The Candidates
The Northern Mariana Islands held their caucus/convention earlier today and Sen. McCain was awarded all 9 delegates:
The first nine delegates to a national Republican convention from the U.S. Commonwealth of the Northern Marianas say they’ll all be voting for Sen. John McCain, although they won’t be able to vote for him in November.
Some of the delegates elected at a party convention Saturday said they’re convinced the former Vietnam War prisoner can deliver better times for the far-flung U.S. territories in the Pacific.
The islands are one of three Pacific territories each sending nine delegates to the convention.
American Samoa will award their nine delegates at their caucus/convention later today. Guam’ will hold it’s caucus/convention (9 delegates at stake) on March 8th.
February 23rd, 2008 at 3:24 pm
Kavon,
Thanks for the update man, let us know what happens with American Somoa later tonight, these del’s add up and hopefully on March 4th we will fly past 1191. Thanks again for the update!
February 23rd, 2008 at 3:29 pm
Kavon,
Also dont forget that Puerto Rico holds there convention/primary tomorrow and awards 23 Delegates. So with the 9 from Northern Mariana Caucuses and the 9 from American Somoa, that leaves 41 Delegates that McCain will collect this weekend, so not to bad.
February 23rd, 2008 at 3:44 pm
Barack Obama will lose in FL to Sen. McCain.
“In a potentially worrisome sign for the Democratic Party, their presidential candidates fell $3 million behind the Republican field in fundraising over the past year in Florida, a must-win state in the general election.
Defying a national trend driven by record-setting fundraising by Democrats Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton, the GOP contenders collected nearly $17 million in Florida, outpacing the Democrats, who raised about $14 million, according to a Miami Herald analysis of Federal Election Commission reports.
Democratic money dropped off in Florida at the end of last year after an uproar over the state’s early primary date. The national party stripped the state of its delegates to the nominating convention, and the major candidates announced a boycott.
The GOP took away only half of Florida’s delegates, a lighter punishment that didn’t stop the Republican candidates from waging vigorous fundraising and grass-roots campaigns.
”It’s only the beginning of what Senator McCain will do for the general election,” said Tallahassee lobbyist Brian Ballard, a major fundraiser for the presumptive Republican nominee.
McCain collected $1.3 million in Florida in January, more than any other candidate. Some Democrats are concerned that the GOP’s fundraising advantage and higher profile in the nation’s largest battleground state will carry over into November, especially as the nomination remains unsettled and Florida Democrats seethe over their votes not counting toward delegates.”
http://www.miamiherald.com/campaign08/story/428090.html
February 23rd, 2008 at 10:12 pm
Kavon, do you really have nothing better to report on? We all know that McCain will be the nominee. Get a life, man. Get a friggin’ life.
February 23rd, 2008 at 10:13 pm
I will go further, you are a NERD, Kavon.
February 23rd, 2008 at 10:23 pm
#4,#5 I don’t see you posting any interesting articles. How about putting some up on the blog.
February 24th, 2008 at 1:55 am
American Samoa’s 9 delegates are also backing McCain. The AP now puts McCain’s delegate count at 976.
If McCain wins Puerto Rico’s caucus tomorrow with more than 2/3rds of the vote, he’d need to take about 3/4ths of the delegates available on March 4 in order to clinch the nomination that day.
Puerto Rico apportions all 20 delegates to the winner, if he receives 2/3rds or more, 13 if the winner receives less than 2/3rds and only one other candidate receives more than 15%, and 10 if 3 or more candidates receive more than 15%. It also has three delegates who technically attend the convention unpledged.
February 24th, 2008 at 7:11 am
When I served as Senior Aide to US Congressman Ron Paul in the middle to late 1990s, the issue of the 19 US Territories was on the table. Alaska Rep. Don Young had a unique interest in the topic: He was Pro-Statehood for Puerto Rico, and wanted to formalize arrangments on America’s other territories.
In his home state, there was a raging controversy over the 5 Alaska islands that had been turned over by the Clinton Administration to Russia in 1993. The Alaska Legislature led by Majority Leader Rep. John Coghill even passed a near unanimous resolution condemning the Clinton Administration for doing so.
Ron Paul’s office got involved cause of one our constituents. The guy had a claim on the island of Navassa in the Caribbean, (20 miles off the coast of Haiti). There’s an abandoned Coast Guard station and lighthouse there, but nothing else except spiders, scorpions, rats and a family of goats. It’s been US Territory for over 100 years.
During my investigations and dealings with Young’s staff, I learned of two other abandoned Caribbean islands that the US has jurisdication over: Seranilla Banks and Bajo Nuevo. They’re more like glorified sand bars or atolls. But one of the islands in the Seranilla chain is actually 3 football field lengths long, and 100 yards wide. It too has an abandoned US Coast Guard post on it. The Columbians have a counter claim on Seranilla (though notably not Bajo), and back in the 1990s there were reports of them actually landing troops on the larger Seranilla island and taking over the Coast Guard station.
In the Pacific there are other obscure US Territories like Palmyra Island (1000 miles directly south of Hawaii), and Johnston Atoll.
We lost 5 other islands to the Nation of Kirabati in the 1990s. The Clinton Administration just handed them over.
But still precisely 19 US Territories remain as part of the US. Of course the biggies like PR, Guam, VI, Samoa and the Northern Marianas. But not much is ever talked about regarding Navassa, Seranilla, Bajo, Palmyra, Midway or Johnston Atoll.
Why not a Republican Caucus on these islands, or group them together, so that we can once and for all assert our sovereignty and assure that the Obama Administration won’t give them away behind our backs?
Eric Dondero, Fmr. Senior Aide
US Congressman Ron Paul (R-TX)
1997-2003
February 24th, 2008 at 12:22 pm
“There’s an abandoned Coast Guard station and lighthouse there, but nothing else except spiders, scorpions, rats and a family of goats … Why not a Republican Caucus on these islands”
Why, are the goats Republicans? I assume the rats … okay, I’ll resist the temptation.
February 24th, 2008 at 12:24 pm
BobH ouch!