[I posted this originally on MyDD. I know there have already been multiple diaries about this here as well. My comments are mostly directed at those few die-hard Hillary supporters left who won't come to terms with the reality here, and I doubt there are many left here. But I thought I'd post it anyway to share my thoughts.]
Watching “Recount” on HBO brought back all the terrible memories of the 2000 fiasco and so much more. I was only 12 when it happened, and I’ll admit I was thoroughly confused by what went on. All I knew was that the election was very close and the U.S. Supreme court decided democracy just took too much damn time.
HBO did a fantastic job of clarifying that awful mess. It certainly wasn’t a feel good movie—in fact, it was more of a “feel like complete shit” movie. It made me pissed off again. How the hell did this happen? Voters disenfranchised by the thousands, non-partisan decisions in the hands of the most partisan of people, butterfly ballots, hanging chad, planted protestors disrupting vote count and assaulting a lawyer, election officials being tricked left and right by the disruption created by the Republicans.
But about 20 minutes after the movie ended, my frustration about what happened in 2000 came to an abrupt halt. It dawned on me that the situation we now find ourselves in is making those very same Republicans open bottles of champagne and celebrate the Democratic party once again shooting itself in the foot.Listen up! We can’t let this happen. We can’t let John McCain win. We can’t have Democrats ripping each other apart.
That Hillary Clinton claimed voter disenfranchisement in Florida is the saddest part in this campaign. In 2000, people were REALLY disenfranchised. They went to the polls and were turned away because their name was similar to that of a felon. Little old ladies were tricked into punching the wrong part of a butterfly ballot. And thousands of people’s votes were thrown out because clogged machines prevented their chad from getting punched through.
And yet, Clinton claims voters, who actually cast ballots were disenfranchised? She continues her campaign alleging that Democrats disenfranchise voters and Republicans do not. How truly sad! She sounds exactly like Joe Lieberman, who argued for invalid Bush votes to be counted!
Please, Hillary supporters, put this in perspective. I understand you were upset when people told Clinton to get out of the race when she had little chance of winning. But now she has almost no chance at winning whatsoever. And once the last primary ends, her chance becomes absolute zero, yet some of you advocate going to the convention!
If you take this to the convention, granting John McCain the best chance he would ever get at becoming president, then you have completely fulfilled the wildest fantasies of those nasty Republican operatives who STOLE this election in 2000. If Obama were in the position Clinton were in right now, there is no doubt in my mind I would be the loudest one calling for him to drop out.
We can’t do this. We can’t be the ones to give this election to John McCain. Please, for the sake of all those who died because George Bush became president instead of Al Gore. Please, remember 2000 when advocating a floor fight!