In a conference call this morning, Florida Senator Bill Nelson and Representatives Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Alcee Hastings promised a strong push-back against possible Democratic National Committee actions against their state. In advance of Saturday's Rules and Bylaws Committee meeting, in which Democrats are expected to take steps to sanction Florida for planning a primary on a date earlier than the DNC has allowed, the three said any move against Florida would disenfranchise voters.

Early states, said Nelson, "all of whom want to go in front of Florida, their state law allows their administrative officer to move the election" to another date. "That is not the case in Florida," where the Republican-led state legislature approved a measure moving the primary to January 29th. All three claimed Florida could not legally move their primary back seven days.

Nelson said he was disappointed with the DNC's moves, saying an agreement had been in the works. "I thought everything was moving toward a conclusion," he said. "Suddenly they are now talking about trying to punish presidential candidates coming to Florida, stripping them of delegates."

"We have worked diligently as a delegation," said Wasserman Schultz, "to urge the party to reach a reasonable compromise with us."

The claim of disenfrancisement, though, may not fly with courts, which have repeatedly ruled that there is a difference between primary and general elections. In court cases in California and Washington State, political parties successfully argued against a so-called "blanket" primary in which a voter could choose their candidate regardless of party -- that is, the voter did not have to register with a party to vote in that party's primary.

The argument hinged on the proposition that the purpose of a primary is to allow the party to choose their nominee, and that the rights of the party to choose its nominee trumps the right of a voter to, for example, cast a ballot for a Republican in one race and a Democrat in another.

If the court case from Washington is any indication, Florida could have trouble successfully arguing that their voters are disenfranchised by any actions either party takes against the state.

But virtually any legal action will take longer than the five months between now and Florida's scheduled primary, leaving open the possibility that courts could issue an injunction in the case. If that happens, Florida would likely hold its primary as scheduled, and the question of whether or not DNC sanctions could apply would be resolved between now and the Democratic National Convention in Denver, just under a year away.