Wednesday Summary

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Big Superdelegate Day...




Latest Superdelegate Endorsements:
Rep. Bruce Braley (IA) for Obama
DNC William George (PA) for Clinton
Rep. Baron Hill (IN) for Obama
Rep. Lois Capps (CA) for Obama
DNC Luisette Cabanas (PR) for Clinton

Current count: Clinton: 261, Obama: 242.

See the DCW Superdelegate Tracker for the latest superdelegate endorsements.

Coming tomorrow, 4 add-ons picked in New York (expect Clinton to pickup 3 or 4), and 2 add-ons in Maryland (expect Obama to pick up both).

Remember, you don't have to wait for Indiana and North Carolina next week. We'll be all Guam, all the time, this weekend!

And we've also got Special Elections on Saturday in LA-1 and LA-6.

Thursday early morning update: Former DNC Chairman Joe Andrew (IN) switches from Clinton to Obama.

Downtown "Mega Tent" to Open in June

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Denver will add 20,000 more square feet of space to hold convention related events.

A new special events venue beneath what's being described as a "mega tent" in downtown Denver will be built in time for the Democratic National Convention.

Developer Evan Makovsky owns the land where the tent will be erected and is leasing the space to Wright Group Event Services based in Denver.

Installation on the 20,000-square-foot tent made of white vinyl will begin next week on the empty parcel behind the Fontius building at 15th and Welton streets. It will open on June 1 and then be removed in early fall.

The Wright Group will build and manage the structure that will soar nearly 50 feet. The venue will be called The Peak, and will host concerts, banquets and trade shows.

It will be across 15th Street from the Hyatt Convention Center Hotel, the headquarters hotel for the DNC. - Denver Business Journal

The location is only a block away from the Colorado Convention Center which will be where a lot of the daytime committee meetings will be held.

Superdelegate Slugfest !

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Today's been our busiest superdelegate endorsement day in a long time.
So far Obama has picked up 3 superdelegates to Clinton's 2.

Obama's Pickups:
Rep. Bruce Braley (IA):

"I had a chance to go to my first district convention in Dubuque on Saturday and that was the number one question on everybody's mind: 'When are you going to endorse? Who are you going to endorse?' and after looking at the numbers from both district convention, the county conventions and the Caucuses in my district; talking to many, many people about the candidates left in the race and looking at the longterm impact on our party I decided that Senator Obama was the right person to endorse," Braley says.

Rep. Baron Hill (IN):

I am proud of Senator Obama’s call for change in Washington – change I have been advocating since I first sought public office. I am truly hopeful that his campaign and election will help unify our nation and ultimately change our politics. I am pleased that Senator Obama clearly and unequivocally denounced Reverend Wright’s remarks. Hoosiers don’t feel that way about our country, I don’t feel that way about our country and Senator Obama made it abundantly clear that he doesn’t feel that way either.

Rep. Lois Capps (CA):

“Barack Obama is the better choice because of something larger and perhaps more important. Simply put, he has made a call to the better angels of our nature. He is challenging us to lift ourselves out of the ugliness that increasingly consumes Washington, where the heat of your argument counts for more than the light it should bring,” Capps said in a statement. “He is asking us to stand together as Americans and transcend the traditional lines that have so often divided us by party affiliation, economic status, gender, or race.”

Clinton's pickups:
DNC William George (PA):

“Hillary Clinton has the strength and experience to jumpstart the economy and rebuild the middle class,” George said in a statement released by the Clinton camp. “Working families in Pennsylvania overwhelmingly favored her in last week’s primary, and I feel that she is our strongest candidate to carry Pennsylvania in November and win back the White House.”

DNC Luisette Cabanas (PR):

Cabanas cited Clinton's policies, especially health care, as "the best by far of any candidate in history."

"Today I endorse Hillary Clinton for president because of her strong win in Pennsylvania," Cabanas said in a statement. "She has shown a firm conviction and the character needed to lead the nation."

There are a couple interesting things to note with today's endorsements. Obama has now topped Clinton in support from Representatives and now leads 79-78 with 65 remaining.
Also... there are now 699 remaining total delegates.

DNCC names Microsoft official software provider for Denver

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On Monday the DNCC announced that they had selected Microsoft to be the official "software and HD Web content provider" for the Denver convention. This will be a big-time coming out party for Silverlight, Microsoft's content platform to compete with Adobe's Flash.

Microsoft will also be providing real-time online voting systems for the delegates on the convention floor, as well as gavel-to-gavel streaming coverage at the convention website, DemConvention.com. We've been impressed with the quality and depth of the Democratic Convention website so far, hopefully this will be a positive enhancement for folks who can't attend in person to experience the event through the Web.

