DNC Lays Down Law For FL And MI: Rules Or Re-Vote

DNC Chairman Howard Dean told the Florida and Michigan Democratic parties that they had two options for seating their delegates: wait to see what the Democratic National Convention Rules Committee says, or send voters back to the polls in a new round of balloting. Dean's statement:

We're glad to hear that the Governors of Michigan and Florida are willing to lend their weight to help resolve this issue. As we've said all along, we strongly encourage the Michigan and Florida state parties to follow the rules, so today's public overtures are good news. The rules, which were agreed to by the full DNC including representatives from Florida and Michigan over 18 months ago, allow for two options. First, either state can choose to resubmit a plan and run a party process to select delegates to the convention; second, they can wait until this summer and appeal to the Convention Credentials Committee, which determines and resolves any outstanding questions about the seating of delegates. We look forward to receiving their proposals should they decide to submit new delegate selection plans and will review those plans at that time. The Democratic Nominee will be determined in accordance with party rules, and out of respect for the presidential campaigns and the states that did not violate party rules, we are not going to change the rules in the middle of the game.

Through all the speculation, we should also remember the overwhelming enthusiasm and turnout that we have already seen, and respect the voters of the twelve states and territories who have yet to have their say.

Yesterday Dean had this to say to CNN's Wolf Blitzer about the rules governing delegate seating: