With sincere apologies to Bill Maher for stealing his schtick, I have a new rule.
My new rule is for uncommitted Democratic superdelegates. The rule is: you are not allowed to publicly bemoan how "divided" the party currently is, or tut-tut that "the nomination process has gone on too long," or even wish that "it resolve itself soon." In other words, if you're part of the problem, you're not allowed to get all vaporous over the fact that the problem exists. Period.
The remaining 250 (or so) superdelegates who have not "put up" their endorsement publicly need to "shut up." Because these mugwumps can end the race any time they want -- by coming out en masse for one candidate or the other. So they no longer have the right to complain that the race is going on too long.
Now, don't get me wrong here. I fully agree that superdelegates are free to do whatever they want, up until they record their vote on the floor of the Democratic National Convention. They can switch their vote from one candidate to the other, they can refuse to answer any press inquiries as to how they're going to vote, they can wait until all the primaries are over to make their intentions known, they can pretty much do anything they want until the end of August. It is their right as superdelegates to do any of these things, because the party rules give them complete freedom to do anything they want with their vote. I am not denying this at all.
I even sympathize with some of them -- the superdelegates from states who have yet to hold their Democratic primary. Some superdelegates feel that they should vote the way their constituents do, and if they feel that way then they have to wait until the votes are counted before they announce their intent. That's perfectly reasonable.
But I'm sorry, I am just sick of seeing these people quoted in the news decrying how the lengthy primary race is "hurting the party." Because if that is the way you truly feel, you (and your fellow superdelegates) have the power to end it all. You always have. Kind of like Dorothy tramping all over Oz just to find out the ruby slippers were her ticket home all the time.
Uncommitted superdelegates, you have the power to end this race. All you have to do is click your heels together three times, call a press conference, and say "There's no candidate like X" or "Y." That's it. That's all it would take. If enough of you did so in the next few days, the remaining primaries would be a moot point.
And in the mean time, please refrain from complaining about how the race won't end. Either end it yourselves, or just stop talking to the media altogether. "Put up or shut up," in other words.
My West Virginia "pick"
Because tomorrow is another primary day, and because the race isn't officially over yet, I offer the latest in my continuing series of "picks" for primaries. After narrowly getting the last two right (I overestimated Clinton's vote by about five percent in both Indiana and North Carolina, but I managed to pick the winners correctly), I feel pretty confident about this one:
Hillary wins West Virginia in a landslide.
The only real question is whether her margin is merely impressive, or truly astronomical. Polls indicate Hillary's got the support of around 60% (and Obama a dismal 25%) of West Virginia's Mountaineers. This does leave a lot of undecideds, and (as we've all seen this election season) polls simply can't be trusted at times. But it cannot be denied that West Virginia is solidly in Hillaryland.
[West Virginians, please note I refrained from making any sort of "hillbilly" jokes here, although with Senator Clinton's first name (and her husband's as well) the temptation to do so was almost overwhelming. But I consider the term to be derogatory, hence my restraint.]
But with a spread like that, the only real question is how big Clinton's margin is going to be. Will it be 20 points (Clinton 60%, Obama 40%)? Or 30 points (65/35)? Or even as stunning as 40 points (70/30) or 50 points (75/25)?
In the grand scheme of things, it won't matter much to Obama. There are only 39 delegates to be had here, so even if Clinton whomps him, at most she may pick up 20 delegates, net. Since Obama has a lead now of around 170 delegates (and an outright lead among superdelegates, for the first time in the race), Clinton's win won't affect the outcome much, if at all.
Still, those are some daunting numbers. I'm going to go with at least a 30-point win for Clinton in the Mountain State, possibly as high as 40 points.
That's my pick, what's yours?
Total correct Democratic picks so far: 38 for 54 -- 70%
Total correct 2008 Republican picks: 37 for 50 -- 74%
Total overall correct picks: 75 for 104 -- 72%.
[Previous states' picks:]
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Chris Weigant blogs at: ChrisWeigant.com