I have been thinking a lot about the upcoming election, aswell as the 2008 one. I know a lot of people think Hillary is going for it in 2008,but her recent shots at Bush(harsh, and frequent) indicate to me that she feels she has a shot in 2004. Wouldn't that be something? Does she have a chance? The Dems are in a pickle right now I must say. Even if the economy stays in the crapper,the Dems don't have a real identity this time around. I believe the Dems are divided into two camps. You've got the conservative libs (ie Lieberman) who pretty much follow the GOP when it comes to defense and social security, and only separate on issues like health care and abortion. Then you have got the reactionaries (ie Gephardt, Braun) who seem to me a little disturbing. I sense a lot of resentment and anger by these ones. They seem to be really bothered by Bush's policies, and seem to do the opposite of whatever he suggests,regardless if it is right or wrong. They seem weak when it comes to defense, and i think that can only hinder them. Where would Hillary fall in these camps? I would say she's a mix of both;an intellectual reactionary. I do think she is all over the board when it comes to her policy. She has no clear stance on national security, but she is fiercely pro choice, and if Estrada ever gets into the SC, things could get interesting. Also, i wonder what my boy McCain's future is. Believe it or not, i was pulling for McCain in 2000 and i would like to vote for him in a future election. Some interesting questions arise when one thinks of the GOP in 2008. I know a lot of this rests with the results of Nov 2004, but it still is interesting. Will Colin finally take the plunge? I think McCain has every intention to run in 2008, and would thus pit my two fave GOPers against each other. I would really be torn if I had to choose between those two fellows. Any thoughts on this,or any campaign 2004/08 stuff?
Re: Re: Potential Presidents No it's not. First, she's a Clinton, so she has Superdave's vote. Also, being a senator from NY creates political clout.
Re: Re: Re: Potential Presidents Well she wore the pants in that house so why not? I would vote for her, I think she has bigger balls than Dean.
For the Reps in 2008, I'd be surprised if McCain ran. His health isn't all that great and he's been pretty far outside the mainstream of the party. If I had to guess right now, I'd imagine Frist and Jeb would strongly consider running and, as a wildcard, Rumsfeld. Plus the assorted Republican versions of Braun, Sharpton, and Kuchinich: Bauer, Keyes, Forbes, etc.
Rumsfeld is already in his 60s or 70s, I believe he'll be older in 2008 than Reagan was in 1980. Jeb Bush and Frist are good possibilities, as are Santorum (the gay thing will have blown over long before then and won't hurt Santorum among people that might actually vote for him anyway). Anyone think JC Watts might try to make a comeback as a dark horse (and I mean that in a non-racist way) candidate?
You're young, so you probably don't remember that that was pretty much the case for the Reeps in May 1999, May 1995, and for the Dems in May 1991. It's silly to expect the Dems to be anywhere near as unified as the Reeps are right now.
Re: Re: Potential Presidents No kidding, it cracks me up to read press reports saying the Dems don't appear to have a candidate with Clinton's political instincts and ability. Where do these reporters think Clinton got his political rep? He got it by surviving the primary scandals and emerging as a viable, attractive candidate. Political skills in a pres. race aren't inate, they develop over the course of a campaign. It's way to early to be placing judgement on the political ability of these candidates. Clinton was supposed to be dead in New Hampshire, Bush was supposed to be dead after Michigan, etc. That they weren't speaks to the learning they and their staffs did about how to run for President.