by Nichole Nash

Created on: March 07, 2008

Telling two influential and delegate rich states that their votes won't count sounds like an election tactic straight out of a communist country. Yet, that's exactly what the DNC has done in Michigan and Florida, because they violated party rules by holding their primaries too early.

Howard Dean has made a valid point in saying that allowing the states to seat delegates after they were told they could not could lead to other states using strongarm tactics in future elections. While many are starting to question why states shouldn't be allowed to hold primaries when they choose, the fact remains that the rules currently say they can not. Whether the DNC will move toward a national primary day, or some other plan to appease states often forgotten in the primary season remains to be seen.

Many have argued that seating Florida and Michigan delegates is simply an attempt to give Clinton the upperhand at convention now that she has won Texas and Ohio. The reality is though, that even if she did receive those delegates, she still would not have enough to earn the nomination. And any influence she may have with the superdelegates who actually will make the decision will not be swayed by whether or not Florida and Michigan delegates are added to the mix. If anything, violating party rules would put her at a disadvantage.

One point that needs to be made, though, is that Florida Democrats' hands were tied by the Republican party of their state. In fact, the Republicans were the ones who wanted to hold an earlier primary, and Florida's Republican Congress and Governor passed the bill to determine the date for the state's primaries. Democratic leaders, aware of the threat of being stripped of their delegates, proposed holding their own primary on another date, but were turned down by the Republicans. It seems once again, Florida has been allowed to play dirty politics to benefit Republicans. Only this time, the Democrats are the ones being falsely accused of not playing by the rules.

Florida Governor Crist says a redo in his state is simply not feasible. Not only do they not have the approximate $15 to 20 million it would take to hold another election, they also don't have the means to ensure that all Democratic Florida residents would have the chance to vote. He says tens of thousands of their residents are currently serving overseas, and ensuring they could participate would be a difficult task, at best.

However, telling Democrats in Florida, that through no fault of their

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