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DNC Rules Committee Outlines Agenda for Delegate Flap Meeting

Posted May 21, 2008 by Billy House, Tribune Washington Bureau

Updated May 21, 2008 at 02:30 PM

WASHINGTON – Taking a vacation to Washington, D.C., next week? Want to give Democrats a piece of your mind?

The Democratic National Committee has just sent out an advisory of how its Rules & Bylaws Committee will proceed on May 31 during a much-anticipated meeting to reconsider issues in the Florida and Michigan delegate flap. Included are instructions for members of the public who want to attend.

According to the notice, the rules committee will meet at a Washington area hotel and consider two challenges – including one from Jon Ausman, a national committeeman from Florida.

The two challenges are seeking to overturn the rules committee’s decision to strip Florida and Michigan of their presidential delegates.

Both the Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton campaigns will apparently also have a chance to state their cases during the meeting, which the notice today says will be held at the Marriott Wardman Park Hotel

The advisory says, “each challenger (including Ausman) will be entitled to present an Oral Argument before the RBC prior to Committee consideration for a period of 15 minutes each.”

“A representative from each state party and from each presidential campaign will also have an opportunity to address the committee regarding each of the challenges,” the notice explains.

“Oral arguments from the parties will be heard during the committee’s morning session. Following a lunch break, committee members will consider and debate the challenges,” the notice says.

In a sign that the DNC is expecting a big crowd for the meeting, members of the public wishing to attend are being required to register on-line starting at 10 a.m. next Tuesday. here. Those lacking Internet access who would like to pre-register can do so by calling 202-479-5137.

Democrats in Florida and Michigan were punished last year by the national party with the loss of all of their delegates because their states scheduled presidential primaries too early, in violation of national party primary calendar rules.

Hillary Clinton went on to win both primaries, but none of the candidates actively campaigned in either state and Barack Obama’s name was not even on the Michigan ballot.

Clinton, who trails Obama in the Democratic presidential delegate tally, has been saying her victory in Florida’s Jan. 29 primary should count for some delegates and she has not conceded the nomination, even though he has clinched a majority of the delegates from other states.

The Obama campaign has said that anything other than completely eliminating Clinton’s advantage – in other words, splitting the Florida and Michigan delegates between the two—is unfair.

He contends the Florida primary wasn’t fair because the candidates, even though they were on the ballot, didn’t campaign here.

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