Disclosure: I work for Microsoft, but I don't work on any of the products/teams involved.

Guam update

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As we wrote yesterday, Guam has three superdelegate vacancies, two of which will actually be chosen during the Guam caucuses this weekend. The Guam Democratic Chair and Vice-chair will be voted on, and there are three candidate slates running. From the Marianas Variety ("Micronesia's Leading Newspaper Since 1972"), we learn that one of the slates, Joseph Artero Cameron and Arlene Bordallo, has endorsed Clinton, while another slate, Pilar Lujan and Jaime Paulino, is supported by the local Obama campaign.

Which of course pretty much guarantees that the third slate, which we know nothing about, including their names, will win.

Update: The third slate is Antonio Charfauros and Mary Ann Cabrera. Charfauros is the current Chair, so he it looks like he's the incumbent in the race, and they're both uncommitted:

Charfauros and Cabrera said that as of now, they remain uncommitted in supporting the two U.S. Democratic presidential hopefuls because they wanted to see what they would bring to the table for the people of Guam.

Tuesday Summary

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Latest Superdelegate Endorsements:
Gov. Mike Easley (NC) for Clinton
DNC Richard Machacek (IA) for Obama.
Rep. Ben Chandler (KY) for Obama
Rep. Ike Skelton (MO) for Clinton

Current count: Clinton: 259, Obama: 239

See the DCW Superdelegate Tracker for the latest superdelegate endorsements.

Other news:
The Wall Street Journal surveys the superdelegate landscape, and uses our numbers for all their information:

When the year began, about 200 of the superdelegates had taken sides, most for Sen. Clinton. Her campaign, including Mr. Clinton, had quickly signed up Clinton-administration veterans, others on the DNC and elected officials in Arkansas and New York, so that she initially led Sen. Obama by more than 100.

But the Obama campaign correctly figured that she had gotten the easy pickings and that the rest were up for grabs. Once he began winning more states than she did, her endorsements slowed to a trickle, and her lead eroded to less than two dozen now.

That graph seems awful familiar.

Some Democrats in Michigan are proposing a compromise:

[They] want to allocate 69 pledged delegates to Hillary Clinton and 59 to Barack Obama. The approach splits the difference between the equal delegate proposal coming out of Chicago (g4 for each) and the 73-to-55 delegate split that the Clinton campaign would obtain from the results of the primary, with almost all of the uncommitted delegates being pledged to Obama. The four also write that they oppose the challenge by DNC member Joel Ferguson, which would give superdelegates a full vote and pledged delegates half of a vote.

Remember, you don't have to wait for Indiana and North Carolina next week. We'll be all Guam, all the time, this weekend!

Guam has 3 superdelegate vacancies

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The Guam caucuses have already started, and will finish on Saturday. (They voted last weekend on one island, because the island has their village fiesta scheduled for this weekend!) Guam will elect 8 pledged delegates, each with 1/2 a vote, for a total of 4 pledged delegate votes.

Guam also has 5 superdelegates (each with a full vote), and it turns out 3 of the superdelegate positions are vacant:

First, DNC member Robert Underwood has resigned, and it looks like his replacement will support Obama:

Guam Democratic Party Chairman Tony Charfauros yesterday said he is about to appoint either Sen. Benjamin Cruz or attorney Mike Phillips to a vacant superdelegate position -- the party's "committee man" position. Cruz and Philips are both Obama supporters.

Charfauros said his appointment of Cruz or Philips -- which must happen "soon" -- would also have to be approved by Guam's central executive committee and then by the Democratic National Committee.

Although Sen. David Shimizu -- a Clinton supporter -- is running unopposed for the Guam committee man position during the party's ongoing village elections, Charfauros said Shimizu's term as committee man would not begin until after the national convention. Former Guam Del. Robert Underwood, who now is University of Guam president, resigned the committee man position, creating the vacancy.

That's one vacancy. But the Chair and Vice-chair positions are also about to go vacant. For both positions:

Three candidates are running for this position in Saturday's party elections. The winner will assume office and attend the national convention as a superdelegate.

We can't find a web site for the Guam Democratic Party, so there are questions: When do the terms of the Chair and Vice-Chair start? If they start right after the election, doesn't the appointment of the DNC member by current chair Tony Charfauros have to occur before his term is up?

We'll try to find out more. (h/t to Andrew in the comments for the link)

Rules and Bylaws Committee membership

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With the news that the challenges to the DNC decisions on Florida and Michigan will be heard by the DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC) on May 31st, the next question, of course, is, who is on the committee and who do they support?






