Cantwell supporting Clinton -- for now
Monday, March 24, 2008
By KATHIE DURBIN Columbian Staff WriterU.S. Sen. Maria Cantwell, one of Washington’s 17 Democratic superdelegates, isn’t ready to shift her allegiance from Sen. Hillary Clinton to Sen. Barack Obama — yet.
But in an interview with The Columbian’s editorial board Monday, she said the candidate with the most pledged delegates at the end of the primary season in late June will have the strongest claim to the party’s presidential nomination.
“I definitely don’t want the superdelegates to be the deciding factor,” she said.
“If we have a candidate who has the most delegates and the most states,” the Democratic party should come together around that candidate, Cantwell said. The pledged delegate count will be the most important factor, she said, because that is the basis of the nominating process.
Obama leads Clinton in pledged delegates, in the popular vote and in the number of state primaries and caucuses he has won. Most political observers say the party’s rules of proportionality mean Clinton has virtually no chance of overtaking Obama in the pledged delegate count in the 10 primaries that remain.
Clinton argues that she has won more of the big industrial states that Democrats must take to win in November and has momentum on her side.
Cantwell and Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., both endorsed Clinton several months ago.
Cantwell said she wouldn’t object to a primary contest that went into the summer if it focused on the issues facing the nation, but added, “We wouldn’t want to tear apart the party.”
“I think it’s important that we let it play out in June,” she said. At that point, she said, “I’d be urging my party to make a decision.”
On other issues, Cantwell said:
- She was disappointed that the federal stimulus package approved by Congress failed to include an extension of a tax credit for green energy. “I think energy costs are one of the big drivers,” she said. “If we were pushing $150 billion out the door, putting some of that into the underlying problem would have been a smart thing to do.”
- Winning passage of a permanent federal sales tax credit for Washington taxpayers will take at least two more years and possibly four. “You have to do it enough times so that people put it in the budget,” she said. “We got it for two years and now we’re working to get it for two more years.”
- Finding agreement among local governments about the design of a new Interstate 5 bridge across the Columbia River is essential to winning federal funding for the project. “Have the discussion and then seek consensus,” she said. “To shut down the discussion and then have it rear its head later, I guarantee, will get your project killed.”
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