Sounds like the committee took the supreme court path. They awarded votes to a candidate who withdrew from the race and never receivced a vote. Very similar. Note the disastrous result for the country as aresult of the Supreme vote. We are likely to have a similar resukt now. \
Shame on the Democratic Party. I was supporting the Democratic party. Not now.

it doesn't mean that everyone who wanted to vote for Obama did, in fact, come and vote uncommitted.

This is typical of a nut case who thinks she is superior…. just like the White Priest said… he told the truth… whether you like it or not. She can't get her way and now she is crying, lying, spying, trying and relying on her disturbed followers to help divide the democratic party.

so here is the message from the DNC and billary

it is ok to break rules ………… this is the dnc after all and we bow to billary dyansty clinton

what a joke

Wow, what a mess !

I think the fairest thing to do is to have polled Michigan and Florida's voters with the most precise polling system to date and use those results to elect delegates since the primary rules seem so unfair to some. .

No one would have to guess, really then.
However, the bigger picture is that Hillary is unyielding and I just pray that she can find some peace and closure for this

Clinton didnt win michigan, the other candidates didnt even have

their names on the ballot, what a coniving piece of *^#% clinton is

No unity with Obama - just dirty politics! He is unacceptable under any circumstances. His story has slipped over the saturation point!

Hillary Clinton should have also removed her name from the ballot in Michigan.

Allowing Hillary Clinton to keep the 55% of the votes that she "won" in the primary does not seem fair since she left her name on the ballot, knowing that she was in violation of the DNC's directive.

The remaining 45% of the votes should go to Barack Obama since those voters did NOT choose Hillary Clinton, and Mr Obama is the only candidate remaining in the race.

There is no good solution to the dilemma.

A 50-50 split might be the only fair way to seat the Michigan delegates if the DNC chooses to do so. The DNC has the possibility of seating all the delegates with one half vote each. At least that way, the voters from Michigan will have a say in the race for a candidate.

Of course, rules are rules, except when they might not be to the advantage of Senator Obama. He voluntarily removed his name from the ballot in Michigan, but now he wants the delegates split 50/50? Oh yes, very fair. If they are going to seat the Michigan delegates, they should be seated as the vote reflects, 55% for Senator Clinton, 40% undecided. That is how the votes were counted. The Superdelegates should wake up and start to realize there are some really serious questions as which Democratic candidate will stand a better chance of defeating the Republicans in November! And if the DNC wants to place blame for the divisivness in the party, they need look no further than themselves. By not properly vetting candidates, by allowing the media to play favorites, by not having a uniform way of conducting the primary season, ie: caucuses, primaries and in some states both! The DNC has taken an election which should have easily been a Democratic win and turned it into a very iffy situation. Add into that the way the delegates are apportioned, and the mess is complete. How does one candidate win the state, yet get fewer delegates? How is that equitable? This has been the most divisive primary I have witnessed in 35 years of voting. And it is not because Senator Clinton is at fault. The DNC will have no one but themselves to blame if the Republicans win in November. The media bias and the DNC bias against Senator Clinton and promoting Senator Obama has turned off an awful lot of long time Democrats. And the vile and disgusting comments made by some of Senator Obama's supporters have further alienated these core Democrats. The Superdelegates had better take a good, hard look at who they support, and make their decision on which candidate has the best chance to win in November.

No compromises! Seat all the delegates fully as they voted in Florida and Michigan or take it to the convention!

I am a disgusted Democrat leaning Independent and voting for McCain if the fatally flawed Obama is the nominee.

ACTUALLY, MY ENTIRE FAMILY ARE PLANNING TO DO THE SAME THING. I ALSO PLAN TO HELP CHANGE ANY OTHER DEMOCRATICS MIND, TO DO THE SAME THING. NO HILIARY, THEN IT WILL BE JOHN MCCAIN ALL THE WAY. WE HAD 8 YEARS OF BUSH, WHAT IS 4 YEARS OF MCCAIN?

Shouldn't Clinton be penalized for not taking her name off the ballot instead of being rewarded? I'm about done with this "party."

The DNC Stripped FL of 100% of pledged and un-pledged delegates after our REPUBLICAN colleagues moved the Primary date up too soon. It's wrong to punish us for that which we could not control. If we don't get 100% seating with full votes, the DNC better pay for a revote.
That or I, for one, will urge all Dems I know to MAKE their voice heard, with either low turnout or a vote for McCain. How do you like dem apples?

Florida is one thing in that their hand was forced by the Republicans are are willing to aceept a 50% reduction.

How anyone can call seating Michigan at 100% fair is delusional and would actually be more undemocratic than some form of compromise. Hillary was the only one on the ballot - that's how they do it in dictatorships. In Saddam's last "election" he was the only one on the ballot.

I suspect they will end up splitting Michigan 50-50 and they should reduce their delegates by 50% as well.

Clinton should appeal any decision that does not award every Michigan delegate. She should hold up this process until the convention floor and if she isn't the nominee - I'm sitting out the election. I would never vote for someone like Obama - someone who belongs to a church that hates Whites and women.

Two options, count them all and bring the party together or don't and hand the fall election to McCain. It really is that easy.

And… join the tickets already! Obama/Clinton or Clinton/Obama matters less than bringing the teams together and changing the future of our country.

The entire world is watching……………..

IF OBAMA IS TO BE THE DEMOCRATIC NOMINATION, THEN FOR THE FIRST TIME IN MY LIVE, I WILL VOTE FOR A REPUBLICAN PRESIDENT.

The Florida and Michigan Delegates should be at the convention with full voting rights. The voters in their states did not decide WHEN the elections were held. Since they were held, they voted. If the DNC did not like when those elections were held — then they should have held one themselves on a date that they did like. Since they didn't want to spend their DNC money to do that — then they should allow the election that happened to stand.
Trying to say that they only get half a vote is OFFENSIVE (reminds me of when blacks were counted as a fraction of a person.)
Trying to dictate who the delegates will vote for - let's give half to Obama and half to Clinton — is also OFFENSIVE. The delegates represent their state. Let them decide who they want to vote for at the convention.

We had a vote? My candidate followed the rules and did not have "HIS" name on the ballot , good try Hillary …

Seating of Florida & Michigan and the allocation of delegate SHOULD NOT impact the outcome of the Primaries!

The United States stop being a monarchy a long time ago, over two centuries ago.

This means that no candidate should be awarded an election 'victory' without any campaigning on the ground, but based SOLELY on the prior POPULARITY OF HER HUSBAND!

If Democrats of Florida & Michigan are unhappy with the Republican leaders in their State's agenda, then Dems of Florida and Michigan should cease the whining to the DNC and America; go back to the citizens of Florida & Michigan this November; and WIN BACK THE STATES' GOVERNMENT!

It is obviously that the Dems of Fl & Mi were played by their GOP counterparts.
Notice that the GOP of Fl & Mi settled their Primaries amicably? There is a reason for that

The witty GOP of Fl & Mi move up the Primaries and settled with their National Party in the hope that the Dems will be in dissension. lol

Seating of Florida & Michigan and the allocation of delegate SHOULD NOT impact the outcome of the Primaries!

The United States stop being a monarchy a long time ago, over two centuries ago.

This means that no candidate should be awarded an election 'victory' without any campaigning on the ground, but based SOLELY on the prior POPULARITY OF HER HUSBAND!

If Democrats of Florida & Michigan are unhappy with the Republican leaders in their State's agenda, then Dems of Florida and Michigan should cease the whining to the DNC and America; go back to the citizens of Florida & Michigan this November; and WIN BACK THE STATES' GOVERNMENT!

It is obviously that the Dems of Fl & Mi were played by their GOP counterparts.
Notice that the GOP of Fl & Mi settled their Primaries amicably? There is a reason for that.

The witty GOP of Fl & Mi move up the Primaries and settled with their National Party in the hope that the Dems will be in dissension. lol

rule of law, FLA and MI don't count!
working out a strategy to count them 'anyway' engenders, incorporates, breaking the rules! the 55% to 0% goes out window.
to start saying an 'out of bounds factors' are now in bounds themes is illogical.
Now that the world sees that the Democratic cares about MI and FLA they should, follow the law, and NOT count those States.
55% of 128 is 70!!! NOT 73. does nobody on the committee carry a calculator?

I agree with Obama's stated position on Florida. I agree with Clinton's position on Michigan except that it should be reduced by 50% as should Florida.

It is clear from the deliberations that the Obama campaign is willing to compromise but the Clinton campaign wants it all there own way.

The Clintons clearly do not give a dam about party unity however the Obama arguments are all about party unity.

The rules committee have difficult choices to make but party unity and fairness has to be at the top of their thoughts.

Get this wrong and it will not matter who the nominee is the Republicans will win come November.

Anyway it is invalid primary. If go by rules neither should get votes. But since Hillary supporters wants the votes they need to share it with obama since he followed the rules.

Dont tell me we need to penalize OBAMA for following rules.
CLINTON CAMPAIGN PLEEEEZE STO THIS DRAMA……..

If the Michigan primary (also Florida's) had not been rendered meaningless, many more people would have voted. (I was visiting my family there a week before the primary, and word on the street was that the primary was a joke. My relatives didn't vote–and they would have split between Clinton & Obama, so this is not a partisan comment.) Delegations from both states should now be seated, but the votes as counted from January cannot be taken as an accurate reflection of the wills of of the peoples of MI and FL. If they are, then those who stayed home in January–following the rules–are the truly disenfranchised.