Here is the list:

Co-Chairs - no endorsement
Alexis Herman (co-chair, Washington , D.C. )
James Roosevelt, Jr. (co-chair, Massachusetts )

Members - Clinton supporters (13)
Hartina Flournay (DC)
Donald Fowler (SC)
Harold Ickes, Jr. (DC)
Jaime Gonzalez, Jr. (TX)
Alice Huffman (CA)
Ben Johnson (DC)
Elaine Kamarck (MA)
Eric Kleinfeld (DC)
Mona Pasquil (CA)
Mame Reiley (VA)
Garry Shay (CA)
Elizabeth Smith (DC)
Michael Steed (MD)

Members - Obama supporters (8)
Martha Fuller Clark (NH)
Carol Khare Fowler (SC)
Janice Griffin (MD)
Thomas Hynes (IL)
Allan Katz (FL)
Sharon Stroschein (SD)
Sarah Swisher (IA)
Everett Ward (NC)

Members - no known endorsement (7)
Donna Brazille (DC)
Mark Brewer (MI)
Ralph Dawson (NY)
Yvonne Gates ( NV)
Alice Germond (DC) - DNC Secretary
David McDonald (WA)
Jerome Wiley Segovia (VA)

Notes:

• Allan Katz of Florida is a member of Obama's national finance committee. It will be interesting what he does, or even if he is allowed to vote on the Florida challenge. The same question would hold for Mark Brewer of Michigan for the Michigan challenge.
• Update:

  Section 3.4 (P): Voting: A member of the RBC shall not vote on a challenge arising in his or her own state.

But note that Katz can vote on Michigan's challenge, and Brewer can vote on Florida's challenge.

• Ralph Dawson is one of the very few New York superdelegates that have not endorsed Clinton.

Update: Here are the Regulations of the Rules and Bylaws Committee

Convention protest update

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It seems like we've come a long way since 1968: Local law groups recently sponsored "a four-day series of workshops and discussions that offer training and tips for activists and protesters planning to demonstrate in and around convention week." And at these meetings we learned a little more about plans for dealing with the protests:

Protesters will not be confined to "cages" during the 2008 Democratic National Convention, and the city wants to get away from the long lines of shoulder-to-shoulder, riot-gear-clad police that typified security at the national conventions in Boston and New York, Denver City Councilman Charlie Brown said today.
...
Brown participated in a noontime panel discussion with Glenn Spagnuolo, a representative for Re-create 68, the Denver-based umbrella group for war protesters and other activists that has said it will occupy Civic Center day and night throughout the convention.

Spagnuolo had charged that Denver planned to keep protesters as much as a mile away from the Pepsi Center, where the convention is to be held, saying he had it "on good authority" that the security perimeter would extend in a mile radius around the arena. ...

Details of the perimeter have not been released, but Mike Dino, who leads the Denver committee responsible for hosting the convention, told a group of business executives at the Pepsi Center this morning that the one-mile radius was a rumor and not true. Brown said he expected details of the perimeter to be released in six to eight weeks.

This one-mile radius is a story that just won't die.

Upcoming Democratic Nomination Events Schedule

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The table below shows the Upcoming Democratic Nomination Events Schedule from now until the Democratic National Convention - Denver, CO Aug. 25-28, 2008.

