Expediency is often the father of contention. In a hurried effort to placate Jesse Jackson at last summer's Democratic Convention, Michael Dukakis and his forces ratified significant changes in the party's complex rules governing presidential nominating procedures. One alteration would drastically cut the number of superdelegates, party leaders who automatically become unpledged delegates. Another requires that all primaries and caucuses award delegates on the basis of proportional representation, as opposed to giving extra delegates to the winner in some state contests.
Democratic honchos fear that the new rules will make it even more difficult for a candidate to wrap up the...