Make no mistake, what Carl Levin and the Clinton campaign are really saying is that Michigan is above the rules and that such inconveniences do not apply to them.

The Florida Democrats at least have an excuse for their early primary - the Republicans made it virtually impossible for them to vote against it in the legislature. Michigan, however, knew full well what the consequences would be yet went ahead with the early primary anyway.

And now Carl Levin is blustering about taking this to the convention if he doesn't get his way…the egos present in the Democratic party establishment are horrifying.

Flournoy and Ickes make it plain by their posturing that they as Clinton representatives are not interested in doing what is right but making sure that their candidate gets it all whether it is deserved or not.

I, for one do not want a president who has to resort to this kind of dirty tricks in order to get something which they so obviously do not deserve.

If Clinton's argument to seat the delegates is that "It wasn't the voter's fault the primary was invalid", then she should *logically* also argue that it wasn't the voter's fault that the other candidates took their names off the ballot.

In other words, all MI voters were laboring under the (now) false impression that the primary would not count. Why penalize almost half of the voters, but not the other half?

So, either it is about the voters, or it isn't. It can't be only about the voters who voted for Clinton, can it?

Question for all Democrats: If a self-serving Bush administration is reprehensible, what would a self-serving Clinton administration be?

I love it, 2000 all over again. Let's draw up the rules - after the vote - in a way that is most advantageous to us. How can anyone support Hillary?

Figures it's the Democrats. Must be global warming that is frying their feeble little minds.

you know, i really wish they could have found a way to do a re-vote but i have to say i'm glad that they arent giving Hillary her delegates and obama nothing like Clinton most likely wanted. However, i think the vote would have been different if Obama and Edwards were both on the ballot. I honestly think a re-vote would be the best despite the cost

As far as this situation goes, states will either 1) never break these rules again or 2) Every state will hop deadlines, trying to be more influential in the race, because nothing too bad happened to FL and MI.

This comment applies not only to the Democrats but to Republicans and really, to all us who are citizens of this country…..why have laws and rules when they can be so easily broken or changed after a transgression?

The consequences from the lack of real penalties for breaking the rules shows it's ugly head everyday….

"Exit polls found that an overwhelming majority of voters who took advantage of that option (uncommitted) supported Obama, with most of the rest in support of former Sen. John Edwards' presidential bid."

EXACTLY! How dare Clinton demand she get all the delegates. Her immature approach to this situation has made me lose the last of whatever respect I had for her.

This is all going to end in very bad taste and the whole process is going to make the USA look even worse than ever.

The DNC will pander to HRC as most of those "high up" in the DNC did not expect or want Obama to be the nominee. At the time, no one was worried 'cos HRC was ahead. Now those in power in the DNC see the FL and MI case(s) as one last chance to help HRC over the top, which is what was "planned" and "expected" all along - her being the nominee that is.

Somehow, HRC is going to be "given" the nomination in spite of being beaten and it'll all be made to look "right" and "legal" following a new interpretation of the "rules".

Obama is the USA's best hope to move forward and from the brink of falling into a very dark period but he'll be ousted by the more "powerful" and the world will look on and groan and laugh (maybe) and loose even more respect for a once all-powerful nation.

Oh how the mighty fall. Not just Clinton, McCain, Obama but the USA as a whole.

Sad, but the whole world still looks on with a little hope and faith.

Why can't CNN play fair and let my comments along. I did not violate the rules. Is this the policy of CNN or just the individual in charge to display such a dishonest and sleazy action.

55 % of 128 is 70, NOT 73… <<< the 872nd Clinton lie

Who is the REAL Obama? Lots more skeletons to come out of his closet! What you see now is NOT what you'll ultimately get. As for me, I'll either vote for Hillary or McCain. THIS time I won't vote party — I'll vote for the best person that can do the best job for this country I love, and of which I have ALWAYS been proud!

why dont democratic officials in mich and fla. pay a fine out of their own pocket??? certainly more logical than taking our votes away.

moreover, pls refer to cnn´s report on how obama acted in chicago to get on list.

seems to me best way to change wash political system is to pay more attention to popular votes than legalities!

as mentioned in fla., the fact that clinton was on mich ballot "just in case" would tend to show she is more previsory than obama.

doesnt it?

The plot thickens….In regards to MI. I think it would be fair to do the 49-59 however I don't think the exit poll numbers is a strong argument…valid but not as strong as hard numbers. With that said 45-64 might be better not counting the exit poll numbers. An even split wouldn't be fair because votes for one candidate is going to another. As for FL seat em all…either way Barrack is still in the lead.