Democratic Nomination Schedule
Date	State	Event
5/1/2008	NY	State Party Executive Committee - Add-on ARE SELECTED
5/3/2008	MD	State Party Central Committee - Add-on will are selected see DCW Saturday Updates
5/3-5/16/2008	CO	District Conventions.
5/3/2008	GU	Territorial Convention – See results in DCW Saturday Updates
5/3/2008	LA	Special Election CD 1 & 6. See LA Special Election Results
5/3/2008	LA	State Central Committee Meeting - Add-on is selected see DCW Saturday Updates
5/3/2008	SC	State Convention - Add-on is selected see DCW Saturday Updates
5/5/2008	IL	State Convention - Add-on are selected
5/6/2008	IN	State Primary - North Carolina and Indiana Primary Results
5/6/2008	NC	State Primary - North Carolina and Indiana Primary Results
5/9-5/10/2008	UT	State Convention - Add-on is selected see Obama has taken the Superdelegate lead
5/10/2008	MA	State Party Committee - Add-ons are selected see Obama has taken the Superdelegate lead
5/10/2008	MO	State Convention
5/10/2008	OH	State Executive Committee Meeting - Add-ons are selected see Obama has taken the Superdelegate lead
5/13/2008	NE	Advisory Primary
5/13/2008	MS	Special Run-off House CD 1 - Travis Childer's huge victory in Mississippi.
5/13/2008	WV	State Primary - West Virginia
5/17/2008	CO	State Convention - Federico Pena is selected as Add-on
5/17/2008	KS	State Convention - Lt. Governor Mark Parkinson is selected as Add-on
5/17-5/18/2008	NV	State Convention - Nevada Add-on named
5/17/2008	WA	Congressional District Caucuses
5/18/2008	CA	Delegation Meeting - Add-on superdelegates named
5/20/2008	KY	State Primary - Kentucky and Oregon Primary Results
5/20/2008	OR	State Primary - Kentucky and Oregon Primary Results
5/23/2008	AK	State Party Convention - Add-on and State delegates are selected
5/23-5/25/2008	HI	State Convention - DNC chair, vice-chair and Add-on and State delegates are selected
5/24/2008	GA	State Committee Meeting - see Add-ons are selected
5/24/2008	WY	State Convention - see Add-on is selected
5/27/2008	ID	Non-binding Primary
5/31-6/1/2008	ME	State Convention - Add-on is selected see Superdelegate Endorsements for Sunday June 1st
5/31/2008	RBC	DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee - FL & MI Appeals have been approved
6/1-6/10/2008	NE	Counties Conventions
6/1/2008	PR	PR Primary - Puerto Rico Primary Results
6/3/2008	MT	State Primary - Montana and South Dakota Primary Results
6/3/2008	SD	State Primary - Montana and South Dakota Primary Results
6/6-6/8/2008	MN	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/6-6/7/2008	TX	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/7/2008	MS	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/7/2008	KY	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/7/2008	PA	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/7/2008	VT	National Delegates Meeting - Add-on will be selected
6/8/2008	MT	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/12-6/14/2008	ID	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/13-6/14/2008	WV	State Convention & Executive Committee - Add-on will be selected
TBD	IA	State Convention - Final delegates allocation, selection & Add-on
6/14/2008	MI	State Central Committee - State wide delegates and Add-on will be selected
6/14/2008	VA	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/15/2008	WA	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/17/2008	MD	Special Election - House CD 4
6/19/2008	RI	State Executive Committee Meeting - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	NE	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	IN	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	NC	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	OR	State Convention - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	PR	Democratic Assembly - Add-on will be selected
6/21/2008	SD	State Party Central Committee - Add-on will be selected
8/25-8/28/2008	DNC	45th Democratic National Convention - Denver, CO
Last updated: 06/03/2008

Source: The Green Papers.

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New Mexico add-on named

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New Mexico's add-on superdelegate is Laurie Weahkee. She is currently the lead organizer for the Native American Voters Alliance, which is a core project of the Sacred Alliance for Grassroots Equality (SAGE Council).

Initial research does not show that Weahkee has endorsed a candidate.

Update: Turns out, there was great drama behind the choice of Weahkee:

The New Mexico Democratic Party's central committee, during a contentious meeting in Albuquerque on Saturday, elected the 42-year-old Cochiti and Zuni Pueblo member as the state's 12th and final superdelegate to this summer's presidential nominating convention in Denver. Weahkee, who is also half Navajo, said she has yet to commit to either candidate, adding that Native American issues, including sovereignty and health care, are her top concerns.

"My first loyalty is really to the Native American agenda. I'm really going to be listening to both candidates to find out what their positions are ... how hard they're willing to go to bat for the Native American people," Weahkee said after winning a 71-59 vote over Charlotte Little of Taos and San Felipe pueblos at the meeting in Northeast Albuquerque.

Weahkee's election followed an in-party spat about the rules for selecting the delegate: A group of Clinton backers argued that nominations for the so-called "unpledged, add-on" superdelegate post could come from the 200-plus central committee members at the meeting, the majority of whom were allied with Clinton.

But state party Chairman Brian Colón said national party rules specified that only he could nominate the candidates. So the voting was limited to the two Native American women he had selected with the aim of adding diversity to the state's delegate list.

Rumors flew through some circles at the meeting that both women were Obama backers. Colón said both were uncommitted, adding that others suspected him of stacking the deck for Clinton. "I felt it was critical we had Native Americans in our delegation," Colón said, adding that selecting an uncommitted delegate keeps New Mexico "relevant and part of the conversation" among the party's presidential candidates. - ABQJournal Online (subscription only)

Well, I don't know that national party rules specify who can nominate the candidates, but New Mexico's own Delegate Selection Plan clearly says:

Unpledged add-on delegate candidates will be nominated by the State Chair in
consultation with the Executive Committee on April 26, 2008.

This is just another example where state party politics overrides the presidential campaign, and the projections of add-ons some made based on who won a state are turning out not be very valid.

