Political Junkie Likes Democrat Race

The Democrat race for the presidential nomination has been exciting this year, whereas past races by both Democrats and Republicans have been a little dull.

We now have a great opportunity to go back to the way political conventions were held in my younger years. Rarely did anyone have the nomination wrapped up before the convention. It was always a fight on the convention floor and usually a number of votes had to be taken before a particular candidate received enough votes for the nomination. A lot of wheeling and dealing went on and many decisions were made in so-called "smoke-filled rooms."

Those were the good old days and exciting days at that. And the 2008 Democratic Convention in Denver on August 25-28 could be a return to those days of yesteryear.

Senator Hillary Clinton said in a recent interview that she was prepared to take the nomination fight all the way to the convention floor as she and Senator Barack Obama will neither have reached the magic number of delegates to be nominated prior to the convention.

Senator Obama is leading Clinton by about 157 pledged delegates and there is apparently no way she can overcome this lead even though she wins the Pennsylvania primary and some of the remaining states like North Carolina and others. Of course you have the votes of the "super delegates" who are not pledged for either -- there will be a fight for those.

And then there is the big fight about seating the delegates from Florida and Michigan since those states' voters have been disenfranchised because the officials who set the primaries in those states defied the rules of the Democrat Party and moved the dates of the primaries. Both Clinton and Obama agreed to the actions of the party and did not campaign in those states. Now Hillary wants to change the rules and have those delegates seated.

Of course there are problems with Senator Clinton lying about being under enemy fire as she deplaned in Bosnia. Turns out that that was a fabrication to which she has now admitted. There are some other untruths that are surfacing for which she has not repented.

Senator Obama has had some difficulties in explaining his association with his pastor, the Reverend Dr. Jeremiah A. Wright, Jr., who has made some very nasty statements about the United States. Then you have his endorsement by Louis Farrakhan.

There are other problems that both of these candidates have brought upon themselves, but Obama's campaign seems to be a better executed plan. President Bill Clinton has placed his foot in his mouth more than once thus hurting Hilliary with some voters.

But at this point I am hoping and praying that August in Denver is going to be hot, and I don't mean the weather. I yearn for one of those heated battles of days gone by -- that will be the epitome of political entertainment. I can look on with glee in that I really don't have a dog in that hunt.