The DNC Rules Committee sat down over the weekend and made perhaps the most predictable move in this entire campaign. Faced with two rogue states holding out of season primaries, now turning out to be important, and having lots of people upset, the Democrats basically copied the Republicans. The grand Solomonic compromise they reached was to seat all the delegates from the states and award them a half vote each. In other words, cut the delegates in half.
Brilliant, eh?
This essentially leaves the campaign exactly where it was. Obama is still unreachably far ahead in the delegate count. Clinton is still using some pretty twisted logic to show she's ahead in the popular vote. Obama supporters are whining that Clinton hasn't dropped out yet. Clinton supporters are making crazy claims that they'll vote for McCain if Clinton isn't the nominee.
All in all, not the best weekend for the Democratic party.
The thing is, at this point there's really nothing left to do. The DNC can't plausibly reinstate all the delgates from the two states with full votes if it wants to have any authority in future elections (or even this election). So that's out. They certainly won't go back to excluding all the delegates, so that's out too. So here we are, right where we're going to stay.
On Tuesday, the last states will hold their primaries. Obama is polling ahead in both of them and regardless of the outcome, will lead in delegates, states, money, and reasonably counted popular vote. Then it will be time for Clinton to decide whether or not she's in this race for herself or the greater good. It will also be time for her supporters to take a similar look in the mirror.
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