Monday update: A New Mexico political blogger writes:

Is that "unpledged" delegate picked by state Dems Saturday to go to the national convention really neutral in the race between Obama and Clinton? If she isn't for Obama, why did the Clintonistas take the gloves off in trying to stop her from being selected? - New Mexico Politics with Joe Monahan

Clinton adds NH add-on delegate; Obama picks up super in AZ

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Clinton and Obama both picked up a new superdelegate today. First, New Hampshire:

Campaign says Clinton-supporter Kathy Sullivan, who headed the state’s Democratic Committee until last year, has been elected as the state’s add on super. -The Page

Here's Kathy Sullivan endorsement announcement. We've been told she was the only one nominated for the add-on position by State party chair Raymond Buckley. Sullivan is a former state chair, and she also won election today to a DNC position that starts after the convention is over. (So she'll be a superdelegate in 2012).

Buckley, a superdelegate whose allegiance remains a mystery, said his choice of Sullivan should not be seen as an indication of how he will vote. He said he made the offer long ago.

"It was before anybody had announced for president," Buckley said. "It was before Hillary or Obama had come to New Hampshire for their first trip, and it was a good ten months before she (Sullivan) decided to even be involved in the campaign." - Boston Globe

In Arizona, two superdelegates were selected today. First, for the vacant vice-chair position, Obama supporter Charlene Fernandez won the spot in an upset:

Though Harriet Young, Coconino County Democratic Party chair was nominated by the popular former state party chair, David Wade, and stood as the early favorite to fill one of two open superdelegate positions in the Arizona delegation to the Democratic National Convention, it was Charlene Fernandez who took the spot.- PolitickerAZ

Arizona Attorney General Terry Goddard was selected as the add-on superdelegate from Arizona:

Goddard said he has not pledged support for either candidate yet. He said he is at least a few weeks away from making a decision.

"I look forward to attending the convention as our party comes together to kick some butt in the fall," he told an audience of more than 500 people at the downtown Wyndham Phoenix.

Still waiting to hear from New Mexico.

Will update all the table and numbers after all the states are in.

Iowa update - Edwards +1, Obama -1

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The district results are in from Iowa, and the suspended campaign of John Edwards actually picked up a delegate that had previously been projected for Obama. In CD-1 Edwards had not been projected to be viable, but he obviously picked up enough state delegates, probably from the Clinton side, to become viable, and the math took the national delegate away from Obama.

In CD-4, Edwards did not become viable, so Obama kept his 4th projected national delegate. (A reader notes that nearly all the Edwards delegates came over to Obama).

In CD-5, Edwards was barely viable, but kept his delegate.

Final tally of the District delegates is Obama 16, Clinton 9, Edwards 4. (typo fixed)

Update: The Iowa Independent disagrees with our characterization of Iowa as "Obama -1".

Superdelegate predictions

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CCPS has been running a series of superdelegate predictions, with an accuracy rate of 70% on those they've predicted and have since announced. The latest predictions:

There are 128 unpledged superdelegates who are at least 60% likely to vote for Obama; just 39 unpledged superdelegates are at least 60% likely to vote for Clinton. There are 78 superdelegates in [the 40%-60%] range.

Tremayne over at Open Left has run similar calculations, but doesn't summarize the results.

Salazar calls for Limbaugh reprimand

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I'm sure you've heard about Rush Limbaugh's call for riots in Denver that he's now trying to say is "just a dream". Today Colorado Senator Ken Salazar called for Denver radio station 850 KOA to reprimand Limbaugh.

"As I read Mr. Limbaugh's comments about riots at the Democratic National Convention in Denver, they appear to me to be a clear exhortation that those riots are exactly what he wants to happen," said Salazar. "For that kind of incendiary comment, I ask Clear Channel to reprimand Mr. Limbaugh." - Denver Post

Rush Limbaugh (aka Jeff Christie pictured on left) windbag extraordinaire has once again proven how much of a lowlife he is. After making fun of Michael J Fox and getting arrested for Oxycontin abuse he's out there again trying to gain attention.

Rush Limbaugh says he was not calling for a riot in Denver during the Democratic National Convention — he only "dreams" of it, to the tune of "White Christmas."

For a second day in a row today, the conservative talker discussed the potential for protests and power struggles at the August convention.

"Now, I am not inspiring or inciting riots. I'm dreaming, I'm dreaming of riots in Denver," he said mimicking the holiday tune.

He explained on-air: "Riots in Denver at the Democrat Convention would see to it we don't elect Democrats," Limbaugh said. "And that's the best damn thing (that) could happen for this country as far as anything I can think."

Glenn Spagnuolo,an organizer with the protest group Re-create 68, called Limbaugh a fool.

"We don't need another 5,000 illiterate Limbaugh listeners coming to Colorado," he said, mocking a comment this week by State Rep. Douglas Bruce, R-Colorado Springs, calling migrant workers "illiterate peasants" as he debated a bill to accommodate up to 5,000 guest workers in the state. - Denver Post

Right Rush... because the Republicans have been doing such a bang-up job over the past 8 years.

