Want to make history? Wait your turn

Remember how the states played the “Me First” game with the presidential primary schedule, leapfrogging each other to get earlier dates until they bumped up against the New Year’s bowl games? Well, some of those early-bird states don’t look so smart now.

They were counting on the presidential contests being 100-yard dashes that would grant them the honor of quickly and decisively anointing the nominees. But after Tuesday night’s developments with the Ohio and Texas Democratic primaries – which saw Hillary Clinton shatter the “inevitability” of Barack Obama, who previously shattered the “inevitability” of Hillary Clinton – it’s looking more like a marathon.

Clinton said as much in her Ohio victory speech Tuesday night, looking forward to the primaries to come this spring in Pennsylvania (April 22) and other states. “They want their turn to make history,” she said. “They want their voices to count.”

Well, yes. Doesn’t everybody? Except maybe Democrats in Florida and Michigan, who broke party rules by going too early in the primary season and were stripped of their delegates. Or were they? If the Clinton-Obama race remains this close, the “phantom” delegates could be the subject of a floor fight at the Democratic convention. Michigan’s and Florida’s voices may count at last – and get the last laugh.

For those curious about whose history-making turns are next, here’s the remaining primary schedule:

March 8: Wyoming (Democrats)
March 11: Mississippi
April 22: Pennsylvania
May 6: Indiana, North Carolina
May 13: Nebraska, West Virginia
May 20: Kentucky, Oregon
May 27: Idaho (Republicans)
June 3: Montana, New Mexico (Republicans), South Dakota
August 25-28: Democratic National Convention , Denver
September 1-4: Republican National Convention, Minneapolis-St. Paul