It's not the delegate's fault as many are legally obligated to vote for the candidate that they are initially "loyal" to. It's is not until after the first ballot, are the delegates free to cast their vote for someone else. McCain won on the first ballot, because he had secured enough loyal delegates to guarantee the nomination.
The Democrat party relies HEAVILY on what has come to be known as Superdelegates - these are delegates who attend the convention and may vote, yet they're "free agents" of sorts. They are not bound by any earlier primary or caucus vote. The Republicans have only a handful of these kinds of delegates - not enough in any way to come close to swaying the result, unlike the Dems who VERY much can ignore their popular result.
If Hilary Clinton could have persuaded enough of the Superdelegats to vote for her, she would have been the nominee - there is that many at play. However, even if Romney or Huckabee would have been without 10 or 20 of McCain in the delegate count, there aren't enough Republican "superdelegates" (that's not what the GOP calls them), to swing the election.
If you want to blame anyone for McCain or Dole, you can blame the primary and caucus voters of America.
Those "loyal" delegates are dumbasses, and then the other delegates just compound the first dumbasses.
How's that? : )
Another thing...that I hate...is how the primaries are held. By the time it get's to my state...and other states..the outcome is generally known. That needs to change.............
FWIW-