Weekend Preview

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Lots going on this weekend:

We have add-on superdelegates being picked on Saturday in Arizona, New Hampshire and New Mexico. Clinton won Arizona and New Mexico. Selection of the add-on in New Mexico is the first order of business at the state convention which starts at 11 AM local time.

While Clinton won the popular vote in New Hampshire, the delegates were split 8-8, and the add-on is selected by the district-level delegates.

Arizona has a vacancy in their state vice-chair position. The new state vice-chair, who will be a superdelegate, will also be picked on Saturday. The Arizona State Convention starts at 1 PM local time, with the vice-chair position being filled first, followed by the pledged and add-on delegate elections.

And finally, the Iowa District Conventions are on Saturday. Edwards has 3 district-level delegates, but that number could go up or down depending on both math and politics.

Check back over the weekend for all the updates.

DNC to hear MI and FL challenges on May 31st

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From Marc Ambinder

TO: DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee Members

FROM: Alexis Herman & Jim Roosevelt, Jr., Co-Chairs

DNC Rules and Bylaws Committee (RBC)

SUBJECT: Meeting Announcement–May 31, 2008

DATE: April 25, 2008

Realizing that members have very busy schedules, we wanted to notify you as soon as possible that the RBC will meet on Saturday, May 31, 2008 in Washington, D.C. We are asking members to arrive on Friday, May 30, 2008 in time for a private informal dinner with us. While we expect the RBC meeting to last most of the day on Saturday, we are asking members not to make their departure plans until Sunday.

The main item of business on the Committee’s agenda will be the consideration of two pending challenges.

We hope you are able to attend this very important RBC meeting. Further information, including meeting agenda and meeting logistics, will be forwarded to you in the near future.

Please note that this is an official meeting of the RBC. Therefore, we would like to remind members of the attendance requirement established in the Bylaws (Article Two, Section 10.(g)). Members who miss three consecutive RBC meetings are deemed to have resigned from the Committee. Registering a proxy, while important for establishing a quorum and assuring your vote is represented, does not count for the purpose of attendance at a meeting.

First Read's take:

Members of the RBC could potentially come to the meeting with an agreed-upon solution that would quash the issue. But if that doesn’t happen -- something that has seemed a near impossibility so far -- the committee would take up the complaints and possibly vote on them. If those challenges are voted down, then any further appeals would have to be made to that Credentials Committee.

Update: The Regulations of the Rules and Bylaws Committee

DCCC to hold Convention Raffle

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The DCCC knocked one out of the park with this idea.

Not a candidate for president? Didn't get elected as a delegate from your state? Not to worry. You still may get a seat at the Democratic National Convention in Denver.

For $35, you can buy a chance to win tickets to the convention, airfare to and from Denver, and hotel accommodations from Sunday Aug. 24 through Thursday, Aug. 28.

The raffle is being run by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which raises money for Democratic members of the House and Democratic candidates for the House.

"Can you picture it," the committee asks in an email to supporters. "The Democratic energy...and the promise of a historic nominee who will at long last restore the promise of America's future...and you can be right there when it happens." - McClatchy

And here it is... courtesy of Speaker of the House (and superdelegate) Nancy Pelosi.

The Democratic Convention in Denver is going to be so exciting. And, because of all you've done to support Democratic candidates, I want you to have the chance to be there in person.

I'm honored to serve as Chair of this history-making gathering. From the opening gavel right through Thursday when our nominee delivers an historic acceptance speech, it's going to be a remarkable week.

You can win the opportunity to be right there in the Convention hall in Denver, Colorado when it all happens. Simply match your last gift of at least $25 or more by May 1st and you'll receive an official entry for flight, hotel and accommodations to the Democratic Convention, Sunday, August 24th thru Thursday, August 28th. And every time you make a contribution for the same amount before the end of the month, you'll receive another chance to win.

Enter our Match-It-By-May Convention Contest!

The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) is the engine driving change forward, but we must win the White House and strengthen our Democratic majority in the House to fully implement our New Direction agenda.

So I am asking people like you -- who have gone online before to support our Democratic candidates -- to please step forward again and match your most recent donation before the end of April.

We're calling it our Match-It-By-May Campaign. With thousands of people acting over the next six days, we'll have the resources to keep our 2008 victory plan on track. It's time for you to act again. If you Match-It-By-May, we'll have the time-sensitive financial support needed to win the tightest, most highly-contested races of 2008.

Enter the Match-It-By-May Convention Contest for a chance to see history in the making.

On to Denver,

Nancy Pelosi
Speaker of the House

Since the DCCC is blowing the NRCC away right now maybe they'll pass some of the cash over to the DNC.

