The Ballot Brawl of 1924...

[Virginia Dare]

Puts things into perspective, we think it's nasty and divided now, here's a little history lesson. Back then the Party was dealing with Kluckers and Prohibitionists.

It's a long article, but well worth the read.

I like the part about delegates shouting OIL! OIL! anytime McAdoo's name was mentioned..:rofl:


Those TV yappers are in a tizzy about the upcoming Democratic convention. They keep jibber-jabbering about how neither Clinton nor Obama will have enough delegates to win the presidential nomination and they'll need to woo the high-powered superdelegates. They keep yakking about a deadlocked convention! Or, better yet, a brokered convention !

These young whippersnappers don't know doodley about a deadlocked convention. Most of them weren't even born the last time a convention fight went beyond the first ballot, which was in 1952.

Back in my day, Democrats had real conventions with real nomination fights that went on for dozens of ballots. It took 46 ballots to nominate Woodrow Wilson in 1912, and 44 ballots to nominate James Cox in 1920. Jeez, it took four ballots to nominate Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1932 -- and he was FDR, for crying out loud!

In those days, people weren't in such a damn hurry. They liked to vote for their state's "favorite son" candidate for a few ballots just to show some local pride. In 1932, FDR's campaign manager asked Sam Rayburn, who was the campaign manager for John Nance Garner of Texas, if he could get the Texas delegation to vote for FDR after the first ballot.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2008/03/03/AR2008030303277.html

[Drum]

1. Whoa...perspective. I almost didn't recognize it.

:thumbsup: Thanks, Virginia Dare...that's damned refreshing!

Recommended.

[KharmaTrain]

2. It's A Whole Different Time And System...

The last time I remember a nomination going to a second ballot (and others here feel free to correct), was the VP nomination at the '68 convention. The rules for the past 50 years have been set to avoid the "smoke-filled" rooms and party-boss politics...that's why primaries began to become popular and why most the delegates are now selected that way.

I still doubt there will be a deadlocked convention...and that the party will do all it can to avoid this. Remember, a convention now is nothing more than a week-long political commercial. It's a poorly watched TV show that is supposed to show party unity in the weeks going into the general election. From listening to Dr. Dean, he expects a clear nominee to emerge...but, unlike past years where the nomination was all sewn up in the early primaries, this game is going late...but its still going to have a winner...and I suspect after this evening, the road will be a lot clearer.