Now House Speaker Andy Dillon, D-Redford Township, says he intends to hold a vote Monday on a bill that would reinstate the names of four presidential candidates who withdrew from the state's Democratic presidential primary last month.
If the legislation passes, Michigan will be poised to realize an improbable trifecta triumph: The first large-state contest in the 2008 presidential cycle, a ballot featuring all the leading candidates in both parties and an opportunity for every registered Michigan voter to participate.
What about the election reforms that the Senate Democrats proposed? Do we get those too? No answer yet, but it looks like the House Dems want to give this a go.
But Friday, facing the prospect of a one-sided rump primary, Dillon began counting votes, and by Saturday, he had decided to put legislation restoring the dropouts' names to a vote when the House reconvenes Monday.
"I don't know where Republicans are, but it looks like there's support" in the Democratic "caucus, so I'm going to put it up on Monday," Dillon told me Saturday afternoon. "That's my plan."
It has to be done tomorrow or Tuesday. That puts the Senate Republicans on the spot if those voter reforms are in the legislation. Won't that be interesting.
But Land, who has publicly expressed doubts that election officials could meet the Dec. 1 deadline for printing primary ballots if the Democratic lineup is altered, has privately assured Democratic leaders that her team can get absentee ballots out on schedule if the Legislature finalizes the candidate list Monday or Tuesday.
And what of the DNC punishment? Well, there is this...
New Hampshire, which also violated party rules when it rescheduled its primary for Jan. 8, will ask the Democratic National Committee to waive any penalties when the DNC's rule-making body meets next week, and Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., said Saturday that it would be hypocritical for the party to sanction Michigan if New Hampshire is forgiven.
Question is- will the voters forgive the four who pulled off? My guess is yes, for the most part. The anti-Clinton forces will have to. With Iowa so close, the others will have to make a strong showing here...
A Hail Mary as the clock runs out. Gotta admit, there’s never a dull moment with our lawmakers.