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January 29, 2008
Posted: 04:43 PM ET
Senator John Edwards campaigns throughout South Carolina.
FROM CNN’s Jack Cafferty: He hasn’t won anything yet, and his showing in some cases has been dismal. But John Edwards is showing no signs of getting out the race. Maybe he doesn’t have anything else to do. His campaign says that Edwards will stay in it until the Democratic Party convention, and they’re hopeful that we can still win it. One top campaign official says quote: “There are numerous scenarios that lead to us being nominated.” Right, like if Obama and Clinton drop out. But this same official points out that it’s “essentially impossible” for one person to get a majority of delegates with three candidates in the race. That’s because the Democrats allot all their delegates proportionally — no winner-take-all - and so far, Clinton and Obama have pretty much been splitting the lion’s share of the delegates. Even if he doesn’t win, and he won’t, Edwards could still play a role if the nomination ends up being decided by a brokered convention. In such a scenario, Edwards could use his delegates — potentially hundreds of them — to promote his platform or to act as a power broker. As one political analyst says: “It’s obvious what he has in mind — if you can’t be the king, then be the king or queen-maker”. And by staying in the game, Edwards can also influence the race in different states. For example, he could divide the white vote with Hillary Clinton like he did in South Carolina, which could help Barack Obama. Or, Edwards could attract some of the voters seeking “change”, which could hurt Obama. Here’s my question to you: If the Democrats wind up with a brokered convention, what role would John Edwards play? Interested to know which ones made it on air?
Michael writes: Jeannette from Hartwell, Georgia writes: Michael writes: Michael writes: Paul writes: Filed under: John Edwards |
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