(No kittens were harmed in the making of this image)

Today — the second Tuesday in March — is the day in years past that Florida voters would have gone to the polls. And in years past, by today the die would already be cast for one candidate from each party to be the presumptive nominee, making Florida’s vote a non-issue. But the Florida legislature changed our primary date to Jan. 29, and the irony is that in doing so, Florida Democrats became not decision-makers but bystanders in the entire process.

Florida Republicans, on the other hand, did pretty well. John McCain became the frontrunner as a result of the Florida vote, and Rudy Guiliani dropped out of the race, giving the state true input. Florida Republicans will also be represented at the GOP convention this summer, by half of the delegates they would normally have, but it beats none, which is what as of now the Democrats will have at their convention.

On rare occasions I find myself in agreement with the Florida Democratic Party, and whether to hold a re-vote is one of those times.

“It is important that we are clear about one issue. At this time, no suggested alternative process has been able to meet three specific and important requirements: the full participation from both candidates, a guaranteed commitment of the millions of dollars it will cost to conduct the event and a detailed election plan that would enfranchise all Florida Democrats, including our military service members serving in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere.

“The Florida Democratic Party cannot consider any alternative that does not meet these requirements. Indeed, it is very possible that no satisfactory alternative plan will emerge, in which case Florida Democrats will remain committed to seating the delegates allocated by the January 29th primary.

At the time we voted in January, everyone assumed a nominee would emerge at the usual pace, and he or she would simply recognize Florida’s delegates from the convention floor. But the competition between Clinton and Obama is impeding any resolution, according to Minority Florida House Speaker Rep. Dan Gelber (D-Miami).

Gelber said one obstacle has been the divisions among the two presidential campaigns.

”The problem is everyone sees the issue through the filter of what’s good for their candidate, and that’s a very hard way to fashion a remedy,” he said. “You’re never going to make everybody happy, but you can find a way that’s fair, that’s most participatory. It’s just that the supporters are so entrenched in what is good for their particular candidate.”

Maybe a neutral Democrat, say someone with leadership ability, should step in. Hmmm…who might there be? Oh yeah, the Democrats pay Howard Dean big bucks for just that sort of thing.

U.S. Rep. Robert Wexler, who chairs Barack Obama’s Florida campaign, said Monday he and several other members of Congress — including Hillary Clinton supporters — plan to meet with Democratic National Committee Chairman Howard Dean this week and urge him to act as mediator, a role Dean has resisted.

”We’re going to press him to press the principals to compromise,” Wexler said, referring to the two campaigns. “People are understanding this current impasse serves no one.

”Everyone understands what everyone else’s hard position is,” the Boca Raton Democrat added. “Now everyone needs to get off their hard position and compromise.”

Good luck with that, Bob. So far Howard Dean has been part of the problem, showing an anal-retentiveness few realized he possessed. His 48-State Strategy for Victory is a failure but he’s still ordering the voters of Florida and Michigan to their rooms to think about what they’ve done, and not come out until they’re ready to apologize. When is this bozo’s term up? I think I for one can last until then.