Edwards delegates: Up-for-grabs in Iowa, in control in NH

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We've been following the status of the Edwards delegates ever since he dropped out of the race. The quick summary: He keeps his 4 delegates from New Hampshire, his 8 delegates from South Carolina (as long as his campaign stays officially suspended), and, if they were to ever get seated as is, his 13 delegates from Florida.

But his Iowa delegates have shrunk from 14 to 6, and 3 of the 6 are in the critical stage on Saturday:

At five district conventions, hundreds of Iowa Democrats will meet to choose 29 delegates to the party’s national convention in August, the first chunk of the state’s 45 pledged delegates that will make the trip to Denver
...
Caucus states, with their complex rules, have been good to Obama. And that complexity could come into play in a couple of congressional districts where the ability of Edwards backers to hang together could make a difference this weekend.

In the 1st District, where Obama now has enough strength to claim four national delegates compared with Clinton’s two, Edwards is just a few votes short of the 15 percent viability threshold required to claim a national delegate of his own.

If he’s successful, that delegate would come from Obama. Davenport Mayor Bill Gluba, an Obama backer, said Clinton’s camp could try to help make Edwards viable, thus damaging Obama. “We’re going to try to work them, too,” he said.

In the 5th District, Edwards has enough strength to be viable, but just barely.

It's the same math as we were all familiar with going into the Iowa Precinct Caucuses. Looking at the numbers in Iowa, Edwards will probably keep 2 national delegates, one each from CD2 and CD3. If Edwards loses viability in CD5, Obama would need to pick up 56 of the outstanding 58 state delegates (Edwards-55, Uncommitted -3) to get the extra national delegate. Otherwise, Clinton gets it. So Clinton could end up net +2 after Saturday, winning a delegate in CD 5 and Obama losing one in CD 1. The CD1 scenario seems likely, as it takes only 4 Clinton state delegates to switch to Edwards to give him a national delegate. But then the Obama people could persuade some other Edwards delegates to come to their side, saving the national delegate spot. Wouldn't you love to be inside these caucus rooms on Saturday watching this all take place?

Update: Iowa Independent goes deep into the numbers in each CD, and notes that Edwards might pick up a delegate in CD 4 also.

And then there's New Hampshire, which is picking its add-on superdelegate this weekend. In most states, the add-on is picked by some state-level committee, or by a large group of delegates to a state convention. Not in New Hampshire. In New Hampshire, the add-on is picked by the District level delegates. And what's the breakdown of the district level delegates in New Hampshire?

Clinton 6, Obama 6, Edwards 2.

Edwards 2 delegates are Joshua Denton of Portsmouth and Deborah Bacon-Nelson of Hanover. Capt. Denton is a veteran of the Iraq War. Bacon-Nelson is a World Literature teacher at Lebanon High School

So the 2 Edwards delegates essentially hold the balance-of-power in determining the add-on superdelegate in New Hampshire!

Friday update: The Manchester Union-Leader notes that "State party chair Raymond Buckley will nominate one or more candidates" for the add-on spot. Buckley is uncommitted, and it's possible he could submit just one name to the district delegates for their vote. So maybe Buckley is really in control.

We'll have all the results here this weekend.

Thursday Summary and Weekend preview

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Rep. David Wu of Oregon for Obama

Current count: Clinton: 256, Obama: 234

See the DCW Superdelegate Tracker for the latest superdelegate endorsements.

Other superdelegate news:

Sen. Clinton meets with Uncommitted superdelegates on Capitol Hill.
Harry Reid joins the crowd saying supers should choose by June at the latest.

Lots going on this weekend:
We have add-on superdelegates being picked on Saturday in Arizona, New Hampshire and New Mexico. Clinton won Arizona and New Mexico. While Clinton won the popular vote in New Hampshire, the delegates were split 8-8, and the add-on is selected by the district-level delegates. We'll have more on this.

Arizona has a vacancy in their state vice-chair position. The new state vice-chair, who will be a superdelegate, will also be picked on Saturday.

And finally, the Iowa District Conventions are on Saturday. 3 of Edwards 6 projected Iowa delegates are district-level delegates and are therefore potentially up-for-grabs if his delegates don't get necessary number of votes. Remember, Edwards started with 14 delegates from the Precinct Caucuses, and dropped to 6 delegates at the County Conventions.

Check back over the weekend for all the updates.

Mr. Super's take on where undeclared supers stand

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If anybody knows superdelegates it's Mr. Super. In his latest post he gives a rundown of where he thinks the remaining superdelegates are in their decision.

Governors (7): All Pelosi Club members, though Kentucky's Steve Beshear could conceivably endorse Senator Clinton, and North Carolina's Mike Easley could endorse Senator Obama.

