Taking A Stand: Democrats struggle to find a candidate
No sooner have we sworn one in than there’s already talk of who’s going to run for the White House in 2008.
The GOP is tossing around Dr. Bill Frist, Jeb Bush, Rudy Giuliani and perhaps even Arnold Schwarzenegger if they can get that American born clause removed from the law. Meanwhile, the Democrats are talking about Hillary Clinton, John Edwards and perhaps even a second shot for John Kerry.
There, of course, will be the lesser known candidates who come out seeing 2008 will not have an incumbent with the passing of George W. Bush’s second term. However, let’s not forget the lesser knowns often go on to win as was the case for former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter.
Speaking of which, do you notice anything similar between Carter and Clinton? Maybe an accent? I just wonder if the fact that the three Democratic presidents since John F. Kennedy were all from the South has escaped the watchful eye of the Democratic Party. The other president, if you will recall, was Lyndon Johnson who hailed from Texas.
Frankly, their selections for presidential nominees is something which has me wondering what in the world the DNC could be thinking. Year after year, they try to cram Northern liberals down our throats come presidential election time, despite the fact the three Southerners they ran in the past 40 plus years have each won, at least during their initial tries. Johnson was elected to a full term in 1964 and chose not to run again. Carter did lose re-election to Ronald Reagan but only after ousting Gerald Ford in 1976, and Bill Clinton would still be president if not for term limitations.
Yet, the DNC insists on giving us liberals like Hubert Humphrey, Walter Mondale, Michael Dukakis and John Kerry. Why? Is it because they are owed the nomination, kind of like Bob Dole’s Republican nomination back in 1996 which led to a slaughter at the polls? Or, is it that the party is so out of touch with the voters, and so liberal in its leadership, that they are naive enough to think they can pass one of these folks to the voters?
I think it’s a little of both. I mean the recipe for victory is right there in the red and blue states. Come on, Bush’s popularity was in the toilet leading up to the election. It was a race for the Democrats to lose – which they did by nearly 4 million votes – leaving a rare majority for the winner.
The voters have long told us they do not want Northern liberals or Washington insiders (senators and such) to be their president. They are big on electing governors from Southern and Western states. This goes all the way back to Kennedy.
Given this seemingly obvious recipe, it will be interesting to see if the Democrats make the same mistake again. Hey, Hillary Clinton will be more of the same if she does get the nomination. Plus, I genuinely believe the American people will not elect a woman to the White House, in this generation at least, even though I think a woman could do just as well as a man. Why? Because the women will not vote for a female candidate. If you don’t believe me, wait until 2008 and see if the DNC continues its trend of offering us unelectable candidates.
I guarantee you, a moderate Southern governor or even a conservative from the Midwest will give the Republican candidate a good run in 2008. But, by the same token, I wouldn’t be surprised to see the DNC offer us another liberal clone or even a recycled Kerry. If so, the end result will be another GOP victory, which doesn’t bother me at all. I just kind of like a choice on election day.
Duane Sherrill is a reporter for the Standard. He can be reached at 473-2191 or by e-mail at [email protected].