House of the Rising Sun[shine State]
Here comes Florida...
The endless campaign becomes reality thanks to the accelerated primary process, where the jockeying of states is shortening the time between the an election's end and the start of the process again. The addition of story-starved 24/7 cable news outlets and the real-time reporting of the Blogosphere can't help but speed things up, either. It's the beginning of 2007 and already the campaign has been going on for quite some time.
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TALLAHASSEE -- Florida took a step toward shaking up the presidential primary on Thursday, giving final legislative approval to moving the state's 2008 primary to Jan. 29 and bypassing a dozen other states set for Feb. 5..Moving up Florida's primary, which is currently in early March, would put the state's contest behind only the Iowa and Nevada Caucuses and the New Hampshire primary - and on the same day as South Carolina's Democratic primary.
As a New Hampshire resident, I look at all this and believe that very soon, the New Hampshire first in the nation primary will be a quaint happening from the past. And why not? I just came back from the Sunshine State. It is certainly larger and more populated than the Granite State. With a diverse population, ethnically, financially, and politically, they certainly shouldn't be faulted for wanting more "clout" in the electoral process. While I hope this never happens and NH stays first, reality must be at least considered.
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One thing that will be an interesting factor in Florida no matter what happens is taxes. The state is currently in the midst of a kind of tax revolt, where the property tax system is being questioned, with a good number of people and lawmakers looking to replace it with additional sales taxes. How will this play out in the primary? Will the candidate with the best tax message carry the day? And to what end? The same story notes that the move of the primary date might cost a state half its delegates...
Ah, the excitement builds. The "endless campaign"? I love it!Lisa Camooso Miller, a Republican National Committee spokeswoman, said Chairman Mike Duncan will ``unequivocally'' abide by RNC rules..``Any state that chooses to hold their primary outside the recommended window will be penalized half their delegates,'' she said.
