| DFL Chairman Brian Melendez and Associate Chair Donna Cassutt have announced their support for Barack Obama in the Democratic presidential nomination race.
In a joint statement sent to party leaders, Melendez and Cassutt outlined their reasons for casting their superdelegate votes for Obama:
We both have great confidence in, and respect and enthusiasm for, Senator Obama and the message of change that has resonated so strongly with voters in Minnesota and throughout America. But this announcement is not an "endorsement" in the usual sense, because it doesn't result from our personal judgment about the candidates or their relative merit. (One of us even cast a blank Presidential ballot on Caucus Night.) We also have great confidence in, and respect and enthusiasm for, Senator Clinton, whom we would gladly have supported if she had won the Minnesota caucuses - and will gladly support if she wins the Democratic nomination. We are not joining Senator Obama's campaign, since our loyalty lies first and foremost with the DFL Party itself; and we will not be using either the Party's resources, or our own personal time, energy, or other resources, in promoting his campaign or any other. This announcement simply reflects our desire to let the more than two hundred thousand DFLers who braved a cold winter night, long lines, and bustling crowds on Caucus Night know that their voices were heard and that their Party's heads are honoring their choice.
Carefully worded, but two more votes are two more votes for the Illinois senator. Melendez and Cassutt also had some choice words about the role of superdelegates in the 2008 election:
We didn't ask to be superdelegates - we were elected three years ago in an election cycle without a Presidential race - and frankly, we both could do without the honor. There may be a role for superdelegates: Tad Devine wrote in an excellent piece in The New York Times that "the superdelegates were also created to provide unity at the nominating convention. They are a critical mass of uncommitted convention voters who can move in large numbers toward the candidate who receives the most votes in the party's primaries and caucuses. Their votes can provide a margin of comfort and even victory to a nominee who wins a narrow race." But we doubt that the Party needs so many superdelegates and, if the number is cut, state-party leaders should be among the first to go. If a reform is proposed to that effect, we will support it. Meanwhile, our votes belong to the people that we serve, and we will cast those votes according to their wishes. |
