Who should pay for a redo of Florida and Michigan primaries?

No, I say the state parties should. Howard Dean should not. I am so sick and tired of people making excuses for states that BROKE THE RULES THEY THEMSELVES HAD AGREED TO!!!!

They knew about the rules, they voted on them in 2006. They were given warning not to change their primary dates BEFORE THEY MADE THE CHANGES. They did it anyway.

They were hoping that the DNC would not be serious. They decided to play the game of chicken and thought the National party would flinch. Oops, wrong call. The joke is on them. The DNC has stripped a state before. 1996- DE, so there was precedent.

The national party did not disenfranchise them, their respective Governors did it. They could have vetoed their legislatures, they CHOSE not to.

I live in FL. I am not mad at the DNC. I am mad at the jackas*ses who did this. I say vote everyone of them regardless of party out of office except the 1 Democrat who voted no and had stated on the floor that it was violation of the rules both Republican and Democratic State parties had agreed to

In know in particular FL had had this on the front pages of major newpapers and on the news cycles of the TV stations prior to the vote for weeks. The people knew if they voted to make the change what the consequence would have been. The legislatures went ahead anyway. Then they were given 30 days to come up with an alternative, and they did not bother to do it. The DNC even suggested they could have done the vote on Tsunami Tuesday, but nah they wanted to stand out. Well, they surely did.

The Democratic members of both the House and Senate make up a little over 1/3 of the legislature. Even if they as has been pointed out, would not have won the argument, they still should have voted no, even though it was one of their own who made the suggestion to move up the date in the first place. Sen Jeremy Ring (D) was the idiot who suggested the bone headed move. It figures, there is alway a numbnuts that does something against their own best interests.The Dems would have been overruled but they would have had a better leg to stand on when talking to the DNC. They could have said, we voted against it but we were outnumbered and since primaries are funded by the taxpayers, we are unable to secure funding for a separate primary. We are taking into consideration the tightening of the FL economy and we are facing massive budget cuts, please do not penalize us. The DNC might have been more understanding. But uh uh, like I said only 1 Dem voted no.

The ironic thing is this. The numbnuts who suggested this claims that it was so FL would be relevant. If it had been left alone and we voted on March 4, Super Tuesday part 2, boy would we have been relevant.

Bottom line, most of the Dems I know are really mad at the morons here not the DNC because they understand the meaning of the word rules. They are disappointed though and hope there can be a do over.

This topic has been flooding the media and taking away from what is really at stake..deciding who will be president. Everyone wants to point fingers at who should pay, but the answer is SO SO simple.

The Florida governor and media mongrels are spinning this out of control. Ask the question...Who decided to move the primary up. Was it the voices in Florida and Michigan? No! No one called the people of Florida or Michgan and asked them if they would like for the primary to be moved up. So I guess that the "voice of the people" was not too important even though the congressmen in that state knew the consequences of their actions. Why is the voices so important now? If you break the rules you must pay the consequences. That goes for anyone in America in any situation that has rules attached. Speed and get caught you get a ticket. Kill someone and you go to jail. Change the date of the primary which was set a year and a half ago and you lose your delegates. It is too simple people...!

If the delegates in Florida and Michigan really and truely feel that the "voices of the people" should be heard, then they should foot the bill, because they were the ones that made the original decision. If they really care this should not be a problem. The people of Florida deserve this opportunity.

Even though I am a Obama supporter, and believe that Hillary may win these states. It is still important that these people get their chance to decide who should be president. This has been a part of Obama's message from the beginning. The message of letting the people of America be heard and decide whether they want change. The outcome will be the outcome.

Some Democrats think it is not right to give them anything because it will just let all the states know they don't have to bother obeying any rules and will push primaries earlier and earlier...or break some other rules next time and think they can just bully their way through. In one sense I agree with that and so I think the states should have to pay for a re do.

BUT it's not the people's fault their states screwed up so it's not fair to Michigan and Florida voters to deny them a vote. And to be pragmatic the Democrats can't afford to alienate those voters. AND without counting 2 big states in a delegate race this close, neither candidate will really have a legitimate win.

But if that Soviet-style Michigan ballot with only Senator Clinton on it counts in ANY way - - even as a percentage of the delegates from an unfair election - - it would be TOTALLY unfair. It is just ridiculous to make the argument I have seen here, that Sen Clinton should be rewarded because she is SNEAKIER? And that proves she is more qualified to deal with foreign governments? Please. This was not supposed to be some tricky negotiation with a 3rd world dictator, this is the United States of America, remember? We are supposed to be a nation of laws. It is not fair to punish Obama for going along with the rules.

There was a low turnout in Mich. How many people did not vote? Any kind of movement to reach some voters and get them to vote as "Uncommitted" to show that they supported Obama cannot possibly count as if all the names were on the ballot. A lot of people probably saw no point. Plus there is no way to divide how many were for Edwards.

Even in Florida. not campaigning gave an advantage to the candidate with the most name rec - -and on top of that Clinton made appearances in Florida despite the candidates all agreeing not to campaign there.

And people were told their vote wouldn't count. Yes a lot of people voted anyway in Fla (NOT Michigan)., and I know the gov of Fla. and Clinton are pointing to that as sign that the people REALLY thought it counted even though they were TOLD it didn't. - - But how big would the turnout have been if they really HAD been told it was real? There is just no knowing how many people were disenfranchised by not bothering to vote when they were told it was just a "beauty contest"

So I think there should be a re-do but I don't see why the DNC or the candidates should HAVE to pay for it when the states at first agreed to the rules, then did not obey them despite being warned they would not be seated. How is that Dean's fault? In Fla. the Democrats ( and also Sen. Clinton) are blaming the Republican led legislature for how they ended up breaking the rules .... of course that might be more credible if any Democratic legislators had voted against it!

But IF there is no other way --if the state just can't afford it --maybe the Democratic National Commitee can chip in some, and MAYBE the candidates could chip in some -- Obama could probably afford it, I don't know how Clinton is doing with funding, but it probably picked up after Ohio.

The right to vote represents the wishes of the people. It does not represent the wishes of party officials. The decision to hold early primaries was not the will of the people. They did not vote on it. They did not agree to it. They simply voted when the time to vote arrived.

There is no need to hold second primaries, even though Barack Obama might feel otherwise. He didn't place his name on the ballot, but respected Party rules, instead of the rights of the voters. Those folks who trudged out in miserable winter weather deserve to have their votes counted!

Since when do Party rules obliterate the will of the people? Most of the people in Michigan didn't even realize the primary was early. This is because they worry about their jobs, about their sons in Iraq, about keeping their homes and not ending up on the streets. An early primary may be a big offense to some staid official in D.C., but it doesn't seem important to the guy whose job just left for China.

Leave it as it is. No one has the money to hold a second primary and, if they do, it should be donated to Lighthouse or the Salvation Army, to help all the folks in need!

I love this question cause it keeps coming up in the papers and on t.v.

Why on earth would anyone pay for another election. DId the give the same chance in 2000?

Anyone in their right mind knows that the DNC planned on seating those delagates all along. They figured that the process would be over and they would just sit those delegates. They had no idea it would end up like this. So let them be seated. The only thing that was asked of any candidate at the time was that they not campaign in either state, and no one did! I do believe the people in both states have electricity and television and radio, heck they might even have the internet. I am sure both were capable of voting for the person they thought were most qualified, and in the case of Michigan, I am sure they could of wrote in Mr. Obama's name.

You don't get a do over in November and you shouldn't here either. Make every vote count and count every vote. A better question might be, What would happen if Hillary wins the popular vote (nationwide) and Barrack wins the delegates, what is fair then?

It should be split between the DNC and the states. In Florida, it was the republican controlled legislature that moved the date. The state democratic party doesn't have the power to make such a change. The legislature absolutely knew when they passed the bill moving the date that the new date violated DNC rules. The DNC, on the other hand, could have instituted a partial penalty, only stripping Florida of some of its delegates and not all. The situation is much the same in Michigan.

BTW, if there is a new election it should be after the currently scheduled primaries / caucuses.

The dirty little secret is that both Michigan and Florida but much more so Michigan,knew that they were deliberately breaking the known rule of not having early primaries but they went ahead knowing full well that they would get away with their rule breaking for ultimately they knew that weak kneed morally and ethically crippled individuals would simply give into their blackmail and accept their votes w.They would simply get away with "murder" and forever set a precident of breaking rules as long as one can do a little blackmail.

I only hope that all of you who are now urging acceptance of this blackmail and the votes of these states have somebody or some institution change the bloody rules on you in mid game and perhaps then and only then you will understand the importance of rules.

I know how you feel about Howard Dean and all. But I do understand their thinking at the time (if you don't abide by the rules and all that crap). But we're here in this dilemma and the DNC will need the money it has to defeat the GOP in the General Election. Therefore, I think that Barack and Hillary should split the money right down the middle for the 2 primaries. But you know what? It will be money wasted because it will be a wash--Hillary will carry FL and Obama will carry MI.

No one should pay. There should be no re-vote and their delegations not be seated.

How fair is it to us in the rest of the states who seemed strangely able to abide by the rules if they get a re-vote?

MI and FL have no one to blame but themselves for their dilemma. Next time, they need to elect more responsible people to their state offices.

You do not have a Constitutional right to vote in a PRIMARY. Independents do not get to vote in in most states. MI and FL willfully broke the rules of the DNC and they were legally sanctioned. End of story.

They need to quit crying and suck it up like grownups.

Since it was the republican majority in the legislature who decided to change the date of the primary, I think the GOP should pay. The democrats did not want the date changed.