Clinton pleads for time

Clinton campaign manager Maggie Williams put out a memo in which she casts the cause of keeping the campaign alive as an issue in and of itself, a kind of voting rights issue.

She lists the states yet to vote:

Together, this adds up to nearly 43 million Americans. Are their voices any less important than those of the citizens who have already voted? Hillary Clinton respects those voters and their right to participate in this historic contest. Their votes, along with all the others, will determine when this contest is at an end. It’s the American way – everybody counts in this country. The last time that we were told we’d better cut the process short or the sky would fall was when the Supreme Court stopped the Florida recount in 2000. But Chicken Little was wrong. What was true then is true now: there is nothing to fear – and everything to gain – from hearing from all of the voters.



I tend to agree with Steve Benen on this: This is only a subject a candidate talks about if she's forced to, and it's a second-order argument, one that has nothing to do with why she should win. In Giant's Stadium terms, it's just an argument for staying for the fourth quarter, rather than heading to your car to beat the traffic.

Full memo after the jump.

To: Interested Parties

From: Maggie Williams

Date: April 1, 2008 RE:

Millions of Votes Still To Be Cast

2008 is shaping up to be a great year for democracy. The ride to the nomination has been competitive – I believe exactly as our founders hoped it would be.

In the Democratic Party, fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Democrats Abroad and 3 territories vote to determine who will be our party’s nominee.

As of today, the citizens of 42 states, the District of Columbia, Democrats Abroad and 2 territories have had an opportunity to vote – and they have exercised that right in overwhelming numbers. But the citizens in Pennsylvania, Guam, North Carolina, Indiana, West Virginia, Oregon, Kentucky, Puerto Rico, Montana and South Dakota have not yet had the opportunity to exercise that fundamental right. Together, this adds up to nearly 43 million Americans. Are their voices any less important than those of the citizens who have already voted?

Hillary Clinton respects those voters and their right to participate in this historic contest. Their votes, along with all the others, will determine when this contest is at an end. It’s the American way – everybody counts in this country.

The last time that we were told we’d better cut the process short or the sky would fall was when the Supreme Court stopped the Florida recount in 2000. But Chicken Little was wrong. What was true then is true now: there is nothing to fear – and everything to gain – from hearing from all of the voters.

The simple fact is that this election is too close to call.

After 46 primaries and caucuses, by virtually every measure, Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama are neck and neck – separated by roughly 130 of the more than 3,100 delegates committed thus far and less than 1% of the 27 million-plus votes cast, including Florida and Michigan. Less than 1%! With hundreds of delegates still uncommitted, neither candidate has reached the number of delegates required to secure the nomination. And either candidate can reach the required number in the coming weeks and months.

This is indisputable.

No amount of editorials, articles, blog posts, calculations, formulas or projections or friendly, but heated political conversations can change the basic fact that either candidate can win. We have all been there before when the pundits have proclaimed that Hillary had no hope of winning. Hillary Clinton has been counted out of this race three times before – and each time, with their votes, the American people asked her to stay in the race.

Elections are important because they allow voters to decide how they want the big issues confronting them addressed. Millions of voters are awaiting their turn to answer the questions:

Who is the best candidate to address the economic, health care, environmental and security issues confronting our country? Who is the best candidate to go toe to toe with John McCain? Which of the candidates is best positioned to win the 270 electoral votes needed to become the next president?

This campaign will wait to hear from all of the voters.

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