US Senators (19): As colleagues in the Senate, it's feasible that all could be Pelosi Club members.

Undeclared House Freshmen (18): All Pelosi Club. there 40 freshmen in the class of 2006, the 18 who have not endorsed look to be facing tough re-elects and don't want to risk splitting their base by picking a side. It's not what they were elected to do.

House members (52): Of the remaining House members, most are Pelosi Club. There are a few who may endorse prior to their state's primary, that's a total of nine members when you take out the Freshmen who were referenced above.

DNC Members (126): Virtually all up for grabs, save for a few Party luminaries.

I honestly believe that the peacemakers in all of this could be Jimmy Carter, who though he was not a popular president has since become the most popular ex-president, and the award-winning and Al Gore.

Now our definition of Pelosi Club is a superdelegate that commits to voting for the delegate winner. Not sure if Mr. Super is including the ones that say they'll vote for the leader of the Popular Vote. Hopefully he'll drop in and let us know.

Update: Mr. Super has confirmed that, like us, he considers the Pelosi Club going for the leader of the pledged delegates.

Michigan challenge filed

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One of those 1/2 delegate proposals is out there again:

In the latest bid to get Michigan's delegates seated at the Democratic convention, the AP reports that a top Clinton supporter has filed a challenge to the DNC that would send 28 unpledged superdelegates and 128 pledged delegates to the convention in Denver. DNC member Joel Ferguson's plan calls for delegates to be allocated based on the results of the Michigan Democratic primary, which Clinton won, although neither candidate campaigned in the state.

The proposal calls for pledged Michigan delegates to get half a vote, while superdelegates would get a full vote at the convention.
...
The Obama campaign is still calling for Michigan and Florida delegates to be divided evenly between the two candidates.

If you give Obama 50 of the 55 uncommitted Michigan delegates, his Michigan delegate deficit is 35 delegates. Cut that in half, and it becomes 17-18 delegates. If his pledged delegate lead stays close to his current 150+, he could concede the 17-18 delegates, still have a 130+ pledged delegate lead, and just like that remove one major uncertainty in the nomination battle. While publicly they want an even split, behind the scenes, they're probably seriously considering this type of proposal.

Wednesday's Superdelegate Summary

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Gov. Brad Henry of Oklahoma for Obama
Rep. John Tanner of Tennessee for Clinton
DNC member Audra Ostergard of Nebraska for Obama

Current count: Clinton: 256, Obama: 233

See the DCW Superdelegate Tracker for the latest superdelegate endorsements.

Pennsylvania Primary Results

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The 158 delegates are divided as follows: 55 delegates will be determined by the state-wide vote, broken up into two separate groups of 35 and 20 delegates. The other 103 are determined by vote totals in each congressional district, from a low of 3 delegates in PA-9 to a high of 9 delegates in PA-2.

Update: 9:30 PM Wednesday. Clinton wins. Lead at 9.3%. Spread at 215,000 votes. (Vote tallies from CNN).

State-wide: Clinton 30, Obama 25

We project CD delegates at 53-48 Clinton. 2 left to be assigned in CD 7 and CD11 - current votes would split them 1 for each candidate.

Sidebars have been updated with latest Green Papers delegate counts, which have 84-74 compared to our 83-73.

Note: This table will no longer be updated. For the latest overall delegate tallies, see our Ultimate Delegate Summary and Ultimate Delegate Tracker.

Thanks to Amot, Yousri, and all the great comments for everyone's help. See you in two weeks for NC and IN.

	Delegates Left	% Vote In	% Clinton	%Obama	Delegates Clinton	Delegates Obama
Pennsylvania	2	99%	54.7%	45.3%	83	73
Previously Pledged Delegates (GP)					1253	1416
Total Pledged Delegates					1336	1489
Superdelegate Endorsements					256	233
Total Delegates					1592	1722
Delegates Still Needed to Win Nomination					432	302

Popular Vote (rounded to nearest 1,000)
Clinton - 1,260,000
Obama - 1,045,000
Lead - 215,000

Delegate Projections By Media Source
Media Source	Clinton	Obama
DCW	83	73
Green Papers	84	74
AP	80	71
NBC	80	71
CBS	82	73
CNN	81	69

Update: We almost forgot about the Special Election in Mississippi that also takes place today. Normally the Republicans would win the 1st District easily but this year may be different. Democratic candidate Travis Childers appears to be in a dead heat with Republican Greg Davis. You can head over to CottonMouthBlog for more info. We'll be posting the numbers tonight as they come in. A Childers win would put us back at 795 superdelegates.

Update: Childers up 49%-47%, with 99% in. AP has called it as going to a runoff on May 13.

Next up is Guam on May 3rd followed by North Carolina and Indiana on May 6th.