Let's Get Ready to Rumble

Hillary Clinton tells the AP she's ready to take the delegate fight all the way to the convention. And Mike Memoli of NBC News has more from Clinton's comments today from Boca Raton, Florida - otherwise known as Ground Zero of the Dems' Bloody Shirt Episode in 2000:

"To [not count FL & MI] would undermine the very purpose of the nominating process: to ensure that as many Democrats as possible can cast their votes, to ensure that the party selects a nominee who truly represents the will of the voters, and to ensure that the Democrats take back the White House to rebuild America," she said. "Now I've heard some say that counting Florida and Michigan would be changing the rules. I say that not counting Florida and Michigan is changing a central governing rule of this country, that whenever we can understand the clear intent of the voters, their vote should be counted."

"We believe the popular vote is the truest expression of your will," she said. "We believe it today just as we believed it back in 2000 when right here in Florida, you learned the hard way what happens when your votes aren't counted, and the candidate with fewer votes is declared the winner. The lesson of 2000 here in Florida is crystal clear. If any votes aren't counted, the will of the people isn't realized and our democracy is diminished. That's what I've always believed."

"I'm here today because I believe we should keep that faith, listen to your voices, and count every single one of your votes," she said. "If we fail to do so I worry that we will pay not only a moral cost, but a political cost as well. We know the road to a Democratic White House runs right through Florida and Michigan. If we care about winning those states in November we need to count your votes now. If Democrats send a message that we don't fully value your votes, we know that Senator McCain and the Republicans will be more than happy to have them."

It seemed for a while last week that Clinton had throttled back and was trying to bring her candidacy in for a soft landing. This week, however, she's ratcheted things right back up, and her remarks today are the clearest indication yet that she's ready and willing to push this thing all the way to Denver.

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