I don't know about you all but I really, really hate the idea of our party's nominee being decided by superdelegates.
Not just because I think it wouldn't favor my candidate preference - Barack Obama - but because I think it would seriously hurt the Democratic nominee's chance of winning in November.
If we let Democratic officials choose our nominee rather than Democratic voters then we are going to be in trouble when it comes to independent and Republican crossover in November.
Now I know some will bristle at this line of thinking wondering why Democrats should have to take into account what independents and Republicans think when choosing a nominee. I understand that.
But it's absolutely something I'm going to consider because my father is a Republican. What's more, he's a reasonable Republican. Yeah I know that's kind of an oxymoron, but that's just the truth of who he is. He isn't a anti-abortion in all cases anti-evolution Christian fundamentalist and he isn't a rabid racist, gay-basher and he isn't a bloodthirsty warmonger.
He just likes sensible taxes and sensible spending and competent management and a government that expects people to have some personal responsibility. He's thought Republicans could always guarantee that until George W. Bush came along.
And he just hasn't ever felt like any Democrats got people like him or he hasn't come across a Democratic candidate charismatic enough to get him to think about switching over... until Barack Obama came along.
Yesterday my dad cast his first Democratic vote for president ever voting in the Illinois Democratic primary. It wasn't a vote against Hillary (though it may have been in part a vote against Bill) but it was definitely a vote FOR the kind of change that Barack Obama is talking about.
It was votes like my dad's that powered Barack Obama to win all 102 Illinois counties despite not campaigning in this state whatsoever and despite the fact that to be honest, Barack Obama hasn't really been doing that much for Illinois citizens over the past year since he's been doing so much campaigning for president. We voted for Barack Obama in all 102 counties despite not giving him anywhere near that level of support in his 2004 Democratic primary when he was going up against foes nowhere near as formidable as Hillary Clinton and John Edwards. We just think he is doing more for us as Illinoisans running for president then sitting in committees or personally answering constituent mail.
Barack Obama got my dad to vote Democrat for the first time ever because my dad really thinks Barack Obama is change we can believe in and this is a man who only came to be politically active because of hearing Ronald Reagan speak.
While the prospect of my dad becoming a Democrat is exciting, I can't get too excited because the day after casting his first Democratic vote my dad's relationship with the Democratic party is tenuous because he's worried about the superdelegates taking away the vote from us.
His assessment of the superdelegate concept: "So much for grassroots and power to the people."
How sad that a Republican has to articulate this point while so few Democrats are willing to speak out against it.
My dad doesn't like John McCain and isn't happy with the current state of the Republican party but if the Democratic Party establishment denies Barack Obama a chance at the presidency because he didn't win over the superdelegates though he had the support of Democratic voters themselves then that will confirm every awful thing my father has ever thought about this party and he will certainly not vote for Hillary Clinton.
And I can't blame him.