Let’s look at the Delegate Selection Rules of the DNC :

No meetings, caucuses, conventions or primaries which constitute the first determining stage in the presidential nomination process (the date of the primary in primary states, and the date of the first tier caucus in caucus states) may be held prior to the first Tuesday in February or after the second Tuesday in June in the calendar year of the national convention.

Provided, however, :

1. that the Iowa precinct caucuses may be held no earlier than 22 days before the first Tuesday in February;
2. that the Nevada first-tier caucuses may be held no earlier than 17 days before the first Tuesday in February;
3. that the New Hampshire primary may be held no earlier than 14 days before the first Tuesday in February;
4. and that the South Carolina primary may be held no earlier than 7 days before the first Tuesday in February.
5. In no instance may a state which scheduled delegate selection procedures on or between the first Tuesday in February and the second Tuesday in June 1984 move out of compliance with the provisions of this rule.

The first Tuesday in February was the 5th, so that 22 days prior would be January 14th.

Thus, the Nevada caucuses could be held no earlier than the 19th,

the New Hampshire primary could be held no earlier than January 22nd, and so on.

Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina all moved their caucuses and primaries in violation of DNC rules, and yet suffered no penalty, not even the standard 1/2 reduction in delegates.

So why were Michigan and Florida afforded such draconian treatment?

This is what the DNC said the primary calender should look like, in their own words.

The new DNC Rules and Bylaws for the caucus and primary 2008 calendar schedule is as follows:

* Iowa holds the first-in-the-nation caucus on January 14.

* New Hampshire holds the first-in-the-nation primary on January 22.

* Nevada conducts a caucus between Iowa and New Hampshire on Saturday, January 19.

* South Carolina holds a primary 1 week after the New Hampshire primary on Tuesday, January 29

This is what ACTUALLY HAPPENED........

Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada and South Carolina all moved their caucuses and primaries in violation of DNC rules, and yet suffered no penalty, not even the standard 1/2 reduction in delegates.

(1) Iowa

The earliest Caucus could be held = 1/14/2008

The Caucus was held = 1/3/2008 - A violation of 11 days

(2) New Hampshire

The earliest the Primary could be held = 1/22/2008

The Primary was held = 1/8/2008 - A violation of 14 days

(3) Nevada

The caucus was held January 19th, but was changed from second in the schedule to third in the schedule.

Nevada was supposed to be the second Caucus, ahead of New Hampshire, but New Hampshire and Nevada switched positions around, while Nevada still kept their date of January 19th.

South Carolina

The earliest the Primary could be held = 1/29/2008

The Primary was held = 1/26/2008 - A violation of 3 days

These 3 states violated the rules but are still having ALL their delegates seated at the convention.

Then there is the rest of the story

Michigan

The earliest the Primary could be held = 2/5/2008

The Primary was held = 1/15/2008 - A violation of 21 days

Florida

The earliest the Primary could be held = 2/5/2008

The Primary was held = 1/29/2008 - A violation of 3 days

The DNC is in violation of it’s own rules.

I would ask this about Michigan and Florida : WHY only Fl and MI were punished?

Why were the others given waivers?

Do you think it had anything to do with Dean and Brazile?

I would like to be at that next meeting.McAullife has been laying out how they violated their own rules.

Your post shows exactly how.

What is pretty sad is not one person in the media raised this issue. I am assuming the calculations are correct, so you would have thought that one of the news agencies would have looked at the rules, jotted down a few calculations and presented information exactly like this. I am sure there is a reason but to date the rational of the DNC to allow this to happen has not been explored as far as I know.

As I have said many times in other posts it is pretty sad that our news agencies rarely scratch beneath the surface of most stories. I guess this is not necessary because it seems thy only need to look deep enough to get the sound bit that they can base their story on.

I would not care to defend Wright but the part the media kept playing over and over was Him quoting someone else. Of course the rest of the sermon was more of the same stuff but my contention is that they presented that as him when it was a quote and did not even mention other parts that to me were worse. Obviously they did not mention the parts that were not negative or controversial.

Most people do not have the time or the ability to search out the details behind most stories so their thoughts on the issue are tilted based upon what story the media wishes to push.

The only thing I have seen the pundits do is laugh and make fun of Terry when they have him on. O'Donnell is the worst of the lot.

I bet he wishes he had never turned the DNC over to Dean and his gang. Terry worked so hard to bring the party back.he built a new headquarters,paid off all the bills and made them solvent.

The Wright story had racism in it.That is what the media wants. Hate and scandal is all they are interested in. They never look at the story that is right in front of them.

<link>

Howard Dean and the Dean Plan for Obama in 2008

This link on BOTF is why all of this has tyranspired with those primary states that also broke the rules but were never punished.

Howard Dean and the DNC HAD TO PUNISH florida and Michigan because they did not want tehir "political protege and boy toy, Obama", to fall behind in any of the primary delegates count.

Read that link and see how it was all planned from as far back as early 2004 when Howard Dean ran in the 2004 elections, failed and got out of that race and immediately started his "Dean Plan" to begin to "front a new democratic candidate for the 2008 primaries and general election.

This is a non-issue:

In re DNC violating its own rules -

The DNC established its primary calender in 2006. In August 2006, the DNC Rules and Bylaws committee adopted the rule that for the 2008 primary, only Iowa, New Hampshire, Nevada, and South Carolina (the states you claim are in violation of the rules) would be permitted to hold primaries or caucuses before Feb. 5, 2008.

Those states were in compliance with the rules. MI and FL were not.

Further all the Democratic presidential candidates, including and especially Hillary Clinton, signed the attached pledge which states that,

"I shall not campaign or participate in any state which schedules a presidential election primary or caucus before Feb. 5, 2008, except for the states of Iowa, Nevada, New Hampshire and South Carolina"

<link>

I hope that clears up any confusion about alleged violations of states other than MI and FL.