Vickie Said:

Hillary Booed at NH Democratic Party Dinner - how will the Clintons spin this one into a positive?

We Answered:

Oh well, I guess you've already heard that it was not her supporters. It seems like their party is greatly divided. I believe a house divided is doomed to fail.

Rest assured, Hillary will not win the presidency. She is far too polarizing. Now when things get really bad we may get a peek at the "Real" Hillary with her horrid temper and foul mouth caught publicly.

I cannot wait for her true colors to show through, clinching her downfall!

.

Guy Said:

If you win Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Carolina are you guaranteed to win the nomination?

We Answered:

No, you don't have to win these states to win the nomination. As others stated, you have to win a majority of the electoral votes, just like the presidential election. Historically, Iowa, New Hampshire, and South Caroline were imnportant because they were the first states to have their primaries/caucuses (cauci?). Because they were first, most candidates would spend a lot of time and money campaigning in these states due to the fact that a strong showing gave you a boost in the polls for the ensuing states under the assumption that people who are unsure would vote for the winning candidate. In addition, people are unlikely to donate money to the campaigns of candidates who are unlikey to win, leading to a greater influx of donations to those who do well in early primaries.

Conversly, a poor showing in these states would indicate that a candidate is unlikely to win the nomination, and candidates who are strapped for money and have a poor showing in early states are likely to drop out.

Historically, primaries have been spread out so that candidates have time to campaign in a few states at time (and give time between primarties to raise campaign funds). However, some states who had their primaries scheduled later on have found that their primares have become useless when one candidate does well in the early primaries and has already clinched the nomination. These states moved up their primaries, causing other states to move up their primaries as well, until all of the primaries occur in a much shorter time span. Candidates from both parties don't like this as it causes them to have to either spread their campaigns (and campaign funds) out over a large number of states at once or concentrate heavily on a few larger states and ignore other states completely. This benefits those who start out with large amounts of money as you no longer have time to generate donations in between primaries.

State committees decide on when they hold their primaries, but the national committee has some guidleines that they wish the states to follow. They states don't have to follow those guidelines, but the national committee is the one who hosts the convention. The individual states send their delegates to the national convention, where they vote for a candidate. (In theory, a delegate can vote for any candidate they wish, but in practice delegates are chosen based on who they would vote for so this rarely makes a difference). If the national committee so choses, it can bar a state's delegates from attending the convention and thereby block them from voting. This is what the Democratic party is threatening some of the states who are trying to hold their conventions too early.

Diana Said:

Is the Dean DNC declaring war on the Hillary side of the party?

We Answered:

I am not sure that Edwards or Hillary will take the South at this point. Problem with Hillary is she keeps flip flopping and pandering in the direction of how a crowd feels while she is there. She might end up inserting her own foot in her own mouth, and Edwards because he is a tort lawyer. With a couple more fair candidates on that side, it is to early to count the chickens before the eggs are hatched. It is nothing to do with procedure or concidence, it is called poltics, nothing else. Then again, the one with the most money, usually has the best chance. Takes a lot of cash to pay people off.

Alice Said:

Historically, how important has the Iowa Caucus been in determining the Democratic party's final nomination?

We Answered:

It often convinces a few candidates to drop out of the race...from that standpoint it definately has a huge effect on an election

Cory Said:

Does the close Democratic presidential race lead anyone into a temporary political party change?

We Answered:

I am a democrat and on the flip side of your question, I am considering voting Republican if Hillary beats out Obama in the primaries. I'd rather see a republican in office than Hillary.

Ross Said:

Now that Hillary Clinton's political career is effectively over, will the Democratic Party now be less evil?

We Answered:

That's not true, she just needs to win the other states, I mean, winning Iowa is not nessisarily winning the primaries, in fact, she's up in New Hampshire. Also look up Marxist before lableing someone that, and if you plan to call her a nazi, look that up too.

Micheal Said:

Who would have guessed Howard Dean would be the "Voice of Reason" in the Democratic Party?

We Answered:

This is the guy who caused the whole mess in the first place. Because of his emotional, rather than rational, idea to ban delegates from Florida and Michigan no clear front runner has emerged. Let's all thank Howard Dean and name him "MVP" for the Republican Party. Without him, a dem might have actually wound up in the White House.