the right thing and have his lying OP locked.

Thank you for posting this one.

[rinsd]

16. Only one problem. Shay is the only source of this info and he can't even get the MI ballot right.

[grantcart]

10. maybe going to Church with Bill stirred his conscience

[99th_Monkey]

12. Rec'd - Thank You so much for setting the record straight on this & nipping it in the bud ~nt~

[WeDidIt]

14. Kick n/t

[rinsd]

15. Ummmm Shay is pulling that out of his ass.

Not a single campaign cited being asked by the DNC as their reason for pulling out.

Obama's campaign cited their own interpretation

"This is an extension of the pledge we made, based on the rules that the DNC laid out," Obama spokesman Bill Burton said.

Here's Biden's critique of Clinton and Dodd (no mention of the DNC request)

Biden's campaign called the Michigan primary a "beauty contest."

"Today's decision reaffirms our pledge to respect the primary calendar as established by the DNC and makes it clear that we will not play into the politics of money and Republican machinations that only serve to interfere with the primary calendar," said Biden campaign manager Luis Navarro.

"The Biden campaign criticized Clinton and Dodd for not taking their names off the ballot.

"The Dodd and Clinton campaigns have chosen to hedge their bets, thereby throwing this process into further disarray," Biden campaign manager Navarro said. "In doing so, they have abandoned Democrats in Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina."

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/09/michigan.primary/index.html

More from Biden

The Biden campaign took this opportunity to slam Clinton and Dodd for staying on the ballot. “Every campaign made a pledge to the four early states to support the calendar created by the DNC that placed a premium on retail politics and provided a level playing field for candidates, regardless of money or celebrity. Now that these contests are fast approaching and with the final dates of the Michigan and New Hampshire primaries still in doubt, the Dodd and Clinton campaigns have chosen to hedge their bets, thereby throwing this process into further disarray. In doing so, they have abandoned Democrats in Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina,” Biden Campaign Manager Luis Navarro said.

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/thepoliticaluniverse/blog/2007/10/10/Biden-Kucinich-and-Obama-talk-about-Michigan-primary

No mention of a DNC request.

And since Chris Dodd was the 1st signer of the 4 state pledge I hardly see him rebuffing a request by the DNC.

"While Dodd's campaign is "committed to the importance of Iowa and New Hampshire going first," Dodd will not withdraw from the ballot, said Dodd's communications director Hari Sevugan.

"It does not benefit any of us, if we are the nominee, to pull our name off the ballot and slight Michigan voters," Sevugan said."

http://www.cnn.com/2007/POLITICS/10/09/michigan.primary/index.html

So why wouldn't campaign mention that they were asked by the DNC to remove their names?

Because it never happened.

Shay doesn't even get the MI ballot right as Clinton, Dodd, Kucinich, Gravel & Uncommitted were the options not just Hillary and Uncommitted as he stated.

[mckeown1128]

22. o...k... since less then half the candidates were on the ballot...

i guess the vote would be inaccurate. Especially since the voter were told by all the candidates that their votes didn't count for anything. Hmm.. who knows how the vote would have turned out had voters been told that MI would count for delegates.


hey, thanks for making the case that the MI primary vote totals shouldn't count.

[rinsd]

23. I don't think MI should count and have said so repeatedly.

He's not on the ballot. Uncommitted contains Edwards supporters as well Obama's.

Just ignore it entirely.

But let's not lie about what happened.

Obama had his reasons for removing his name from the ballot. Hillary had hers for remaining.

The DNC had nothing to do with it.

[mckeown1128]

24. umm Hillary's reason was that it wasn't worth the effort because MI wasn't....

...going to count for anything, but I guess she is lying now..(about how MI did and should count) I hope your are equally as outraged about it.

[rinsd]

25. Hillary's reason for staying on the ballot was to not piss off MI voters.

I disagree with her on trying to seat FL & MI before the nomination is settled.

[mckeown1128]

26. Well we agree... nominee then seat MI and FL...

I believe that is Obama's position too.


Except she never said anything about not wanting to piss off MI voters..




NHPR's Laura Knoy: "So, if you value the DNC calendar, why not just pull out of Michigan? Why not just say, Hey Michigan, I'm off the ballot?"

Hillary Clinton: "Well, you know, It's clear, this election they're having is not going to count for anything"

http://www.nhpr.org/node/13858

[rinsd]

27. You could finish that quote and have your answer

"It's clear, this election they're having is not going to count for anything," Clinton said Thursday during an interview on New Hampshire Public Radio's call-in program, "The Exchange." "But I just personally did not want to set up a situation where the Republicans are going to be campaigning between now and whenever, and then after the nomination, we have to go in and repair the damage to be ready to win Michigan in 2008."

[mckeown1128]

30. That still runs contrary to what she is doing...

Her going out and talking about how FL and MI are being disenfranchised...IS setting up a situation where FL an MI voters are going to be upset when the DNC up holds its own rulling. She is encouraging FL and MI voters to be upset over their primaries not counting(which they can't count now that the vote results are suspect ex: Obama getting 0% of the vote)


She is only making the situation worse.

[rinsd]

31. I agree that her current strategy w/ FL & MI stinks and is counterproductive.

But she did say why she was staying on the ballot in that interview.

[mckeown1128]

32. I have a serious question for you.... really...

On the interview she said the "MI primary wasn't going to count for anything" but now she claims it did count and should count...


In a democracy... where voters have to know what they are voting for (delegates or beauty contest)... how does her TWO different positions cope with democracy?


and how do you explain the contradiction?

(and winning in the GE isn't a valid excuse...since MI's and FL's statuses didn't change between the two positions)

[cstanleytech]

19. So they asked but did not order? NT

[sfam]

28. Don't confuse us with the facts! We know the truth! It's Obama's fault, dammit!!! nt

[jasmine621]

29. There was NO REQUIREMENT to remove a candidate's name from the ballot

The only rule was that the delegates would not be seated and that no campainging would take place in either FL or MI.

[McCamy Taylor]

33. Just because someone puts it on the internet does not make it true.

Clinton, Kucinich, Dodd and Gravel were all on the ballot. Does anyone here think that Mr. True Blue Democrat Dodd would have failed to get off the ballot if the DNC told him to get off? Get real.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/the-trail/2008/01/09/voters_face_confusion_in_michi.html