Gephardt Frees Convention Delegates

Yahooooooooooooo!!! ^ | Sat Jan 24, 8:55 AM ET | LIBBY QUAID, Associated Press Writer

[Chi-townChief]

WASHINGTON - Dick Gephardt, who abandoned his bid for the presidency, has freed his Democratic convention delegates to back another candidate but isn't ready to signal his choice.

[Chi-townChief]

"I'm just a miserable failure."

[N. Theknow]

Gephardt Frees Convention Delegates

Both of them? This is HUGH!

[MDspinboyredux]

I wasn't aware that he HAD any delegates to give away.

The Iowa caucus doesn't elect delegates to the national convention and I doubt that anyone in New Hampshire will vote for him now that he quit.

So who the hell is he talking about?

[Tijeras_Slim]

The Great Emancipator!

[Extremely Extreme Extremist]

Are those actually eyebrows?

[Straight Vermonter]

I think the average politician cries more in 1 week than I have in the last 20 years.

[sd-joe]

>> So who the hell is he talking about? <<

He had some "super delegates" committed to him.

[MDspinboyredux]

D'oh!

Mebbie I should have read the article in its entirety. My mistake.

I guess I just got distracted by Gephardt's loser expression.

[sharktrager]

WASHINGTON - Dick Gephardt (news - web sites), who abandoned his bid for the presidency, has freed his Democratic convention delegates to back another candidate but isn't ready to signal his choice.


After a poor fourth-place showing in the Iowa caucuses, Gephardt quit the race on Tuesday, leaving a field of seven candidates. He indicated that he would not endorse any of his rivals before Feb. 3, when Missouri and six other states hold early contests.


"He just wants the process to go forward as it should without giving undue influence to another candidate," Missouri campaign director Jason Norton said Friday. "He wants Missourians to have an opportunity to hear from the candidates themselves, being that most of them have not played here. Missourians don't have quite the exposure to candidates that other states on Feb. 3 have had."


Norton said Gephardt has spoken with several Democratic "superdelegates" — elected officials and other Democratic leaders who will help nominate a candidate at this summer's convention — including Missouri Gov. Bob Holden and members of Congress.


According to the latest Associated Press survey, Gephardt had the support of 15 superdelegates, although several of them either had not returned calls or could not be reached since the Iowa caucus.


Superdelegates aren't bound to primary or caucus results in their respective states and can change their minds whenever they like. A superdelegate could still support Gephardt at the convention.


"He's encouraged them to go with who they want to be for as well as telling staff that, and he's asked Missouri voters to vote for a candidate," Norton said.


In addition to the superdelegates, Missouri has 74 pledged delegates, more than Iowa and New Hampshire combined, who will be allocated on Feb. 3.


Norton said that he and Gephardt's longtime strategist, Joyce Aboussie, and other Gephardt staff and alumni have not decided whether to get behind another candidate. Two other Missouri Gephardt strategists, former Missouri Democratic Party Director Mike Kelley and former Holden chief of staff Julie Gibson, said Friday they had signed on with Sen. John Edwards (news - web sites)' campaign.


"He best closely reflects the ideals and values Dick Gephardt fought for," Kelley said.


Democratic rival Wesley Clark (news - web sites) said Thursday that 39 former Gephardt aides, mostly political and field organizers from Iowa, had joined his campaign.

[sharktrager]

Except a superdelegate is inherantly uncomitted, so he released people who were already free to go. Kinda like when Al Gore freed the slaves in 1994.

[trek]

Does this include his army of imaginary friends?

[sd-joe]

>> Kinda like when Al Gore freed the slaves in 1994.<<

Algore - busy fellow. Was that before or after he invented the Internet.