Can the Age of Transparency finally be dawning?  Welcome the Super-Delegate Transparency Project:

From Jennifer Nix: A Little Sunlight Please: The Super-Delegate Transparency Project – Politics on The Huffington Post: Super-delegates should vote according to the will of the people-the popular vote — whether Clinton won that district or state, or whether they fall into the Obama column. Wouldn’t it be nice if we could just scrap the current super-deg count and say “Do-Over!!” Members of Congress should vote according to who won their districts. Senators and governors should vote how their states go, etc. Wouldn’t it be nice if they all planned to act like John Knutson, Maine’s Democratic Party Chairman? Not sure what you do about super-delegates who are just sort of free-floating party power-brokers. Anyway. Sadly, it ain’t gonna happen.

But, at the very, very least, it should be a completely transparent process. Which is why the Super-Delegate Transparency Project is striking a chord with folks. It’s a joint effort of my blog, Literary Outpost, Open Left, numerous other blogs and volunteers, and we’re drawing off the fine work being done at DemConWatch.

Imagine, a transparent process at a presidential nominating convention.  What a concept.

And with any luck and a lot of good grassroots organizing, a concept whose time has come.  In this particular Democratic Party process, some people think, and it seems reasonable to think, that both Hillary Clinton and Barack Obama have reason to be uncomfortable with the immense amount of power that super-delegates have.  Power can be highly intoxicating, and in a race this close there’s the possibility of one or more super-delegates enjoying the power a little or way too much, and wreaking havoc thereby.

I’ll disagree with our former governor, Howard Dean, chair of the DNC, that the party needs to avoid a big fight at the convention.  It depends on what kind of fight (and I think a close contest would be healthy), and for now, it appears the very closeness of the contest between Clinton and Obama is sparking this movement toward greater transparency.  That’s a good thing.

 And this is exactly how these things come to pass.  When people are threatened or injured by secretive, impervious machinations, that’s when they want to throw open the doors and windows, if not tear down the building completely, to let in the light of reason and accountability.   I think it simply impossible that any super-delegate’s behavior would not be changed with the knowledge that the whole country can look in on how they do what they do.  Even the most ethical of super-delegates is likely to monitor himself or herself more closely if the process is made transparent.

And that would be a very, very good thing.

Peace.

Deborah Alicen