Former Gov. Jim Hunt is in The Washington Post today defending the introduction of superdelegates into the Democratic nomination process — a policy in which he was personally involved. A key passage:
I don’t know how the superdelegates will vote this year. None of us will know until they actually vote in Denver,
though I expect the superdelegates will split in a way not too
different from the votes in the states and the nation as a whole.But I do know that the Democratic Party needs these elected
officials and party leaders to be involved. They need to help choose
our nominee, shape our platform and return home from the convention
invested in the nominee’s campaign — on fire to help the Democratic
Party win in November.Yet it’s not enough just to win. We have to lead America, and we
have to govern successfully. That is another reason our commission
created the superdelegates. We saw what happened in Jimmy Carter‘s
administration. President Carter was a good man with the best of
intentions. But he came to Washington without a good working
relationship with Democratic members of Congress, which played a big
part in his administration’s problems.I am proud of both of the candidates who are headed toward our convention, as I was of my original choice, John Edwards. But we Democrats should not kid ourselves. This is going to be a close, tough election. John McCain, the likely Republican nominee, will have broad support. To win the general election, Barack Obama or Hillary Clinton
will need every bit of enthusiasm and hard work they can get from
Democrats across the country. Having the confidence and all-out efforts
of governors, members of Congress and effective state party leaders may
well provide the margin of victory.
