by Frank James and Jason George
So what does it mean that Sen. Hillary Clinton “won” the Democratic Primary in Florida? Not much, since none of the Democratic presidential candidates campaigned there and no delegates will be allocated to her.
It was kind of a Potemkin village of a race, like the one in Michigan which also didn’t count on the Democratic side because, like Florida, Michigan moved its primary to an earlier date against the wishes of the Democratic National Committee.
A Potemkin race deserves a Potemkin victory celebration, and that’s what the Clinton campaign provided as Clinton thanked her Florida voters for their support.
At her victory rally in Davie, Fla., Clinton said her win – even without delegates – bodes well for her ahead of the Super Tuesday contests.
“This has been a record turnout because Floridians want to hear their voices heard,” she told her boisterous supporters.
Even though she won’t get any delegates, Clinton clearly planned to use it for its bragging rights potential going into Super Tuesday next week.
Sen. Barack Obama got huge momentum coming out of South Carolina last weekend which was followed by the endorsements by Sen. Edward Kennedy and Caroline Kennedy Schlossberg.
Also, given what happened in 2000 and how important Florida was then to the outcome, if Clinton winds up being the Democratic nominee, her appearance in the state tonight was her way to keep Democrats from ceding it completely to the Republicans today. So it was her way way to show Florida voters that she was simpatico with them. Maybe they’ll remember in November.