Electable
I was talking to David last night about the relative merits of the various Democratic presidential candidates. Although he and I both like Dean, David’s feeling now is that other candidates can carry more middle America swing states than Dean can.
That may well be true. As for me, I keep coming back to the idea that either any of the Dems can beat Bush, or none can. Either we’re just too far gone into insanity, and Bush wins, or we snatch ourselves back from the edge, and the Democrat (whoever it is) wins.
I don’t think I’ll ever get over the idea that this President, basically a joke when inaugurated, has gained huge support through national tragedy. He’s a failure by any objective measure, but it seems clear that a lot more people support him now than did in 2000. That’s scary and sad.
Love the new tagline…
Again, I’m talking from the outside, but I think Dean is very electable if his fiscal conversatism came out more. Those swing voters probably espoused what’s been traditionally considered a Republican value — government that spends within its means — which the current administration has clearly abandoned. Of the Dems still in the race, he’s the one, it seems, who still offers the hope for something better for America. What the media calls “anger” in Dean, I call “passion.” The other candidates are just big yawns to me.
But then, I don’t get to vote, so…
I think the fact that we’re looking at Bush vs. whoever-it-is indicates a problem. By this point, there should be an opponent whose name could be confidently placed after that vs.
Maurice: You explained exactly how I feel.
Jesse: Well there isn’t a nominee yet. But I would confidently put Dean’s name after the vs.
And what exactly is the “objective measures” you speak of?
Mosey: You don’t really want to get into that with me, do you?
I meant not confidence that his is the name that will be after the vs, but that his name can be placed there with confidence. That is, putting his name there because he can win. Which I completely failed to communicate. And am pretty well failing to communicate now.
Jesse: I knew that’s what you meant. And I definitely think Dean can win, if anyone can.
Oh, good. What you said in your post led me to misunderstand otherwise.
“Ach! I’m bad at this.”
Bush is so polarizing that I agree with you, Adam, that any or none of the Dems can beat him. Despite his “uniter, not a divider” blather in the 2000 campaign, Bush *has* divided the country. We Dems may disagree on whom to run against him, but we all can agree wholeheartedly that Bush has got to go. While I like Dean and have already volunteered & donated money on his behalf, I would gladly vote for Edwards, Clark or Kerry in November. It’s a question about what direction this country is going in, and you either buy Bush’s spiel or you don’t.
Sure Adam, let’s go. You wouldn’t know objective if it smacked you upside your sigma and took your confidence level. You haven’t said anything “objective” about politics in months.
Sowaht exactly are your “objective measures?”