After all this talk and hype about history being made in this election, what with the first female candidate, first half black candidate and the oldest candidate something has been lost in the shuffle.
Oh yes, the white man, who seem for the first time in the history of Western Civilization to be losing their power. But if you think that you're perhaps a tad naive- power keeps power and the white man still controls the show from behind the scenes, and no we're not talking about the Masons or Illuminati or Tri-Lateral Commission or some other organization that conspiracy theorist rail against but rather in that newest cabal "super delegates!"
from Politico
In an ironic twist to the historic Democratic nominating contest between an African-American and a woman, the balance of power may be held by a more familiar face: the white male.
Unlike traditional pledged delegates, superdelegates are unbound by the outcome of any primary vote or caucus. They are allowed to make their own choice for the nomination, and this year, the campaigns of Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton are aggressively courting their support in the event that superdelegate votes are needed to determine which candidate wins the nomination.
According to a Politico analysis, close to half of the 700-plus Democratic superdelegates who could end up determining the party nominee are white men.
One Obama superdelegate, a House member, had sharp criticism for the superdelegate racial and gender makeup, a reaction that reflects the sensitivities surrounding the issue.
“It’s still the old guard, the white men. They always want to control the outcome,” the superdelegate said. “But this time, they won’t be able to do it.”
That strong response could portend a messy intraparty fight in the event that superdelegates cast the decisive votes for the nominee.
The exact percentage of white males varies slightly depending on whether the penalized Michigan and Florida delegation superdelegates are counted, but the overall percentage is at least 46 percent. Overall, men of all races represent 64 percent of the party’s superdelegates.
Representing about 20 percent of all delegates to the Democratic National Convention, the superdelegate roster is composed of members of Congress, other elected officeholders and party officials.
The percentage of white male superdelegates is disproportionate to the share of white males who make up the overall Democratic electorate. According to a January 2008 national poll by Zogby International, 28 percent of Democratic voters are white men. Women account for 55 percent of Democratic voters.
But superdelegates have never reflected the diversity of the Democratic party as a whole, nor were they designed to. They represent the party insiders, a group that white men still dominate.Among the superdelegates, including Michigan's and Florida's, there are 28 governors (21 white men), 49 senators (33 white men) and 228 representatives (137 white men). Members of the Democratic National Committee are also superdelegates, and among this group, there is more diversity.
Many superdelegates were not surprised that there were so many white males in their ranks.
“Obviously it’s an imperfect system. It smacks a lot of the old state legislatures electing senators,” said Rep. John B. Larson (D-Conn.), an Obama supporter. “I do think you’ll see some kind of reform after this to make it binding with the majority of votes.”
Yup. Shed no tears for whitey, at least not today
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