Dem Nominating Calendar to Change

Or maybe not.

Democrats shook up tradition on Saturday by vaulting Nevada and South Carolina into the first wave of 2008 presidential contests along with Iowa and New Hampshire — a move intended to add racial and geographic diversity to the early voting.

…Party officials embraced the change, though New Hampshire Democrats joined several likely presidential candidates and former President Clinton in opposing the move.

…New Hampshire objected loudly to the lineup and has threatened to leapfrog over the other contests to retain its pre-eminent role.

"The DNC did not give New Hampshire its primary, and it is not taking away," New Hampshire Gov. John Lynch said. Secretary of State William Gardner has said he will decide next year whether to move the New Hampshire primary earlier.

…Other Democrats agreed the schedule needed change, but argued the selection of Nevada and South Carolina ignored the populous and union heavy industrial rust belt.

The DNC also “adopted sanctions to punish presidential candidates by penalizing who campaign in states that cut in line.” The candidates who campaign in line-jumping states would then “not get any delegates from those contests.” Which, of course, doesn’t mean much for a small state like New Hampshire, with few delegates to offer in the first place.

What a mess. That’s really all I can say.